Paul Nicholls' weekend runners: "He is my best chance"

14-time Champion Trainer and Betfair ambassador Paul Nicholls talks us through his runners across the weekend at Aintree and Ffos Las. He also discusses his winners from the past week and offering up where they might go next, and an update on Caldwell Potter ahead of potentially starting in the Betfair Chase.

I'd love to run Caldwell Potter in the Betfair Chase this year

I've kept Caldwell Potter in the Betfair Chase at the latest entry stage, he is in good shape, he's had one away day with Regent's Stroll, he's going to have another one next week. Basically, if it keeps on raining, once it starts that is, and we get some cut in the ground and we're happy with him then I'd love to run him.

I'm not pretending he's fully wound up because he won't be, but we've got to start somewhere, and I think the year Clan Des Obeaux won the King George for the first time he ran in this race and finished fourth and then improved enormously. So, I think whatever Caldwell Potter does he'll improve, I'd like to run him if I can.

Options like the Cheltenham Gold Cup we'll have to work out in our mind after Christmas. If you're going to talk about a Gold Cup, then in my mind he has to run in the Cotswold Chase on Trials Day at Cheltenham, that would tell us a lot. He'll have all the options in the spring, he's in good shape, and I don't think the year he's had off has done him any harm at all.

New Rules impresses and the Grade 1 Challow Hurdle is a potential target

I was obviously thrilled with New Rules, we always thought he was a very nice horse, but you never know until they run. There was a lot of hype about Red Acres Max, he's obviously a smart horse, has good form which ties in with Stick To The Board, but I was thrilled with the way New Rules travelled through the race, the way he jumped and won with his ears pricked, and the fact that Sam Twiston-Davies had a job pulling him up. I was delighted with him.

We have options with him, I could go to Newbury on Coral Gold Cup day, there's a 2m4f novice hurdle there, while the week after is the Betfair Winter Hurdle at Sandown which we won last year with No Drama This End, that would be tempting because he'd love the soft ground, if it ever rains, and then go for the Challow Hurdle, that's what I'm thinking.

I've got a very good record in the Challow, but I've still got Stick To The Board who is on a par with New Rules. I know he got beat the other day, but he'll improve massively on that as I don't think my horses were quite ready then. The horse that finished fourth behind him, Coolnav, won at Chepstow on Thursday.

And I've also got River Kwai who hasn't run yet. So, in summary I'd say New Rules will probably end up going to Sandown and then to the Challow.

Order On Time needs to learn to settle and will stick at two miles

I think Order On Time is a little bit free at the moment to be wanting to get a trip, he'll probably need to stick to two miles and learn to settle a little bit. He ran in a three-mile point-to-point and he looks a stayer, but he needs to learn to settle, he ran far, far too free, Sam couldn't restrain him at all.

The time of the race was incredibly fast, as was New Rules' time, which was about 10 seconds faster than the second division. Order On Time just ran too free, end of story. He needs to learn to relax in his races and settle, so I don't think he wants to go much further than two miles at this stage, until he relaxes.

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I am delighted with our recent winners for Team Ditcheat

Don't Panic won his bumper at Chepstow very nicely, he's one of those lovely laid-back horses, he did it well, and again Sam couldn't stop him afterwards, I love that when a horse gallops through the line strong, that's what you want to see.

He's going to head off to Ascot now for the Christmas meeting, there's a good bumper there so that's where he'll go.

Bond Broker is what I call a workingman's horse, he's owned by a great syndicate, they have a lot of fun with him, he won his race on Thursday, he's a good, rapid novice chaser, he's a fun horse and he won well.

We always thought Wordfromhome was a very special horse. We had a few issues with him, sore shins and being immature so he's going to improve physically as he gets stronger. He had to make his own running on Thursday, won very well, galloped through the line strong. I haven't really made a plan with him, I'm not going to be in a rush with him, he might not run again until that good bumper at Newbury later on down the line.

Last Saturday, Viroflay was great, to win a £100k race was ideal. When you consider he's a horse I bought to go point-to-pointing for Olive to have some education. Once Olive had retired, I decided to give another young jockey a chance, so that's why Lucas Murphy has got the ride on him for the season. He gave him a great ride once he got the hang of him, and we should have some fun with him again this season.

Viroflay: a winner for Paul Nicholls last weekend.

Paul’s Sunday runners 

1.20 Ffos Las: Karaka De Thaix

He won his only English point-to-point and he is a nice individual. He had an injury before start of last season, and we decided to give him the year off. Whatever he does here he will improve for the run on Sunday.

3.02 Ffos Las: Lancelot Du Large

Similar comments apply to this bumper runner. He is a lovely individual, and he will come on a ton for the run. I’ve not been able to take either of these for a racehorse gallop and they will both improve massively for the run.  

4.12 Ffos Las: Centara 

The time will be up for him once it starts to rain as he loves good ground. Newton Abbott the other day was on the slow side, but the chase track is on the far side at Ffos Las and that should suit him, it’s very testing for the hurdlers who go on the flat track. 

He is coming down the weights a bit after winning five last year and this should suit him.

Paul’s Saturday runners

12.40 Aintree: Stick To The Board

He was second on his first run at Chepstow last month and I always said he would improve for it. That was a good run.

Dan Skelton’s Hitintheheadlines went all out to beat us and if Stick to the Board had jumped the last it would have been close. In a small field, I expect him to run well and go close here. He is one my best chances of the weekend.

1.15 Aintree: Sans Bruit

He loves Aintree and won the Red Rum here in 2024 and 2025. He’s dropped down to a sensible mark of 130 now, Jay won on him in Plumpton and he takes five off on Saturday. He loves good ground and must have a lovely chance.

The only reservation is that we have only ever won with him in the spring, never in the autumn. During the winter, when it is soft ground, he switches off so then he runs a few times, drops a few pounds and gets well-handicapped in the spring. 

He’s had some hard races over the years, so we have to hope that he is still as good as he was. But he’s in good shape for this, the good to soft ground at Aintree will be perfect for him and, down in grade, he should run very well.

3.25 Aintree: No Drama This End

One of the races of the weekend and we are looking forward to him making his seasonal and chase debut as he has got to get started somehwere. He will go three miles later in the season and the plan at the moment is for him to go to Sandown over that trip in about a month or so’s time. If I didn’t run him here, I would be in trouble. 

He won over two mile four at Cheltenham the first time, he won over the same distance at Sandown and over two mile four or five at Newbury on good ground. The only time he won over three miles was at Perth.

Whatever he does, he is going to need the run. A couple of horses in this race have had a run, including Talk To The Man and it looks like he will be the one to beat. I know Talk To The Man is a very smart horse because I loved him and won two races with him. If he is going to beat No Drama this season it will be on Saturday.

We’ve done everything we can at home with No Drama This End and, if he gets a nice clear round and runs well, there will be massive improvement from this run to his next. It is a long season, and we have bigger targets for him down the line. He’s a slightly better horse with plenty of cut in the ground. We’ve got to start somewhere, and this is a nice track for that. Ground permitting, he will run.

3:00 Aintree: Red Risk

Now 11-years-old, he always needs a run or two to get going. Last year, he went to Haydock, needing a run badly, then went to Musselburgh in February and won.

We will have a couple of runs with him and then probably go back to Musselburgh. I think this will be one of his last seasons. I suspect he will be much fitter for whatever he does on Saturday. 

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