JLT Novices' Chase 2016 - Festival Focus

Mai Time - The impressive Bristol De Mai can land the JLT.

Last year’s JLT served up one of the performances of the festival when Vautour slammed his rivals in scintillating style, and this year’s renewal of the novice chase at the intermediate distance had tantalisingly offered the prospect of another Willie Mullins star potentially lighting up Prestbury Park in Thursday’s opener.

Sadly though following his scarcely believable recovery to get back up and win after what ordinarily would have been a race-ending blunder at the last at Leopardstown Killultagh Vic has been ruled out of Cheltenham through injury.

In his place the consistently improving Bristol De Mai has taken favouritism and although with many running scared of Douvan in the Arkle this year’s race could be one of the strongest in a good few years, Nigel Twiston-Davies’ horse looks the rightful market leader at this point and I have no real desire to look elsewhere in the race given he looks a perfectly backable price at 7/2.

This race has been confirmed as his festival target by connections, in spite of an entry in the RSA, and his three wins over middle distances by a combined 45 lengths in winter ground would suggest he will have no trouble getting up that infamous hill.