held up in rear, detached 6th, moderate headway from 2 out, never on terms
tracked leader, led 3 out, headed next, kept on same pace
tracked leaders, driven to challenge 3 out, weakened before next
led, soon clear, headed 3 out, soon weakened
held up in touch, headway 11th, led 2 out, not fluent last, ridden out
Leicester have been rewarded with a small but select field for their initiative in staging this valuable chase and Iron Man may be able to land the spoils and upset the likely favourite, Jack The Giant. Nicky Henderson's exciting prospect has landed two valuable prizes over hurdles this season and connections are confident of a bold show on his return to the day job. However, in the past connections have deemed good ground to be essential to his chances and with the ground already riding soft and further rain forecast he could be worth taking on at the likely prices. Bronson F'Sure is out of his depth and Butlers Cabin's long term aim is the Grand National which leaves the selection and Fundamentalist. The latter has never fulfilled the promise of his novice season and has it all to do at the weights but it would be dangerous to underestimate him. Iron Man has progressed in leaps and bounds in the past eighteen months, predominantly over trips in excess of today's, but he isn't short of speed, will handle the conditions and doesn't have too much to find with Jack The Giant on official figures. Therefore, he looks well worth chancing if conditions are testing.
Butler's Cabin (FR) 14-1 (10-4) Mid-division, 10th halfway, 7th 5 out, headway approaching 4 out, 2nd and challenged 3 out, led last, stayed on well under pressure, won at Fairyhouse 3m 5f hcp chs gd in Apr beating Nine De Sivola (10-0) by 1l, 29 ran.
Fundamentalist (IRE) 7-2 (11-7) Tracked leaders going well, challenged and hit 2 out, ridden to lead approaching last, driven clear flat, won at Ascot 2m 5f Grad Ch (2) gf in Dec beating Cossack Dancer (11-7) by 3l, 7 ran.
Iron Man (FR) 33-1 (11-9) Chased leaders, close up when fell at the 13th in race won by Mr Pointment (11-5) at Aintree 3m 2f lst hcp chs (1) gs in Nov, 19 ran.
Bronson F'sure 20-1 (10-12) Led, ridden and headed before 3 out, weakened after next, 8th of 16, 23l behind Basic Fact (10-11) at Leicester 2m 4f hcp chs 0-120 (3) gd in Dec.
Jack The Giant (IRE) 9-4fav (11-0) Always prominent, chased leader 4 out, challenged 2 out, driven to lead flat, gained upper hand towards finish, won at Ascot 2m lst hcp hdl (1) gf in Dec beating Alsadaa (11-3) by 1l, 17 ran.
