Racing fans will be holding their breath at Aintree tomorrow, 24 hours before the tape goes up on the Grand National.
That’s because the mighty Sprinter Sacre will be stepping into the unknown against some seriously good opposition in the John Smith’s Melling Chase.
The highlight on day two of the Aintree Festival sees the brilliant Queen Mother Champion Chase winner take on Irish hotshot Flemenstar and impressive Cheltenham Festival scorer Cue Card over a distance he is attempting for the first time over fences — two and a half miles. Though the manner in which Sprinter Sacre has blown his rivals away over two miles suggests he should relish the task, there is always a question mark against horses until they’ve successfully achieved it.
And in Flemenstar and Cue Card — his main challengers in tomorrow’s Grade One chase — he faces two specialists over the trip.
The first-mentioned horse missed the Cheltenham Festival because of a lung infection but his trainer, Peter Casey, says he has him in the kind of shape which saw him win seven in a row.
Cue Card got within seven lengths of Sprinter Sacre last year but has since flourished over the longer trip when winning the Ascot Chase and the Ryanair Chase — so tomorrow’s test will be no formality for the ‘Frankel’ of jump racing.
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