Connections have said that the KG might not be the race for him but it fits in with his program have they not ? I agree as well. Don't see him as a KG horse at all.
Just looked up Henry's comments.....he said 'MI may not be your typical KG horse', so not as strong as saying 'might not be the race for him' but that's how I see it anyway.
There’s been fresh quotes today, far more assertive about his chances, and confirming him as aimed at the race.
He wouldn’t be going, if they thought the track wouldn’t suit - it would be a waste of a run at a key time of the season.
It looks the right move to me, Kempton over 3M is 12 seconds longer than Leopardstown over 3M (RP Standard times) and it’s Leopardstown where he Fell and came 4th mid-season last year.
Leopardstown may be the track that doesn’t suit him as much, and is 4 seconds per mile quicker.
“Gold Cup hero Minella Indo will have the gears to handle his rivals in the King George when he lines up for Kempton's Christmas showpiece under Rachael Blackmore, says his owner Barry Maloney.
Minella Indo was ridden by Jack Kennedy when triumphing at Cheltenham in March, but Maloney said Blackmore will be on board for the Ladbrokes-sponsored prize, for which the eight-year-old is a best-priced 5-1 chance behind favourite Clan Des Obeaux.
Minella Indo showed bucket-loads of stamina when winning the Albert Bartlett and the Gold Cup but Maloney believes the drop back to three miles at a quicker track will not be an issue and that he will strip much fitter as a result of his reappearance third behind Frodon in the Champion Chase at Down Royal six weeks ago.
He said: “Minella Indo definitely has the gears. If you look at him coming down the hill in the Albert Bartlett, Rachael was swinging out of him, he was absolutely flying. He's got everything. He's no slouch and we wouldn't be going to Kempton if we didn't think he'd handle the course.
“He's a real challenge to get fit because he eats all around himself in the off season. He goes a bit mad and then Henry [de Bromhead] is tasked with trying to get him back fit. He will come on a lot for his comeback at Down Royal and we can already see that at home. He's on the right track.”
Monalee, owned by Maloney and also trained by De Bromhead, was ruled out of last season's King George at the 11th hour due to the Irish government's ban on UK travel and the owner is not taking anything for granted with Minella Indo this time round.
He said: “It's just unbelievable to have a horse like Minella Indo. We are still pinching ourselves, to tell the truth. We really, really fancied Monalee for this race last year. Frodon would not have had a free run of things if Monalee had been in it. Rachael would have taken him on right from the beginning and that course would have really suited him.
Rachael Blackmore (right, on A Plus Tard) congratulates Gold Cup hero Jack Kennedy on stablemate Minella Indo
Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)
“The King George is such an iconic race that we've always wanted to have a horse good enough to win it. After we had to take Monalee out last year I can remember saying to Henry at the time that, if we could get Minella Indo there at some point that would be great. Thankfully, so far, everything is on track and all things being equal, that's where he will run.”
Much of the build-up to Minella Indo's return at Down Royal revolved around who would be doing the steering. At the beginning of the week, De Bromhead said Kennedy would retain the partnership before Gordon Elliott booked the jockey for Delta Work, clearing the path for Blackmore to continue her association with Minella Indo.
There will be no such confusion on December 26, with Maloney confirming that Blackmore will ride Minella Indo at Kempton, but no decision will be made for the Gold Cup just yet.
He explained: "My working assumption at the moment is that Rachael will ride him this Christmas and then we'll see what happens when we get to the Gold Cup. The probability is that, after Christmas, he will go straight for the Gold Cup. That will be the plan.”
Maloney added: “You can take it that we think we will be competitive at Kempton. We've very excited. It's going to be a tough race but, if our fella is on song, I'd rather be on him than anything else in the race.”
