DUAL Queen Mother Champion Chase winner Master Minded is on course to make his seasonal debut at Cheltenham.
Trainer Paul Nicholls is looking at the Connaught Chase on 15 November as the prep race for the ace two-miler ahead of the Tingle Creek Chase at Sandown on 5 December.
"He worked on Saturday with Kauto Star and worked very well," said Nicholls ye
sterday. "The race at Cheltenham is going to fit in great for him, as I was desperate to find a race for him before the Tingle Creek, which is his big target. I didn't want to run him in the Haldon Gold Cup (at Exeter today], so to run him there will get him spot on."
In the absence of Master Minded, The Planet Of Sound can confirm the promise of his novice season with a victory in the William Hill (Haldon) Gold Cup this afternoon.
Trainer Philip Hobbs has always thought a fair bit of this strapping seven-year-old by Kayf Tara and despite showing plenty of decent form over timber, he was always going to come into his own over fences.
His initial foray over the larger obstacles was a bit of a letdown as he could only finish fourth behind the subsequently disappointing Free World.
However, he won his next two starts, beating the useful pair of I'm So Lucky and French Opera, with plenty up his sleeve and he went into the Arkle well touted as a dark horse. He did not disappoint, either, finishing third in the two-mile novice championship behind Forpadytheplasterer and Kalahari King.
Stepped up to two and a half miles at Aintree he ran another solid race to fill the same position behind Tartak but the race maybe came just a touch too soon.
With another summer on his back, a massive run is expected with a workable handicap mark and ground to suit.
• Phillip Makin has been crowned top flat jockey of the season at Ayr, after taking his course tally to nine on Saturday on Starry Mount in the John Smith's Nursery Handicap. Clerk of the Course Hazel Peplinksi presented the jockey with a framed certificate and a bottle of champagne and he also won a stay at the Western House Hotel at the course.
"It's good to win this prize at Ayr as its one of my favourite tracks," said Maken. Richard Fahey won the trainer's title.
