The £250,000 Ladbrokes King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day is usually one of the highlights of the season and this year’s edition seems certain to be no exception.
There’s no Desert Orchid or Kauto Star towering over the opposition but the cast makes for an intriguing festive puzzle, having between them won 22 Grade One races.
Bookmakers are going 7-2 the field and that reflects the open nature of the 3m feature.
Eleven runners have been declared, with England (four runners), Ireland (four), and France (three) all represented. If they all stand their ground, it will be the biggest field since 2009.
Barney Clifford, clerk of the course at Kempton, said on Monday morning the ground is a mix of good, good to soft with plenty of moisture in it. He is delighted with conditions and expects goodish going for the big race.
Here’s a guide to all the contenders with RaceiQ clues thrown in for good measure.
Ten of the best King George winners - enjoy our montage
🇮🇪 1 BANBRIDGE
Official Rating: 165. Grade One wins: 2. Odds: 6-1
Has done most of his racing at up to 2m 4f
even though his other entries over Christmas include another Grade One contest in the 2m 1f Paddy’s Rewards Chase at Leopardstown.
Banbridge took the scalp of Captain Guinness, the champion two-mile chaser, at the Punchestown Festival and was making a bold attempt to concede 10lb to Energumene in the Hilly Way at Cork (2m) last time, only for that horse to jump across him at the final fence and his jockey to be unseated.
He's a fine jumper (see below) who has got winning form at Kempton, landing the Silviniaco Conti Chase over an extended 2m 4f in January. Frodon won that race in 2020 before landing the King George later in the year.
There is a stamina on the dam's side of his pedigree and, well served by decent ground, his connections will be encouraged by the dryish weather forecasts.
RaceiQ clue: He’s a superb jumper, with his past six Jump Index scores being between 8.1 and 8.9. His stride hit a maximum 7.29 metres last time – the longest among the seven runners.
Get top tips for the days ahead from the On The Wire team
🏴 2 BRAVEMANSGAME
Official Rating: 159. Grade One wins: 3. Odds: 20-1.
His rating soared to 172 after his wide-margin victory in the 2022 King George but he has not won since and a series of tough races, which included a great tussle with Galopin Des Champs in the Cheltenham Gold Cup on his next start, seem to have sapped some of his spirit.
Was unable to fend off Hewick when defending his crown 12 months ago and you could argue he’s run a bit worse with each subsequent run, including when third behind Royale Pagaille and Grey Dawning in the Betfair Chase last time.
I’m not sure he was helped by first-time blinkers at Haydock – his jumping seemed to suffer – but it sounds as if the headgear is going to be retained.
RaceiQ clue: His jumping was once regarded as one of his main weapons but his figures over the past year have been nothing special. Lost ten lengths at Haydock last time.
🇮🇪 3 CORBETTS CROSS
Official Rating: 166. Grade One wins: 0. Odds: 8-1.
Owner JP McManus has a string of leading staying chasers for this season and Corbetts Cross and Spillane’s Tower represent here, although Emmet Mullins warned on Monday that the former could miss the race if the ground is deemed to dry.
The mud-loving Corbetts Cross had a mixed time as a novice last term but put it all together when running away with the National Hunt Chase at Cheltenham in March. That was over 3m 6f, showing off his stamina reserves, but he is versatile regards trip.
The market pointed to him needing his comeback run at Wexford and that’s how it panned out, plus he faced no easy task conceding 15lb to the smart Heart Wood. Expect a sharper model on this occasion, if he lines up.
RaceiQ clue: Earned a score of just 6.3 for his jumping at Wexford and will need to be much sharper.
🇮🇪 4 ENVOI ALLEN
Official Rating: 164. Grade One wins: 9. Odds: 10-1.
He’s been a fabulous horse over the past seven years, chalking up 16 wins from his 27 races and scooping a few pounds shy of £1 million in prize money. His ninth Grade One triumph was achieved at his beloved Down Royal early last month, when he edged out Hewick by half a length despite that rival possibly having an edge in race fitness.
Envoi Allen disappointed in this race two years ago but don’t get too hung up on that as he clearly was not right that day. It could be that, rising 11, his window has passed, although his latest effort indicates there is still plenty of fire in his belly.
