Shantou Village may get step up in Cheltenham Festival trip

Shantou Village may get step up in Cheltenham Festival up in trip should the ground be good or quicker at the Cheltenham Festival.

Mulholland explained that if the ground is good he would be tempted to try the six-year-old over three miles for the first time in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle, as opposed to running him in the Neptune Investment Management Novices’ Hurdle.

After winning his sole bumper start and first two starts over hurdles, the former point-to-point winner tasted the first defeat of his career last time out when finding only Yanworth too good in a Grade Two contest at the track in January.