'We're confident in what we've seen at home' - Ahoy Senor on retrieval mission

Saturday: 1.30 Aintree
Boylesports Many Clouds Chase (Grade 2) | 3m1f | 4yo+ | ITV4/RTV

The old 'horses for courses' adage came to fruition last weekend with runaway victories for Paint The Dream and Zanza at Newbury, and one of Aintree's modern virtuosos returns to his favourite stamping ground in the Many Clouds Chase.

On one side of the coin, Ahoy Senor merits short-priced favouritism for this contest as both his Grade 1 hurdles and chase victories came at the Merseyside track and he is tip-top when on song. On the other side, he produced his worst performance on Racing Post Ratings since his novice hurdle days in an underwhelming reappearance in the Charlie Hall.

An SP of 11-10 to deny old foe Bravemansgame and several other smart chasers at Wetherby pointed towards Ahoy Senor's perceived readiness that day, but his early exuberance compromised his chance.

A readiness to entertain a short price about Ahoy Senor requires a degree of forgiveness and there are other course specialists the seven-year-old needs to beat to return to past glories.

Bar the rapidly improving Sounds Russian, who is weighted to give Ahoy Senor a race anyway, the remaining four runners have winning Aintree form.

Chantry House landed a Mildmay, Noble Yeats captured the Grand National after Sam Brown bolted up in the Grade 3 handicap chase earlier on that card and Dashel Drasher bagged a hurdle race here in November. A mere 4lb separates the six runners on official figures and each of Ahoy Senor's opponents have something to recommend them, in particular the two outsiders.

Ten-year-old Sam Brown is improving at a rate which belies his age and has recorded an RPR of 163 on his past two starts, the latter when having Ahoy Senor's measure in the Charlie Hall, while Dashel Drasher is another intriguing contender.

Jeremy Scott's stable star needs cut in the ground but has long shaped like a three-miler and gets the trip for the first time in a 22-race career which has yielded 11 successes over trips ranging from 1m7½f to 2m5½f. It is also plausible that this gritty, habitual front-runner could unsettle the free-going Ahoy Senor in the battle for early supremacy.
Race analysis by Robbie Wilders

'Ahoy Senor needs to put up a big performance'

The Many Clouds Chase will be a pivotal moment in the season for Ahoy Senor, as Peter Scudamore admits another no-show would force connections to lower their sights with the stable star.

Scudamore, partner of trainer Lucinda Russell, has called the two-time Grade 1 winner the best horse he has been involved with but he endured a major flop in the Charlie Hall Chase on his seasonal comeback this season when beaten 40 lengths behind four rivals.

The signs in Ahoy Senor's preparation are reportedly promising that he can bounce back here. He drifted to 25-1 in the Cheltenham Gold Cup betting after his Wetherby disappointment but has a chance to reaffirm his credentials.

Ahoy Senor: dual Grade 1 winner looking to bounce back to formCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

"If he brings his A-game he'll be very competitive but if he jumps like he did at Wetherby then he won't," Scudamore said. "We feel confident in what we've seen in home, so we're hopeful.

"He ran too free in the Charlie Hall, he was like a child in a sweet shop, he's just got to get his mind right. If he doesn't run well then we'll need to readjust what we aim for. He needs to put up a big performance, I know he can do it but whether he does is a different story."

What they say

Nicky Henderson, trainer of Chantry House
He's in good form. It looks a competitive race but it's a nice place for him to start. He likes a small field so that ought to help while the ground should be fine.

Emmet Mullins, trainer of Noble Yeats
He jumped great for Sean [Bowen] at Wexford and the pair of them seemed to really gel together. After the mishap in France it was great to see him come back and win the way he did. He's been good at home since then and we're looking forward to the race.

Anthony Honeyball, trainer of Sam Brown
We couldn't be any happier with him this season. He had a lovely run at Wetherby in the Charlie Hall and looked for a few strides like he might repeat his Aintree win before Bravemansgame got the better of us. I thought he'd come on for the run and improve a little bit more for the slower ground. We think everything's set for him to run a big race.

Ruth Jefferson, trainer of Sounds Russian
He hasn't done a lot wrong since he went chasing but he's gone up the handicap now and we'll see if he's a Graded horse. His form is reasonable and he hasn't achieved what some of the others have, so he'll have to step up.
Reporting by James Stevens

Read more of Saturday's previews:

1.45 Sandown: 'It's a Grade 1 so it's no giveaway' - Henderson on hot favourite Jonbon

2.05 Aintree: 'This has been the plan with him since March' - Becher Chase quotes and insight

2.20 Sandown: Love Envoi takes first step on path towards Mares' Hurdle at Cheltenham

2.55 Sandown: 'If he's back to his best he's the one to beat' - Shishkin returns in Tingle Creek

3.30 Sandown: 'We think there's plenty more to come from him' - key London National quotes

Fairyhouse: Can Champion Bumper star Facile Vega maintain unbeaten streak on hurdling debut?

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