British handler Tom Lacey has been aiming Kimberlite Candy at the Grand National for two seasons now and believes his runner in prime condition for next month’s Aintree centre-piece.
The nine year old heads into the event off a mark of 153 which sees him getting a workable weight against some of the better horses in the contest.
The gelding has been highly consistent over staying trips during his career and having been really lightly raced over the last years it seems as though a got at this race has been in the offing for some time.
Back in December 2019 he headed to Aintree for the first time in his career in the Grade Three Becher Chase over the National horses and was a superb second of 18 behind Walk In The Mill.
From there, in January 2020 he headed to Warwick for his final run of that season when winning the Grade Three Classic Handicap Chase over 3m5f by 10 lengths.
He was being aimed at last year's Grand National, but with it being postponed the team turned their attention to this seasons renewal.
With that in mind he has only been seen once to keep fresh and once again he was a good second in the Becher Chase in December, finishing in behind the veteran Vieux Lion Rouge.
Kimberlite Candy wins the McCoy Contractors Classic Chase by 10 lengths at @WarwickRaces and marks himself out as a leading Randox Health Grand National contender for Tom Lacey and Richie McLernon. #stayingpower
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) January 11, 2020
All credit to Captain Chaos for holding on to second place! pic.twitter.com/gZyFW0PUx8
Having only three runs in the last two seasons should see him fresher than most for this event and at 16/1 he looks a big player for the shrewd trainer.
Kimberlite Candy is said to be flying at home ahead of the marathon event and Lacey is expecting him to run a big race on April 10th.
(Credit ATR) “He’s very well,” said Lacey.
“He went for an away day (on Monday), galloped two miles on grass – and did it really well.
“You could just see in his eyes and his skin he’s really coming to himself now.”
“He is (good fresh).
“(But) I had him in a race at Ascot and I wasn’t happy with him (to run).
“Then we had him in a race at Kelso, and we decided to drop travelling overnight to race up there on a sharp track.“We decided, in a competitive race like that, it wasn’t a necessity.
“Yes, it would have been nice to have had a run. But not so if you’d gone and had a disappointing run on the wrong track, in the wrong race.
“We think he’s a dour stayer. In that grade, he’s going to be taken off his feet in three-mile competitive handicap chases.”