'We'll be ready for it' - confidence in The Real Whacker with Sandown conditions set to suit in Oaksey Chase

Patrick Neville is confident The Real Whacker can return to his best on his preferred ground in Saturday's Grade 2 bet365 Oaksey Chase at Sandown.

The eight-year-old, a general 11-2 chance for the £80,000 contest, was pulled up in the Cheltenham Gold Cup last month.

But his trainer believes testing ground was the sole reason for his exit before the second-last fence, and forecast quicker conditions at the Esher venue this weekend should contribute to an improved performance from last year's Brown Advisory hero.

"I couldn't be happier with him," said Neville. "He's in great form, he's fresh and he kind of had an easy week after the Gold Cup as he didn't go to Aintree.

"When we saw the ground was going to be good, we knew it was the place to go to. It's a nice race and we're hoping he'll get back on track. We won't take any notice of anyone else, we know our old fella operates on good ground and we'll be ready for it."

Trainer Patrick Neville pictured with The Real Whacker at his yard in LeyburnCredit: Louise Pollard

Before failing to complete in the Gold Cup, The Real Whacker produced two career-best efforts on Racing Post Ratings when fourth in the King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day and second behind Capodanno in the Grade 2 Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham the following month.

Neville knew it would be a challenge for his stable star to get close to the likes of Galopin Des Champs and Gerri Colombe at Cheltenham due to the ground, but he wanted to give him every opportunity to run.

He said: "It was an okay run, although the heavy ground was absolutely disastrous. I knew it was going to be but we just took a chance. If it wasn't the Gold Cup then we wouldn't have run.

"I walked the track on the Wednesday and it was heavy, but we had more rain on Thursday and it made it worse. He was in such good form and he came out of it fine, but it's been a long, hard winter this year."

A strong field of 17 remain in contention for the Grade 2 event on Saturday, with title-chasing Willie Mullins responsible for five entries.

Al Dancer: veteran set to take his chance at SandownCredit: Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images)

Another trainer hoping for a big run from his representative is Sam Thomas, who has entered veteran Al Dancer.

The 11-year-old ran close to a career-best when runner-up to Forward Plan in the Coral Trophy at Kempton in February, and Thomas has been thrilled with his progress this season.

He said: "I couldn't be happier with how Al Dancer has performed all season – he's been a superstar.

"Hopefully he can put in another nice performance, although we know it's going to be a very tough race. He's going to meet a lot of horses off the wrong terms regarding the weights but we're hoping for a good run."

bet365 Oaksey Chase (2.25 Sandown, Saturday)

bet365: 11-4 Ahoy Senor, 7-2 Jungle Boogie, 9-2 Journey With Me, 11-2 The Real Whacker, 8 Hitman, 9 Appreciate It, 10 Asterion Forlonge, James Du Berlais, 14 bar

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