RaceiQ clue: Nudged almost 38mph in the latter stages at Down Royal last time and beat Hewick despite that horse gaining 6.74 lengths on him in the jumping department.
Enjoy the Desert Orchid story
🇫🇷 5 GENERAL EN CHEF
Official Rating: 148. Grade One wins: 0. Odds: 100-1.
Four French-trained runners landed the King George between 1987 and 2000. Challengers from their shores have since been scarce but stablemates General En Chef and Il Est Francais could help spice things up this time.
The former languishes among the big outsiders after his fourth in the Coral Gold Trophy at Newbury last time off a mark of 148 but he looked betrayed by a lack of stamina that day.
He had looked much the most likely winner between that last two fences, hinting that 3m around Kempton will suit him better. General En Chef was also a good third in the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris in May and, re-equipped with a hood and with cheekpieces added, he appeals as the type to outrun massive odds.
RaceiQ clue: Clocked the quickest sectionals in furlongs 23 and 24 at Newbury but six horses were quicker than him in the final furlong as his stamina seemed to drain away.
🏴 6 GREY DAWNING
Official Rating: 165. Grade One wins: 1. Odds: 7-2.
Developed into one of last season’s top novices, with the highlight being his tenacious triumph in the Turners over 2m 4f at Cheltenham.
He’s long hinted 3m and further would show him in an even better light and he went a long way to confirming that when a two-length runner-up to Royale Pagaille in the Betfair Chase at Haydock. Grey Dawning looked to have the race at his mercy when hitting the front going to the last but a ponderous leap at the final fence opened the door for Royale Pagaille to rally and retain his crown. Read more about that by
.
Dan Skelton’s snap reaction was that his rising start would need a break after that attritional encounter – it was the slowest Betfair Chase ever run and slower than all renewals of the Cheltenham Gold Cup going back to 1990 – but he quickly revised that opinion.
Grey Dawning’s best form has been on left-hand tracks (and he tends to edge that way over his jumps) but he’s not had many opportunities to show what he can do going right-handed. He won a handicap hurdle at Kempton’s Christmas meeting two years ago, although he was only workmanlike in defying a mark of just 122.
RaceiQ clue: His jumping was measured as 9/10 when winning at Cheltenham in March. He gained 12 lengths with his leaping that day.
🇫🇷 7 IL EST FRANCAIS
Official Rating: 156. Grade One wins: 2. Odds: 6-1.
This Grade One-winning hurdler looked a monster in his first four runs over fences, putting up a spectacular round of jumping when beating Hermes Allen by 11 lengths in the Kauto Star Novices’ Chase 12 months ago. He won in a time that was about 4secs quicker (carrying 3lb less) than the King George later in the afternoon.
The then five-year-old seemed bound for the top but the wheels came off big time when he was seen next time, at Auteuil in April.
An impressive return in late September offered hope he was back on track but seven weeks later he was pulled up after again bursting a blood vessel. Nicolas de Lageneste, his co-owner, said: “His health problems caught up with him. He had a pulmonary haemorrhage. He is fragile at this level. We will do the necessary care.”
That sounded ominous but late last month his co-trainer, Noel George, offered a more upbeat bulletin. He said: “He’s been to the biggest vet clinic in France and we’ve scanned and X-rayed his lungs, heart, everything. Obviously, there was something that stopped him, but there is nothing that isn’t fixable or overly dramatic. He’s back in work just ticking over at present and we’ll know our plans in the next couple of weeks when he does a serious piece of work.”
And on Monday morning, George emphasised his horse is in great shape, saying his star has never suffered a bleed at home, or anywhere other than Auteuil. If he can replicate what he did last year, the others will be in trouble.
RaceiQ clue: He gained 27 lengths with his jumping in the Kauto Star, earning a score of 9.1. He jumped best of the whole field at 13 of the 18 fences – including the first five obstacles and last four.
🇫🇷 8 JUNTAS GANAMOSS
Official Rating: 152. Grade One wins: 1. Odds 16-1.
This is a young French horse blessed with speed and stamina, but with a propensity to blunder away his chances.
That's reflected by his career record. Excluding his debut run, he's run in 13 races, won eight of them and fallen or unseated in another four.
