Abbey primed for Wetherby

Grey Abbey is set to bid for back-to-back successes in the bet365 Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby on Saturday.

Howard Johnson’s front-running grey was better than ever last season and his decisive performance in this race 12 months ago kicked off a tremendous campaign which culminated in victory in Aintree’s Betfair Bowl.

That win delayed thoughts of retirement for the 11-year-old and Johnson said: “Grey Abbey is in good form and this race has always been his early-season target.”