WISDOM

YJohn Shaw’s competitive race between four runners none of which looks out of his depth.

Black Corton is a strong little horse but I’m a little surprised he’s been left in, he’d much prefer some give in the ground.

The other three notable GAMBLING contenders in the race, Double Shuffle, Definitly Red, Virgilio will all like quick ground.

The conditions looks ideal for 2017 King George runner-up

OU know winter has arrived when the Charlie Hall Chase comes round.

For me the race is as synonymous with the words ‘cold,’ ‘wet’ and ‘dark,’ as they are with the term, ‘losing selection’.

Except it’s not wet in Wetherby this weekend, and that’s a phrase you don’t hear too often.

The last few times I travelled up to there it rained so hard all the bird droppings were washed clean off my car.

The dry conditions mean that the likes of Clan Des Obeaux, Bristol De Mai, Regal Encore and Thistlecrack have been withdrawn leaving a field of just four to contest this Grade 2 contest run over a distance of three miles.

Black Corton, Double Shuffle, Definitly Red and Virgilio are the horses left in the race and I’ve a strong feeling one of the horses from this group will emerge as the winner.

Despite there being a significantly reduced field this still looks a very

and I fancy Tom George’s eightyear-old to bag his first victory in nearly two years. The trainer admits that Double Shuffle was not at his best in two runs after the King George, at Aintree and Sandown, but thinks the ground was a factor.

He has been working well at home over the summer and surely has to be the horse to beat today.

A repeat of the run last Boxing Day should be enough to see off the likes of track specialist Definitly Red, Virgilio and Black Corton with something to spare.