The odd one out came last time in the Grade One Prix la Haye Jousselin at Auteuil when he finished third to Gran Diose (who he had previously beaten on a couple of occasions). Most observers were just coming to terms with Il Est Francais being pulled up in that race when Juntas Ganamoss made a complete horlicks of five out (did well to eventually negotiate the fence after almost suspending himself in mid-air). That bungle was compounded by other errors in the closing stages.
Juntas Ganamoss has looked most impressive on occasions, when everything clicks, but he's a big unit who is either a bit ignorant or simply lacks a bit of nimbleness. Maybe the different style of British fences will suit him better, maybe they won't. He's going to add spice after being supplemented.
RaceiQ clue: He's never run in a race where the RaceiQ machine crunches all the numbers.
🏴 9 L’HOMME PRESSE
Official Rating: 167. Grade One wins: 2. Odds: 11-1.
He will be having his first run for 286 days if lining up but do not let that put you off. Venetia Williams has the happy knack of having her horses primed for their reappearance runs and this quality ten-year-old is certainly no exception, having won first time up in each of his past four campaigns.
They have not been soft targets, either. He beat Protektorat on his comeback last season, having defied a mark of 164 in the Rehearsal Chase the season before that.
L’Homme Presse did not get home when fourth in the Gold Cup in March and it could well be that this is his optimum trip, but he does tend to jump left, as he did in the 2022 edition of this race when he was booked for second place (behind Bravemansgame) when unseating his rider at the final fence. He was found to be carrying an injury that day and was then absent more than a year but last season he showed he retains all his ability.
RaceiQ clue: Only two horses gained more ground with their jumping than him in the Gold Cup.
🇮🇪 10 SPILLANE’S TOWER
Official Rating: 165. Grade One wins: 1. Odds: 5-1.
Enjoy a full replay of the John Durkan
The JP McManus-owned six-year-old has been supplemented and he is a fascinating latecomer to the party after splitting Fact To File and Galopin Des Champs in the John Durkan at Punchestown last month.
All the vibes beforehand were that he would need the run – reflected by him being a friendless 18-1 in the betting – but he briefly looked like taking the spoils after the final fence, only for Fact To File to pull out a bit extra. It was a cracking return for a young horse who made great strides last term, signing off with a game defeat of Monty’s Star in Grade One company at Punchestown (3m 1f).
He’s clearly well served by right-handed tracks and soft ground, although that's not to say he will not be effective on better going.
RaceiQ clue: Unfortunately, his tracking data went AWOL in the John Durkan but we know he’s a superb jumper. His previous four Jump Index scores had never been lower than 8.9, and he gained a minimum 6.35 lengths in those races.
🏴 11 THE REAL WHACKER
Official Rating: 159. Grade One wins: 1. Odds: 25-1.
He was never comfortable when finishing last of four runners last year, but that run came during a lacklustre season when his trainer's horses seemed out of sorts.
Neville has since moved yards and his fortunes have revived. The Real Whacker has been among those to bounce back, making all in exuberant fashion in the Charlie Hall Chase, when readily fending off Bravemansgame.
The eight-year-old was then an intended runner in the Betfair Chase but was pulled out because of the testing ground.
He's been supplemented and should get his favoured conditions this time, although a career-best is going to be required for him to win.
RaceiQ clue: His standout jumping performance came when winning the Brown Advisory in 2023. He gained 12.78 lengths that day and earned a Jump Index score of 8.2. He earned a 7.4 last time, jumping better as the race went on.
VERDICT
A fabulous race in prospect, with the three French challengers adding a glow. I respect the trio, but it could be the Irish runners who dominate.
SPILLANE’S TOWER is hard to resist after his cracking comeback run when he split Fact To File and Galopin Des Champs in the John Durkan.
His weakness in the market that day indicated the run would be needed, and any improvement for that run will make him hard to beat. He’s a superb jumper who has looked well served by right-hand tracks plus will be suited by moving back up to 3m. The one niggle is the drying ground but everything else looks in his favour.
Banbridge will have conditions in his favour and should go well, while Envoi Allen could give Ireland a famous 1-2-3.
1 SPILLANE’S TOWER. 2 BANBRIDGE. 3 ENVOI ALLEN.
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