Ladbrokes Trophy winner Cloth Cap should be very hard to beat in this weekend's Grimthorpe Handicap Chase at Doncaster.
Virgin Bet Grimthorpe Handicap Chase (Class 2 Handicap) 3m2f1y
BEWARE THE BEAR
Beware The Bear hasn't tasted success since landing the Grade 3 Ultima Handicap Chase at the 2019 Cheltenham Festival. However, he is slowly slipping down the handicap and is now only 2lbs above the mark from which he was victorious on that occasion.
The experienced son of Shantou relishes a good test of stamina and build to carry weight in these competitive handicap contests. However, he also holds an entry in the Randox Health Grand National and may be using this contest as a stepping stone.
CALETT MAD
Calett Mad unseated his Daryl Jacob in the Grade 3 Becher Handicap Chase at Aintree on his return from a mammoth 693 day absence, and it's hard to know what to expect from the nine-year-old on Saturday.
The Simon Munir and Isaac Souede owned gelding looks fairly handicapped on the pick of his form, includes a half-length defeat in the Scottish Borders National at Kelso and a fine second placed effort in the Grade 3 Classic Chase at Warwick.
Both of those solid efforts came on decent ground and Calett Mad could go well if ready to do himself justice.
CANELO
Canelo boasts a very progressive profile in competitive handicaps this season and has been dropped 1lb since placing fourth in the Listed Sky Bet Chase at Doncaster in January.
Alan King's eight-year-old travelled powerfully and ran out a convincing winner of the Grade 3 Rowland Meyrick Handicap Chase on his penultimate outing at Wetherby and remains open to improvement over staying trips this spring.
The JP McManus owned chestnut is one of many contenders in this field who have the Randox Health Grand National pencilled in for April. However, he could run a big race in this contest en route.
CHEF D'OEUVRE
Chef D'Oeuvre was well supported in the betting prior to a poor showing over hurdles at Haydock in January, and he will need to show vastly improved form in order to feature this weekend, which may prove difficult on unsuitably quick ground.
However, his penultimate outing at Wetherby does offer more reason for optimism as he bumped into a progressive rival who franked the form of that success when going in again at Wincanton on Boxing Day. Sam England's ten-year-old will compete off the same mark of 125 this weekend.
CHIDSWELL
Nicky Richards' veteran chaser landed this race off a 3lbs lower mark in 2019 and will be very well suited by the decent ground on Saturday. However, he does need to bounce back from a brace of disappointing efforts at Doncaster and Market Rasen respectively.
Chidswell ran respectably to place third in the Listed Sky Bet Chase at this venue last season and a reproduction of that effort could see him perform better than the betting may suggest.
CLOTH CAP
Cloth Cap put in an exhibition round of jumping when making every yard of the Grade 3 Ladbrokes Trophy at Newbury in November, and he could take plenty of beating off a 12lbs higher mark if in the same kind of form this weekend.
The Trevor Hemmings owned nine-year-old simply relishes good ground and will take this race in en route to his primary target, that being the Randox Heath Grand National at Aintree next month - for which he is currently the 14/1 favourite.
Connections no longer have to fear the handicapper now that the weights have been revealed and Jonjo O'Neill's spring-heeled gelding could make hay while the sun shines.
JUST A STING
Just A Sting will compete off a rating just 1lb higher than his last winning mark and he looks set to encounter his preferred decent ground. However, recent form figures of FPP8 do little to inspire confidence.
The latter effort came in a 'jumpers bumper' at Kempton last month and was perhaps a 'prep' run with this race in mind. However, it's hard to put faith in him given that he hasn't troubled the judge since December 2019.
OK CORRAL
Ok Corral has been absent since landing the Listed Sky Bet Chase at Doncaster in January 2020 and will need to defy a 5lbs higher mark in order to make a perfect return to a action.
The JP McManus owned eleven-year-old remains lightly raced in this sphere with just six starts to his name and he has raced exclusively in class 1 company on his last five outings, so this does represent a minor drop in class.
The talented son of Mahler has won first time out previously and he could prove a cut above his rivals if fully tuned up on his first start for 406 days. However, he is yet another contender who holds an entry in the Grand National, and this contest should put him spot on for that primary target.
RED INFANTRY
Red Infantry was pulled-up on his return from a 448 day absence in the Classic Chase at Warwick and has since shown little reason for optimism in a 'jumpers bumper' at Newcastle and over fences at Doncaster.
Seventh in the 2019 Scottish Grand National - Ian Williams' eleven-year-old ran a fine race to place fifth behind subsequent Cheltenham Festival scorer The Conditional at Cheltenham in October 2019, demonstrating that he is more than capable of competing in good company when performing at the peak of his powers.
However, he has shown few signs of encouragement following his lengthy layoff and he turned eleven at the start of the year. It's hard to predict a revival in this company.
SINGLEFARMPAYMENT
Singlefarmpayment has frustratingly hit the woodwork much more often than the net over the course of his 31 race career, often performing well in competitive handicap company, but ultimately finding one too good more often than not.
However, the battle-hardened eleven-year-old has been far from the force of old in recent times and showed little encouragement when placing fifth at Doncaster in December. He is hard to support with any confidence at this stage.
SPECIAL PREP
Special Prep is 2-7 over fences and arrives here fit following two recent outings in jumpers bumpers.
Pauline Robson's nine-year-old hasn't been sighted over fences since April 2019 and will be presented with his toughest assignment to date. However, all three of his career victories have been achieved on good ground and he could have more to offer in this sphere.
Verdict
The progressive Canelo should have plenty more to offer over staying trips and trainer Alan King is enjoying a fantastic season to date. He warrants respect once more.
OK Corral is classy on his day but may be in need of the run following a 406-day absence. It may pay to side with the slick-jumping CLOTH CAP, who was a joy to watch in the Ladbrokes Trophy at Newbury and will encounter his ideal conditions once again.
Jonjo O'Neill is enjoyed a hugely productive campaign and this race slots in nicely with the Grand National in mind, especially now that the weights have been published. A bold showing here would undoubtedly consolidate Cloth Cap's position at the head of the betting for Aintree's showpiece event.
(Cloth Cap also holds an entry in the bet365 Premier Chase at Kelso on Saturday)
