Aintree: Gerri Colombe comes into Bowl Chase in top form

AINTREE, England -- The 8-year-old gelding Gerri Colombe has a chance to duplicate his springtime record of 2023 when he starts favored in Thursday’s Grade 1 William Hill Bowl Chase at 3 1/4 miles at Aintree Racecourse.

Last spring, Gerri Colombe was second by a nose in a Grade 1 novices’ chase at Cheltenham, England before winning a Grade 1 novices’ chase at Aintree, his last two starts of the 2022-23 jump racing season.

Gerri Colombe races in open company this year, and is outstanding form, evidenced by his good second to the top-rated chaser Galopin Des Champs in the Cheltenham Gold Cup on March 15, a race that compares well to the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

The $317,000 Bowl Chase is the top weight-for-age steeplechase at 3 1/4 miles of the three-day Grand National meeting that begins on Thursday at Aintree, culminating with the Grand National program on Saturday. The world-famous Grand National, at 4 1/4 miles, is a grueling chase run under handicap conditions. Corach Rambler, a good third in the Cheltehman Gold Cup, was the 11-2 favorite in an expected field of 34 as of Wednesday.

Gerri Colombe has won 5 of 8 chases in his 12-race career, finishing second in three he lost. He has repeatedly raced well on yielding or soft turf, which is vital for his chances in the Bowl Chase.

Gerri Colombe, trained in Ireland by Gordon Elliott, is part of a field of seven accomplished runners in the Bowl Chase, one of four Grade 1 races on an Aintree program that begins at 8:45 a.m. Eastern or 5:45 a.m. Pacific. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.

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Shishkin, who has had a troubled season, is the best hope among British-based stables. Shishkin unseated jockey Nico de Boinville in the Grade 1 King George VI Chase at Kempton Park near London on Dec. 26 while leading two fences from the finish.

After winning the Grade 1 Denman Chase at about three miles at Newbury Racecourse in February, Shishkin was rated as a leading contender for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, only to miss the race after he failed to scope cleanly two days before the race.

The turf at Aintree was listed as soft to heavy as of Wednesday, and is not expected to change significantly in coming days. There was rain in the greater Liverpool area on Wednesday.

The Bowl Chase and the $317,000 Aintree Hurdle are richest of seven races on Thursday.

The Aintree Hurdle is run at 2 1/2 miles, an ideal distance for race favorite Bob Olinger. A 9-year-old Irish-bred gelding, Bob Olinger has won 9 of 15 starts, and 4 of 5 starts in hurdles at 2 1/2 or 2 9/16 miles. He has not raced since he finished a well-beaten second to State Man in the Grade 1 Irish Champion Hurdle at two miles at Leopardstown on Feb. 4.

State Man won the Grade 1 Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham last month, but is not entered in Thursday’s race.

Impaire Et Passe, third in the Irish Champion Hurdle, will have his sixth consecutive appearance in a Grade 1 in the Aintree Hurdle, a sequence that includes a win in a novices’ hurdle at 2 5/8 miles in March 2023.

Impaire Et Passe is trained by Willie Mullins, the leading trainer at Cheltenham last month with nine wins in 27 races over four days, including with State Man and Galopin Des Champs.

Mullins has six runners at Aintree on Thursday, notably the filly Kargese in a Grade 1 Juvenile Hurdle at 2 1/16 miles. Kargese was a game second by 1 11/4 lengths in the Grade 1 Triumph Hurdle at 2 1/16 miles at Cheltenham in March, losing to stablemate Majborough.

Only six start in the Juvenile Hurdle, a group led by odds-on favorite Sir Gino, trained by Henderson. Unbeaten in three starts, Sir Gino has not raced since a 10-length win in a Grade 2 hurdle at Cheltenham in late January.

Sir Gino was held out of the Cheltenham races last month after Henderson expressed concern that his stable was suffering from a widespread illness. Henderson, normally among the leading trainers at Cheltenham, had a quiet week, with only one third-place finisher.

Through Tuesday, Henderson’s stable had been abnormally inactive in the last few weeks, winning with one runner from four starters. Henderson told the press this week that Thursday’s program will be a barometer of the current health of his stable.

Thursday’s opening race is a Grade 1 novices chase at about 2 1/2 miles that drew five runners led by Grey Dawning, who won a similar race at Cheltenham last month over Ginny’s Destiny.

Il Etait Temps, third to the potential superstar Gaelic Warrior in a novices’ chase at three miles at Cheltenham for Mullins, and Ginny’s Destiny, are rated as Grey Dawning’s leading opponents.

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