Jonjo O’Neill’s dual Ryanair Chase winner Albertas Run is set to take his chance at Aintree on Friday in the Grade 1 John Smith’s Melling Chase, a race he won 12 months ago when completing a big festival double following his win at Cheltenham three weeks earlier representing the best of Irish racing, writes Elliot Slater.
The Trevor Hemmings-owned gelding is famous for blossoming in the spring sunshine, but having had a fairly torrid time of things during the winter (including when taking a terrible fall at Ascot in November in the Amlin1965 Chase), he went to Cheltenham last month appearing to have it all to do to even to be competitive in the Ryanair Chase, a race he had won in brilliant fashion 12 months earlier when beating Poquelin by four-and-a-half-lengths.
Prior to the off there was a flood of money for Albertas Run forcing his odds down to just 6/1 making him a top racing tip, the signs surely having been there that he had scented spring in the air and he duly stormed up the Cheltenham hill to beat Kalahari King by a length. Aintree also seems to bring out the best in the Accordion gelding and O’Neill reports his stable favourite to have come out of his Cheltenham race very well and is hoping he will give a very good account of himself on Friday as he bids to repeat his three-length win in the race last year when beating Forpadydeplaster.
Old adversaries Kalahari King and Poquelin are amongst the 15 runners declared at the five-day stage for the Melling Chase, other notable entries including dual champion chaser Master Minded, Henrietta Knight’s up-and-coming Somersby, the smart Tranquil Sea who missed Cheltenham but is reportedly fit and raring to go once again, Tom George’s useful Nacarat, and the grand old timer Voy Por Ustedes.
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