Emma Lavelle eyeing Kim Muir Challenge Cup with Qianshan Leader
Trainer Emma Lavelle has set Kim Muir Challenge Cup as Qianshan Leader’s immediate target in next month’s Cheltenham Festival. The eight-year-old gelding could only manage to seal fifth place in the Sky Bet Chase, last month.
The Irish horse was not fluent in the middle of the track during the race, and failed to trouble the leaders. Jockey, Jack Doyle was also unable to perk up the speed, and as a result the 13 to 2 choice finished fifth in the list. On the other hand,
Calgary Bay sent at 12 to 1 clinched the title by picking up a near line lead.
Prior to his ordinary performance on January 28, Qianshan Leader was in great rhythm, sealing two consecutive victories. In December’s Chandler Handicap Chase, he displayed an excellent show to beat, Benny Be Good, by a neck’s margin. Keith Reveley’s
trainee was the 7-2 favourite, but could not challenge, Qianshan Leader.
That was his second back to back triumph, as he outclassed the rest of the contestants in the Pertemps Network Handicap Chase in November last year. After a couple of brilliant runs, his embarrassing performance in last month’s Sky Bet Chase was quite
shocking for his connections.
However, the trainer seems to have discovered the cause of the failure, saying that the ground might have worked against, Qianshan Leader. Nonetheless, Emma Lavelle is worried about what happened in the past, and said that Cheltenham Festival’s Kim
Muir Challenge Cup is the next big goal.
"Qianshan Leader found the ground a little bit softer than ideal. Even saying that he ran a super race to finish fifth and I have no doubt back on better ground he will be competitive off his mark [134]. My plan is to run him in the Kim Muir where
I think he will give an amateur a great chance," said the trainer.
Emma Lavelle is also hopeful of a good show by her other trainee, Gullinbursti. She shared that following his runner-up position in the River Don Hurdle, she is expecting the six-year-old to improve dramatically in the next outings.
She added: "He took a blow between the third-last and second-last and I have no doubt he will improve considerably for this run. This is a very smart horse who has a big future, especially when jumping fences."
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