Nicholls trio primed for action
The Ditcheat trainer is mob-handed with Azertyuiop, Cenkos and Le Roi Miguel in Saturday’s Grade One contest.
“They are three nice horses. It’s a job to split them, really,” he said .
Azertyuiop was last season’s leading two-mile novice chaser, winning the Arkle Trophy at Cheltenham in March. However, the seven-year-old fell at the first fence on his seasonal debut at Exeter a month ago.
Since then Nicholls has been trying to get as much work into him as possible to have him razor-sharp for what looks a rehearsal for the Queen Mother Champion Chase.
Ruby Walsh, who rides Azertyuiop on Saturday, schooled the horse yesterday morning at Nicholls’ stables.
“He jumped very well and I couldn’t have been more pleased with him,” said Nicholls.
“Ruby’s going to ride him, Mick Fitzgerald rides Le Roi Miguel and we’ve still to sort out Cenkos.”
Walsh suffered a slight setback later in the day when he cut his lip in a fall from Whitford Don at Hereford. He gave up his remaining rides after the wound needed a stitch.
Nicholls went on: “It would have helped had Azertyuiop had a run this season, but he seems very well. We’ve done lots of work with him.
“He’s going to have a strong gallop tomorrow and Thursday morning. Hopefully he’ll be all right, but he hasn’t had the benefit of that run.
“Cenkos loves it round Sandown and Le Roi Miguel ran very well at Ascot the other day.”
Cenkos won the Tingle Creek last December, while Le Roi Miguel made a pleasing reappearance when failing by just a length and three-quarters to give 20lb to Iris Royal in the First National Gold Cup at Ascot.
There were no further entries for the race after it was re-opened until this morning, leaving the original seven.
Champion two-mile chaser Moscow Flyer will be bidding to make amends for an unlucky exit last year.
He unseated Barry Geraghty when hampered by Flagship Uberalles just after the fifth fence.
The Irish raider, trained by Jessica Harrington, has already showed his well-being this term by making a successful reappearance at Navan three weeks ago.
The Philip Hobbs-trained Flagship Uberalles, who completed a hat-trick of Tingle Creek triumphs from 1999 to 2001, will bid to regain his Sandown crown.
But Hobbs is fully aware of the task facing Flagship Uberalles.
“It’s going to be extremely competitive and he won’t be favourite, but at the end of the day with a horse like him there’s no other option so we have to go,” said the Minehead trainer.
The entries are completed by Martin Pipe’s Seebald and the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained Eskleybrook.
Tingle Creek Trophy betting:
Cashmans : 7/4 Moscow Flyer, 9/4 Azertyuiop, 5/1 Le Roi Miguel , 7/1 Flagship Uberalles, 7/1 Cenkos, 12/1 Seebald, 33/1 Eskleybrook.
Ladbrokes: 7-4 Moscow Flyer, 3-1 Azertyuiop, 9-2 Cenkos, Le Roi Miguel, 6-1 Flagship Uberalles, 10-1 Seebald, 40-1 Eskleybrook.
Paddy Power: 7-4 Moscow Flyer, 9-4 Azertyuiop, 9-2 Le Roi Miguel, 13-2 Cenkos, 7-1 Flagship Uberalles, 10-1 Seebald, 40-1 Eskleybrook.
