DISKO DOWN FOR LEOPARDSTOWN
NOEL Meade has announced Disko will not take up his entry in the 32Red King George VI Chase at Kempton.
A dual Grade One winner as a novice over fences last season, the Gigginstown House Studowned grey made a successful reappearance in a Grade Two at Down Royal last month.
With Gigginstown already well represented in the Leopardstown Christmas Chase - formerly the Lexus - on December 28, there had been suggestions Disko could cross the Irish Sea for Kempton’s festive feature, but Meade is keen to keep him on home soil.
He said: ‘Disko is not going to run in the King George. It looks a very hot race and it seems stupid to travel over there and run into all those horses when we can run him an hour up the road.’
Should Disko line up in the Leopardstown Christmas Chase, he could well meet his stablemate Road To Respect.
Meade added: ‘I’d say the plan would be to run him (Disko) in Leopardstown and if the other horse runs there as well, that’s sort of immaterial. If the two of them meet each other then it’ll work itself out.’
Dan Skelton’s Ch’Tibello will not make the journey for the Ryanair Hurdle at Leopardstown on December 29.
The six-year-old made a fine reappearance at Cheltenham last weekend when beaten three lengths into fourth by My Tent Or Yours in the International Hurdle.
He remained in contention for the Grade One and a clash with former champion hurdler Faugheen at Wednesday’s forfeit stage but a minor setback has ruled him out.
Part-owner Ian Marmion tweeted: ‘Despite being left in yesterday Ch’Tibello won’t run @LeopardstownRC in The Ryanair.
‘A small cut on his leg meant a few days box rest and you’d need to be in the full of your health going over there.’
Meanwhile, officials at Leopardstown report conditions to be ‘absolutely magnificent’ ahead of the track’s Christmas Festival. An array of stars are set to grace the Foxrock track over the course of the four days, including the likes of Apple’s Jade, Sizing John and Faugheen.
Leopardstown’s chief executive Pat Keogh is eagerly awaiting the start of racing on St Stephen’s Day.
He said: ‘The ground is yielding at the moment and I have to say the track looks absolutely magnificent. We’ve not had any National Hunt racing since March. One of the great benefits of not having any jumps racing here before Christmas is we can produce fresh ground and we have a great covering of grass.
‘There is a little bit of rain forecast for Christmas day and that could change the going to yielding to soft, depending on how much we get.
He added: ‘It’s great racing and I think we’re very balanced across the four days. We have seven Grade One races and you’ll have stars running every day.
‘All the races look very deep and they all look like being big fields with the exception of the Ryanair Hurdle, with Faugheen probably scaring a few horses.
‘With the racing here in Ireland and at Kempton in England, we have a feast of racing to look forward to. I think we’ll have proper National Hunt weather for the four days.’