Nicky Henderson has a strong chance of landing the Arkle Chase at Cheltenham in March with Finian's Rainbow.
The 8 year old was a very smart novice hurdler last season and finished fourth in the Neptune Investment novice hurdle over 2 miles and 5 furlongs at the festival. However he has taken his form to a new level since meeting the larger obstacles in winning the grade 2 Kingmaker novice chase at Warwick, he extended his record over fences to three wins from as many starts.
The win at Warwick came in what turned out to be a messy four-runner race, on ground that was a little sticky and may not have been ideal for the gelding by Tiraaz. However the fact that he still managed to win impressively was testament to his natural talent. At Cheltenham with a much stronger gallop to chase and a bigger field set to go to post, he should settle better and that is likely to see him show the true ability he possesses, and anyone looking to place Cheltenham 2011 bets should remember this.
Few trainers have a better festival record than Nicky Henderson and the master of Seven Burrows is sure to have the likely favourite fully tuned up for the big day and he seems sure to run a big race. Eagle-eyed punters may also be able to spot some tips for Grand National action, as one or two horses may be given a run out before the Aintree event.
As ever there will be a strong challenge from across the Irish Sea and the biggest challenger from that side of the water may be Realt Dubh. Noel Meade's novice has gone from strength to strength in recent times and has already picked up a pair of grade one chases at Leopardstown. Those wins though have been achieved on ground softer than he is likely to encounter at Cheltenham and although he is respected Finian's Rainbow may well have too much speed at the business end.
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