The Grade 2 AON Chase has been rescheduled for Friday at Newbury. It was originally scheduled for last weekend but two horses suffered fatal heart attacks and the races were postponed. The Paul Nicholls-trained What A Friend leads the antepost odds for just five horses going to post.
Last weekend, the Nicky Henderson-trained Riverside Theatre and What A Friend was a highly anticipated matchup. Now, the King George VI runner-up will instead be in the Ascot Chase on Saturday. Without Riverside Theatre, this is a race for the taking for What A Friend.
What A Friend has only one run this season. The eight year old finished fifth in the Betfair Chase at Haydock in November. It wasn’t much of a return for Sir Alex Ferguson’s horse after winning two Grade 1 races and finishing runner-up in the Hennessy Gold Cup last season.
Second in the odds is Fair Along. The Phillip Hobbs-trained horse will be running for the first time since April of 2008. The nine year old has won three of his last nine races and finished third in the Champion Chase. A solid jumping performance on Friday would bode well for his spot in the Grand National.
Next in the odds is Nolan, who finished third in the 2008 Arkle and won a Grade 1 race in Punchestown but was then forced out for nearly two years with an injury. The 10 year old looks too past his prime to warrant backing. As for the last two, Carronhills wasn’t on the original card of eight last Saturday but trainer Rebecca Curtis is hoping her winner of two chases can finish well. Dance Island is the outside bet. The eight year old is trained by Ben Case and last raced in the Welsh National last month but pulled up.
AON Chase Outright Odds (provided by Ladbrokes)
What A Friend: 4/7
Fair Along: 4/1
Noland: 9/2
Carronhills: 20/1
Dance Island: 25/1