Chris misses Amlin
Last year’s winner Captain Chris will miss this afternoon’s Amlin 1965 Chase at Ascot after being found to be lame.
The Philip Hobbs-trained nine-year-old ran out an impressive winner of the Grade Two contest 12 months ago before going down by a neck to Long Run in a thrilling King George VI Chase at Kempton on December 26.
He was due to make his seasonal reappearance in Berkshire this afternoon, but his comeback will now be delayed.
Captain Chris’ disappointing withdrawal means Paul Nicholls’ Al Ferof will be a long odds-on favourite to make a winning return from injury, with Nicky Henderson’s French Opera his only rival.
