Harry’s blue riband trail set to start at Wetherby

Diamond Harry could make his eagerly-awaited return to action in the bet365 Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby on Saturday week.

The hugely-talented eight-year-old lifted the Hennessy Gold Cup on his seasonal reapperance 11 months ago but was not seen after, with a planned tilt at the Cheltenham Gold Cup shelved due to a leg injury.

The blue riband is again the ultimate goal and he is set to take the first tentative steps towards Prestbury Park in West Yorkshire.

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Paul Duffy, who heads the syndicate which owns Diamond Harry, said: “The Charlie Hall Chase is on Diamond Harry’s itinerary at present, it is open for review but at the moment we are looking at taking him to Wetherby.

“He has recovered from the ligament injury that he suffered earlier this year and he is ready to resume racing in the near future.”

The Charlie Hall, which is also a possible port of call for Time For Rupert, Poquelin and last year’s winner Nacarat, traditionally kick-starts the National Hunt season into gear, but one of the brightest stars in the jumping game may be seen in action as early as this weekend.

Dual Queen Mother Champion Chase hero Master Minded is the star attraction among the nine entries for Saturday’s Monet’s Garden Old Roan Chase at Aintree.

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The Paul Nicholls-trained eight-year-old looked back to his best when stepped up to two-and-a-half miles at the Grand National meeting and has the King George VI Chase as his main aim for the first half of the season. Owner Clive Smith said: “I have talked with Paul about running Master Minded at Aintree and it’s a possibility.

“We think that it will be a nice race for him and we have won it before with Kauto Star (2006), but it will depend on the going and how well the horse is.

“We are trying to avoid having him and Kauto Star running on the same day, which would happen if we went to Ascot for the Grade Two chase on the day of the Betfair Chase – Haydock looks the best option for Kauto Star and we want Ruby (Walsh) to be able to ride both horses whenever possible.”

The nine jockeys banned for failing to pull up after a race had been stopped at Wetherby last week will have their appeal heard today.

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The disciplinary panel of the British Horseracing Authority will sit to discuss the 10-day bans handed out to champion jockey Tony McCoy, Grand National winner Graham Lee and Gold Cup winner Paddy Brennan. Also in front of the panel will be Danny Cook, Jonathon Bewley, Denis O’Regan, Alexander Voy, Brian Hughes and Brian Toomey.