JOHN QUEALLY reported Al Eile to be on course for a record-equalling fourth victory in the John Smith’s Aintree Hurdle this Saturday.
The nine-year-old has won the race three times in the past four seasons and bids to emulate the recently deceased Morley Street, who also landed the Grade One contest four times in the 1990s.
Al Eile also won the 4-Y-O Anniversary Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree four years ago and will be back at his favourite track.
His County Waterford-based trainer said: “It’s that time of the year again. He’s good, but it was looking grim in November. We’ve been very patient and we’re nearly there now.”
A ligament injury last year looked like scuppering his bid for a fourth success, but he returned to action when winning on the all-weather at Dundalk last month. Queally added: “We’ve had a trouble-free run with him since we started back with him at Chris-tmas. In December, the leg started to look okay and we decided tentatively to have a go and take our time – we haven’t looked back since then.
“It was great for him to win at Dundalk – he exceeded our expectat-ions. We thought he would run okay, but to win was great.”
Meanwhile Tom George will speak with Tony McCoy before deciding on which race at Aintree Nacarat will go for.
McCoy rode the eight-year-old grey to a superb victory in the Racing Post Chase at Kempton last month.
Nacarat holds entries in Thursday’s totesport Bowl and the John Smith’s Melling Chase a day later.
Connections are looking more towards the latter with Denman heading the 17 entries in the former.
George said: “He’s a definite runner at Aintree and is in the three miler and the two-and-a-half miler. I will try to catch up with AP (McCoy) at Newton Abbot and ask him about which race we should go for but we are probably leaning towards the two-and-a-half mile race.
“He is a fresh horse and working well.”
Nigel Twiston-Davies is in a similar position as to which of those two races Ryanair Chase winner Imperial Commander goes for.
Twiston-Davies said: “We don’t know where he’s going yet. He has the two options. We’ll see where the others are going and decide which we think is going to be easier.
“He’s come out of the Festival really well and we’re very happy with him. There’s not much rain anywhere. The softer the better for him, but as long as it’s not firm he’ll be all right.”
