SIZING EUROPE IS to miss the King George VI Chase at Kempton because of the soft ground.
The former champion chaser was one of the favourites for the St. Stephen’s Day race but will now stay in Ireland and run in either the Dial-A-Bet Chase on December 27 or the Lexus Chase the following day.
His trainer Henry De Bromhead told the BBC he is keen for Sizing Europe to step up to three miles on better ground:
“He has the two options at Leopardstown and we’ll leave him in both races , but the way the weather is going at the moment, I would imagine he’ll probably run in the two-mile race”
First Lieutenant is also set to miss the King George in favour of the Lexus Chase with David Pipe’s Junior set to be supplemented for the Kempton show-piece.
Former winner Long run is now the favourite for the King George with Riverside Theatre and Cue Card considered the main challengers.
