Cheltenham Festival winner Premier Magic is among a quality entry of 16 for Friday evening's Ineos Grenadier Mixed Open Hunters' Chase (6.35).
The £10,000 contest completes the second season of sponsorship by the four-wheel drive manufacturer, which committed to backing 16 mixed open races this season as a pathway to Friday’s finale at Cheltenham. Premier Magic (pictured above, winning at Chaddesley Corbett in December) would certainly add to the quality of the race after his planned run at Punchestown last week was scuppered on a technicality which was criticised on both sides of the Irish Sea.
Bradley Gibbs, who trains and rides Premier Magic, has also entered the talented mare Highway Jewel who won at Lydstep last month, although he says: “The plan is to run Premier Magic in the Ineos Grenadier Mixed Open race and Highway Jewel in the mares’ race. Premier Magic came back from Ireland last week and touch wood he seems fine.
“I rode him out this morning and he did a nice bit of work. I’ll play it by ear for the rest of the week, but he’s 99.9 per cent certain to run in the Ineos Grenadier final.
“Highway Jewel is in tremendous shape, came out of the Lydstep race in good order and seems as well as ever. I’ll also run Fier Jaguen in the two- or two-and-a-half miler, and Theshoddytradesman in the intermediate.”
Other potential runners in the Ineos Grenadier final include last year’s winner Dandy Dan, who 12 months ago held Caryto Des Brosses in second. The last-named is not entered this time, although three of his David Kemp-trained stablemates, Clara Sorrento, Law Of Gold and Rebel Dawn Rising, could join the line-up.
Dandy Dan (far-side, Lauren Keen-Hawkins) challenges Caryto des Brosses (Dale Peters) at the final fence before winning last year's Ineos Grenadier Mixed Open Final
Two classic point-to-point winners from this season are entered – Just Your Type won Yorkshire’s Grimthorpe Gold Cup for Max Comley’s stable, while the Tom Britten-trained Encounter A Giant landed the Lady Dudley Cup in Worcestershire on his most recent start.
Stratford winner Sine Nomine from Fiona Needham’s yard and the John Heard-trained Singapore Saga would also add interest to the Ineos Grenadier final, although they hold entries in the mares’ race.
Sine Nomine (John Dawson) finishing third at Cheltenham last season