Unibet Champion Hurdle winner Golden Ace is in line for the final prep run prior to her Cheltenham defence in Saturday's BetMGM Kingwell Hurdle.
The Jeremy Scott-trained mare disappointed on her seasonal return at Wetherby but has since won the Grade 1 Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle before finishing runner-up to Sir Gino in the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton on Boxing Day.
With Sir Gino subsequently ruled out, Golden Ace is as short as 5/1 with Sky Bet and Paddy Power for this year's Champion Hurdle although she is unlikely to have a straightforward task at Wincanton this weekend with Potters Charm, Alexei and Rubaud among her potential opposition.
The Paul Nicholls-trained Rubaud has won three times around Wincanton in the past, while the Nigel and Willie Twiston-Davies-trained Potters Charm got back on the winning trail when scoring at Windsor during the Berkshire Winter Million meeting last month.
Intellotto (Daisy Hitchins), Secret Squirrel (Hughie Morrison) and Kateira from the Dan Skelton yard complete the potential line-up.
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.
