Brendan Powell believes it could be worth rolling the dice with JPR One in the Ryanair Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.
The Joe Tizzard-trained nine-year-old opened his account for the season when making his first start over an extended two-and-a-half miles a winning one at Musselburgh on Saturday.
On the back of that victory it has seen the Jon Romans-owned dual Grade Two winner nudged up to a career high mark of 160.
Unlimited Replays
of all UK and Irish races with our Race Replays
Discover Sporting Life Plus Benefits
Following such an impressive success, Powell feels JPR One could be worth chancing in the Grade One prize over the same trip at the Festival on March 12, for which he is a general 33/1 chance in the antepost markets.
Powell said: “It was great to see him win at Musselburgh. Hindsight is a great thing, but looking back at it now he was going to struggle to get beat really as he was the class horse in the race, even though he had topweight.
“The step up in trip was a bit of a question mark in some people’s eyes, and ears, probably including mine, but if he was going to stay it anywhere it was around Musselburgh on decent ground.
“He is probably ten or twelve pounds below top class and he is always going to carry topweight in those competitive handicaps against younger horses.
“He has got an entry in the Ryanair, but I will leave that up to Joe and the owner what they want to do.
“It depends on what the ground is like and what turns up. If it is a race that could cut up you would roll the dice and have a go as it wouldn’t be the first time a horse like him has sprung a surprise."
More from Sporting Life
- Free bets
- Racecards
- Fast results
- Full results and free video replays
- Horse racing news
- Horse racing tips
- Horse racing features
- Download our free iOS and Android app
- Football and other sports tips
- Podcasts and video content
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.
