Will festival hope Redicean be a beauty in the Adonis?

The Grade 2 Betdaq #ChangingForTheBettor Adonis Juvenile Hurdle (2.25) has a rich history of producing Triumph Hurdle winners. Since 1988 six horses have won both races, namely Mysilv, Katarino, Snow Drop, Penzance, Soldatino and Zarkandar.

Redicean, a general 8-1 shot for Cheltenham glory, seems sure to start a hot favourite as he bids to land the first leg of the double.

Unbeaten in two starts so far, both over the Kempton course and distance, he has done nothing but please trainer Alan King in the build-up to the Adonis.

“Redicean has won both his races there so far by ten lengths, and I couldn’t be happier with his preparation,” King said.

“He is stepping up in grade, but he schooled on grass on Monday and I am looking forward to this next test.”

Paul Nicholls bids for a fifth Adonis success with his two runners spearheaded by the four-year-old filly Malaya, the mount of Sam Twiston-Davies.

“Malaya has enjoyed a break over the winter,” Nicholls said. “She won nicely at Wetherby, and the ground was too deep for her at Aintree.”

Malaya holds an entry in the Boodles Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle at Cheltenham.

Nicholls’s other runner Grand Sancy, who will be ridden by Harry Cobden, is also rated a nice prospect, and the trainer expects him to give a good account.

The French-trained Beau Gosse looks an intriguing contestant. Anthony Bromley, racing manager for owners Simon Munir and Isaac Souede, said: “Beau Gosse is running in the Adonis as he doesn't want it really heavy and there has been unprecedented rain in Paris ahead of Auteuil's new season.

"The horse is ready for a run, having not raced since November. He won twice at Clairefontaine on summer soft ground, including a Listed hurdle.

"He has no Cheltenham entries and will be going back to France for a spring campaign."

Scarlet Dragon an intriguing newcomer for King

Alan King has two runners in the Grade 2 Sky Bet Dovecote Novices’ Hurdle (3.00), headed by Scarlet Dragon, a 107-rated Flat performer who has undergone wind surgery since leaving Eve Johnson Houghton.

“Scarlet Dragon is a high-class recruit from the Flat, where he was placed in Group races, and his schooling has gone very well,” the trainer said. “The plan had been to start him off at Newbury’s Betfair meeting, but he came up with a poor scope and we pulled him out, which was probably a blessing in disguise as the ground was brutal there.

“He’s obviously got a tough task being pitched straight into a Graded race, but we need to know whether he is worth a crack at the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham and the clock is ticking by.”

The four-year-old Ballywood holds Cheltenham entries in the Fred Winter and Triumph.

“Ballywood showed some form in France before he joined us,” King said. “He has looked straightforward in his work, but we now need to know what he can do.”

One who already boasts plenty of experience over hurdles – and sets the standard in terms of pure form – is the Paul Nicholls-trained Mont Des Avaloirs, third in Sandown’s Grade 1 Tolworth Novices’ Hurdle on his most recent start.

The runner-up, Kalashnikov, has since boosted the form by landing the £155,000 Betfair Hurdle at Newbury, and Nicholls said: “Mont Des Avaloirs ran very well in the Tolworth considering he never jumped a hurdle. That’s rock-solid form, and Kempton should suit him.”

Cyrname bids to give Nicholls tenth Pendil success

The Grade 2 Betdaq Now 2% Commission Pendil Novices’ Chase (1.50) may only contain four runners, but it is a fascinating affair nonetheless.

Paul Nicholls, who trains the likely favourite Cyrname, has a magnificent record in the 2m4f event, having won it nine times since 2006.

Frodon, a gallant third in Grade 1 company at Ascot last Saturday behind Waiting Patiently and Cue Card, won the race 12 months ago, and Nicholls appears to hold solid claims of a tenth strike via Cyrname.

Cyrname: looking to add the Grade 2 Pendil Novices’ Chase to his name on SaturdayCredit: Edward Whitaker

The six-year-old showed a good attitude when narrowly denied by Terrefort in the Grade 1 Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase at Sandown, and had previously landed a Kempton Grade 2 over Christmas by seven lengths from Shantou Rock.

Nicholls said: “He has kept on improving. He has won at Kempton and two and a half miles round a right-handed track suits him well.”

Alan King supplies the biggest threat to Cyrname – at least in terms of official ratings – in the shape of The Unit.

The trainer said: “We have declared The Unit for the Pendil Novices’ Chase, but we have also left him in at Fontwell on Sunday in case Kempton is off as he needs a third run over fences if he is to qualify for the Cheltenham handicaps.

“He has run two solid races so far and the better the ground the better his chance.”

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