King on course for KG
Last season’s Cheltenham Gold Cup hero is firmly on course to bid for back-to-back victories in the King George VI Chase at Sandown on St Stephen's Day. The seven-year-old suffered a foot injury when finishing third to Kingscliff and Beef Or Salmon in the Betfair Chase at Haydock last month.
He had two nails from his shoe pierce his hoof wall during the race, but he pleased Taaffe enough with a spin on Tuesday for the County Kildare trainer to up his work yesterday.
“I was very happy with him, thank God,” he said.
“Obviously I’ll look at him again next week and take it from there.”
Kieren Fallon is to have a spell riding at Santa Anita this winter, according to reports from America.
The six-times British champion spent time in Gulfstream Park last winter before successfully teaming up with Aidan O’Brien. It is believed he will arrive in California in time to ride at Santa Anita on St Stephen's Day.
Although the Santa Anita season runs through to April 23, Fallon will return in plenty of time for the start of the European Flat season in March.
“He’s going to try to stay as long as he can,” Fallon’s new American agent Ron Ebanks said, adding that Fallon had been booked to ride Becrux in the $100,000 Sir Beaufort Stakes for three-year-olds over a mile on turf on Monday week.
Shaun Keightley has reiterated his intention to appeal against the three-year suspension imposed by the Jockey Club over the running and riding of Red Lancer at Wolverhampton in 2003.
“You have seven days to lodge the appeal after you receive the papers on the verdict, so it will be next week,” Keightley told At The Races.
The trainer was asked if it was the ‘last chance saloon’ in terms of his finances and he replied: “It is, but if you want to clear your name you have got to do it.
“If I was guilty, it would have been cheaper for me to hold my hands up and walk away.”
