No prep race for West End Rocker before Grand National
West End Rocker is unlikely to be given a prep race before his participation in the John Smith's Grand National, to be held at Aintree on April 14, 2012.
Alan King’s 10-year-old holds entries both for Doncaster and Newbury this weekend, but the track conditions seem not to be suitable for the veteran sprinter.
Therefore, his connections are most likely to take him straight to Aintree battle for which he is 14-1 with BetVictor.
Trainer Alan King revealed that with the track both at Newbury and Doncaster expected to be too quick for West End Rocker, he does not want to take any sort of risk.
King stated:
"Newbury is definitely out and while I would love to run him in the Grimthorpe Chase at Doncaster, which has always been the target, I couldn't risk him on fast ground. We will probably declare and see how the ground rides on Town Moor tomorrow, but in all
probability it will be Aintree next stop.”
"There is nowhere else we can go. He does not like Cheltenham, so there is no point going to the festival and I couldn't possibly run him over two and a half miles," added the experienced handler.
West End Rocker made his last outing in December last year, when he sealed an emphatic victory in the Betfred Becher Handicap Chase at Aintree.
Under Wayne Hutchinson, the gelding was a delight to watch, as he outplayed Paul Nicholls’ trainee, Niche Market, by staggering 22 lengths.
Since West End Rocker is likely to make no trip before Aintree, he will step into the Grand National after more than fourth months of gap.
Yet, King is not worried, saying that this break will help his trainee be fresh and full of energy for next month’s big meeting.
W. P. Mullis’ Prince De Beauchene is currently leading Grand National’s betting card. The nine-year-old is 7-1 favourite with Paddy Power, while Skybet and BetVictor offer him 8-1.
Despite the fact that there are some dangerous contenders in the Grand National line-up, West End Rocker will have an obvious chance if he gets a soft ground at Aintree.
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