Handstands set to roll on to Haydock

Ben Pauling remains keen on a tilt at the Betfair Chase with Handstands despite his comeback defeat at Carlisle on Sunday.

The winner of three of his four starts over hurdles, the six-year-old also enjoyed an excellent novice campaign over fences last season, winning Grade Two prizes at Ffos Las and Sandown before successfully graduating to Grade One level at the latter venue in the Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase in February.

Having been pulled up after being badly hampered by a faller at Aintree in the spring, Handstands was a 4-5 favourite for his reappearance in the Colin Parker Memorial Chase – but after taking a while to warm to his task, he was eventually run down by Olly Murphy’s bet365 Gold Cup winner Resplendent Grey, with three-quarters of a length the winning margin.

“He just looked like he was half asleep,” said Pauling.

“It’s funny but first time out last season at Wincanton (fell when beaten) it was on quick ground so we put it down to that, but he looked the same (at Carlisle). He’s there, but the lights weren’t really on.

“He didn’t make any mistakes but he was careful and deliberate at a few (fences) and he must have lost 10 or 15 lengths on the way round jumping slowly.

“When they’ve come to join him and they’ve go racing he’s jumped much better and he’s been literally nabbed on the line.”

Pauling is confident his stable star will be sharper for the run and while a possible rematch with Resplendent Grey in Newbury’s Coral Gold Cup on November 29 is not out of the question, the trainer appears to be favouring an outing in Haydock’s Grade One feature the previous Saturday.

He added: “He’ll come on a million for it and there’s no disasters. He came back A1 with his ears pricked and looked like he hadn’t had a race.

“I don’t think it will change what we’re going to do – we’ll probably still go Betfair and I think he’ll be a lot sharper for it.”