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Henry De Bromhead strives to continue his domination of British National Hunt racing on Saturday as A Plus Tard bids to add the Betfair Chase to his trainer’s mighty haul this year.
Not content with sweeping the board at the Cheltenham Festival with victories in the Champion Hurdle, Champion Chase and Gold Cup, the Irish trainer then saddled an historic one-two in the Grand National courtesy of Minella Times and Balko Des Flos.
Gold Cup runner-up A Plus Tard seems a perfect candidate for the classiest chase run in Britain since March and it is understandable why the bookmakers are keen to keep the gelding onside.
Sportsmail's racing expert Robin Goodfellow dishes out his tips for Saturday's meetings
However, this is very much the start of the road for A Plus Tard, who has finished runner-up on all three of his seasonal debuts, and it could be worth recalling that Gold Cup winner and stablemate Minella Indo was beaten on his comeback at Down Royal recently.
With that in mind, it could be worth opposing the ante-post favourite with track specialist BRISTOL DE MAI (Haydock, 3.0) for whom today’s feature is the primary objective rather than a stepping stone.
The galloping grey bids to join the greats with a fourth Betfair Chase win this afternoon, a feat managed by the imperious Kauto Star.
Beaten just once in five outings at Haydock — a defeat in this race two years ago — Bristol De Mai also boasts a terrific record fresh, winnings after breaks of 212, 226 and 253 days.
Some have questioned whether the drying ground at Haydock will enable him to operate at full capacity, but trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies believes the track rather than the ground is essential to the fortunes of his 10-year-old.
This year’s renewal is blessed with depth and no little quality, with Next Destination,
