Tout looks sweet in Becher

PUNTERS need to tread warily with ante-post betting on the big weekend action this week as there are many similar races vying for the same types of horses, particularly the staying chasers.

On Saturday we have the Unibet Becher Handicap Chase at Aintree, the Coral Welsh Grand National Trial at Chepstow and the Betfair Exchange London National Handicap, and there are plenty of horses in each race at least doubly engaged, with some also having an entry in the Borders National at Kelso on Sunday for good measure!

However, concentrating only on horses who have just one engagement is by no means a guarantee of a runner, let alone a winner, so it’s a bit of a minefield.

I was quite pleased when I saw my Becher Chase fancy didn’t have any entries in other big chases this weekend, only to be quickly let down by the knowledge he has an engagement over hurdles on Saturday.

Tout Est Permis is the horse in question and I hope he makes the journey because I’d give him a much better shout than his current odds of 20-1 suggest, and as he is the sole Gigginstown entry in the race I’m going to take a chance.

He would surely be an even bigger price to land a £100,000 Grade 3 handicap hurdle at Navan on Saturday, and should Tout Est Permis get the go-head from Noel Meade, he’d have a lot more to offer than his odds imply.

The eight-year-old is 5lb lower than when he ran in last season’s Grand National, and while the form book says he pulled up at odds of 100-1 there, I think he shaped a lot better than that.

Tout Est Permis went into the race on something of a low, having fallen last time out in a chase at Down Royal, but he largely jumped very well for a long way before fading.

He’ll be much fresher now and his record suggests he is very much a horse for the first half of the season.

The winner of the Troytown at Navan in 2018 as a five-year-old, Tout Est Permis seems best when reasonably fresh, with six of his best seven performances according to Racing Post Ratings coming before the turn of the year, and the exception coming in January.

On his second start last season he finished a close third in the Grade 1 Ladbrokes Champion Chase at Down Royal, and on his return from a 225-day break recently he was an encouraging fifth of 16 in the Troytown.

There’s every reason given his profile to think he can come on for that run, and it would be a shame if he wasted his time of year by running over hurdles.

His trainer is clearly in great nick as he had three winners and a second from just five runners at the big Fairyhouse meeting over the weekend.

The other one to back is the boldjumping grey Snow Leopardess, who could be a real sight if taking to the fences.

A word of warning again, as she also has an entry in the Welsh National Trial, but I can’t see why connections would want to send her for that much smaller prize as she’s not even in the Welsh National, so a first ever look at Chepstow should hardly be a priority.

Snow Leopardess had a cracking first season over fences last term, winning a Class 2 handicap at Haydock, finishing second the Rowland Meyrick at Wetherby and running fourth in the National Hunt Chase, and she was back with a career best on her return in a good race at Bangor.

There she was as spring-heeled as usual from a prominent position throughout and she never looked in trouble at any stage.

Even the best jumpers do not always take to the National fences, but if Snow Leopardess does she looks likely to run a big race with a 5lb rise for that success perfectly fair.