REINDEER DIPPIN handles soft ground and he could post a shock at the expense of You're The Top and Copper Bleu. Donald McCain's raider has raced on bottomless going throughout the course of his career and while unextended to see off average rivals at Hexham, he could not have done it more impressively on balance. You're The Top is likely to be a warm order from the Nicky Henderson yard. He is yet to encounter such testing conditions but with four wins on the spin and a rating over hurdles in the 130's it would not be difficult to see why he will start the price that he is. Copper Bleu has proved disappointing this term. His jumping has been sloppy since switching to fences and while possessing plenty of speed, he was guilty of losing many lengths at each fence due to his laboured technique. Mam Ratagan has more experience than most in this line up so he will be the benchmark for the assessor to judge the others by. Three promising sorts in opposition and Reindeer Dippin is the pick.
Reindeer Dippin 85-40fav (11-0) Made all, clear approaching 2 out, eased near finish, won at Hexham 2m nov chs (4) hvy in Dec beating Riguez Dancer (11-0) by 21l, 9 ran.
You're The Top (FR) 4-6fav (11-0) Tracked leader, mistake 6th, led next, ridden approaching last, stayed on well, won at Kempton 2m nov chs (3) gs in Nov beating I Have Dreamed (11-6) by 4 1/2l, 6 ran.
Copper Bleu (IRE) 1-2fav (11-0) Held up, headway to chase winner approaching 6th, hit 3 out, challenged from 2 out, mistake last, not recover, 2nd of 7, 2 3/4l behind My Moment (11-0) at Warwick 2m beg chs (4) sft in Dec.
Mam Ratagan 8-1 (9-9) Raced keenly, led to 3rd, led after 6th, headed last, stayed on flat but no impression on winner, 2nd of 10, 1 1/4l behind Consigliere (11-2) at Newbury 2m 1f hcp chs 0-145 (2) gs in Nov.
