Ballabriggs to make seasonal return on Saturday at Kelso
Last year's John Smith's Grand National winner, Ballabriggs, is all set to make his seasonal debut this weekend. The 11-year-old will be seen in the 2-mile 6-furlong Totepool.com Premier Chase, taking place at Kelso on Saturday, March 3, 2012.
His connections have lined up Ballabriggs’ entries like the way they did last year. In 2011, the veteran finished second in the same race ahead of his participation in the Grand National.
The gelding is determined to defend his title at Aintree and this weekend’s outing will be extremely crucial for the high status horse.
Donald McCain's trainee also has entries for Newbury’s Greatwood Gold Cup and Doncaster’s William Hill Grimthorpe Chase, but his connections are most likely to take him to Kelso.
After his brilliant victory in last year’s Grade 3 John Smith's Grand National Chase, he went on a long vocation. It was a great performance shown by Ballabriggs at Aintree last year.
He was among the leaders early on in the race, but his quick speed helped him pick up a decent lead. Despite making a slight mistake in the final stages of the competition, the gelding managed to sustain his dominance.
Following his marvellous run all the way through, he sealed an emphatic victory, outperforming M. M. Lynch’s Oscar Time by two and a quarter lengths.
Ballabriggs will face According To Pete in the imminent contest. Malcolm Jefferson’s 11-year-old is among the entries for the totepool.com Premier Chase at Kelso, where he will look to complete his hat-trick.
With a couple of back to back wins under his belt, the gelding in sublime form at the moment. His latest success came at Haydock, where he comfortably topped the chart in the Grade 2 Peter Marsh Chase.
West End Rocker is another high profile Grand National contender, who is likely to return this weekend. The 10-year-old holds entries for the Grade 3 Barbury International Supporting Greatwood Gold Cup at Newbury and Download William Hill From The App-Store
Grimthorpe Chase at Doncaster.
Alan King’s trainee made his last trip in December last year, when he sealed a fantastic victory in the Betfred Becher Handicap Chase at Aintree.
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