A former eventer turned chaser named Maximize has caught the public’s imagination as a hefty gamble in the Racing Post Chase at Kempton on Saturday.
Before he turned his hand to the National Hunt game Maximize was evented by Ian Stark and this is a great opportunity for him to put his jumping experienceto good use against last year’s winner Gunther McBride and the progressive La Landiere.
Backed from 20-1 to 8-1 third favourite, the Henrietta Knight-trained Maximize is at his best on the fast ground he should find on the Sunbury course.
He beat some decent aspiring chasers over the course two Christmases ago and is on a handy weight with 10st 10lb.
It may be significant that Richard Johnson has elected to team up with Gunther McBride in preference to Richard Phillips’s gutsy and talented mare La Landiere.
Jonjo O’Neill should strengthen his Cheltenham team with East Tycoon in the Juvenile Novices’ Hurdle. East Tycoon created a big impression with an impressive winning debut at Doncaster and could be heading for the top.
Henry Daly has done a great job in bringing Hand Inn Hand along this season and his exciting young chaser can book his ticket for Cheltenham’s Arkle Trophy in the opening Racing Post Pendil Novices’ Chase.
It may pay to take a chance with Battle Warning, trained in Wales by Peter Bowen, in the coral.uk Handicap Hurdle.
