Paul Nicholls has confirmed that exciting prospect No Drama This End is on course to tackle the Weatherbys Champion Bumper at the Cheltenham Festival.
The son of Walk In The Park went into the notebooks of many when running out an impressive three and a half length winner on his debut under rules at Warwick on New Year’s Eve.
In the immediate aftermath of that race the Ditcheat handler suggested he might take a more low key route with the five year old gelding, who is owned by the McNeill Family together with the late Paul Barber’s sons Chris and Giles Barber.
However, the 14-time champion trainer has now had a change of heart and will instead aim No Drama This End at the Grade One prize on Wednesday March 12, for which he is currently a general 14/1 chance.
Nicholls said: “No Drama This End will go to Cheltenham now. There is only one way to find out if he is up to it and that is by running him in it.
“I could go somewhere and win another small race with him, but what are we going to prove by doing that?
“We will probably go to Cheltenham and then finish him until next season when he will then go novice hurdling. He is a very nice horse for the future.”
And Nicholls hinted that leading Randox Grand National contender Kandoo Kid could take in the Ladbrokes Trophy Handicap Chase at Kempton later this month on route to an outing over the famous Aintree fences on April 5.
The Michael Geoghegen-owned eight year old has not been seen out since making a triumphant return to action in the Coral Gold Cup at Newbury back in November.
Nicholls said: “If I run Kandoo Kid before the Grand National then the Ladbrokes Trophy would be the race that I would run him in.
“There is also the Greatwood Gold Cup at Newbury over two and a half miles as well, but out of the two I would probably go to Kempton. He is very well and I’m very happy with him."
As it stands Nicholls currently sits more than £500,000 behind his former assistant Dan Skelton in this season's Jump Trainers’ Championship title race.
However, while acknowledging he faces a tall order in securing the title, for a record equalling 15th time, Nicholls insists he will keep on tipping away.
He added: “I can’t see it happening this season, and it might take a couple of years before we get a team together that we can do it, but you never know.
"If I won the Grand National this year with Kandoo Kid it would make it interesting. I’ve come out of the dark before and won the Grand National with Neptune Collonges so there is still a long way to go yet.”
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