We’re just over a week away from the Grade 1 King George VI Chase at Kempton.
Betfair’s Triple Crown offers a £1 million bonus to any horse who wins the Betfair Chase, King George and the Cheltenham Gold Cup in the same season. In 2006/07, Kauto Star did just that and landed the bonus for Paul Nicholls.
Yet despite winning four Betfair’s and five King George’s, even Kauto Star couldn’t repeat the feat twice. This year, Betfair Chase winner Royal Pagaille will be hoping he can win this on route to the Cheltenham Festival, but with a horse box floating over the Irish Sea, what are his real chances?
2023 King George Chase Betting Odds
Here are the latest betting odds for Boxing Day’s King George at Kempton.
| Name | Best Price | Worst Price |
|---|---|---|
| Allaho | 9/4 | 15/8 |
| Bravemansgame | 11/4 | 2/1 |
| Gerri Colombe | 9/2 | 3/1 |
| Shishkin | 8/1 | 13/2 |
| Royale Pagaille | 10/1 | 7/1 |
| The Real Whacker | 10/1 | 8/1 |
Who is the favourite to win the King George?
The bookmakers’ favourite to win the King George VI Chase on Boxing Day at Kempton is the two-time Ryanair Chase winner, Allaho, at a best price of 9/4 on Betfred.
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King George Chase 2023 Date & Start Time
The 2023 King George VI Chase will be run at Kempton Park on 26th December at 2.30pm and will be broadcast live on ITV.
King George Chase 2023 Runners
More information on the likeliest leading protagonists in this year’s King George.
Allaho
There’s no doubt that the King George requires a horse to have a high cruising speed, and it has long been thought that Allaho was tailormade for the race. Kempton’s sharp 3 miles shouldn’t pose any problems for a horse who’s won two additions of the Ryanair Chase, each by over 10 lengths.
His aggressive running style looks tailormade for Kempton too, with the track only rising three metres over its long home straight of 2½ furlongs, something that makes leaders hard to peg back. The first negative is his stamina, yet on such a track that is seemingly masked.
However, he will need to avoid any battle for the lead with the likes of Bravemansgame or to get racing too far from home in Kempton’s long home straight. Nevertheless, with Kempton being a bare 3 miles, as opposed to the Betfair Chase’s 3m 1f or the Cheltenham Gold Cup’s 3m 2f, Allaho should have enough reserves.
The most potent challenge is of his remaining ability after injury. Indeed, the son of No Risk At All was due to race in last year’s renewal but had been side-lined with an abdominal bleed.
Although he made a winning return to the track after 561 days off when winning the Clonmel Chase (beating Janidil in a three-runner race), it was an uninformative performance. Punters will have to trust that Mullins has him back to his best, but if this is true, he is likely to win.
Bravemansgame
Last year’s winner Bravemansgame comes to defend his crown standing on rather shallow roots. After losing the Charlie Hall after a last fence blunder, Nicholls’ star also got beat in the Betfair Chase after travelling powerfully into it. It has led critics to claim that the Gold Cup has left its mark on the horse, prompting a drift in the betting.
However, it must be remembered that this eight-year-old is a doubtful stayer, and as such, his defeat in the Betfair Chase over an extended 3m 1f on soft ground to a two time Peter Marsh winner is not that surprising. It is no doubt that Kempton’s formulation will suit him far better.
His victory in the race last year was the fastest King George of recent time, with him recording a sub 15-second furlong average over the three miles. The speed at which the race is run enables him to showboat his jumping whilst simultaneously tripping up his opposition.
He had two prep runs before winning the Kauto Star as a novice, so if anything, he will be ripe and ready for the race, and he shouldn’t be so easily discarded.
Gerri Colombe
Conversely, Gerri Colombe is an assured, dogged stayer but would seem out of place on a track like this. The required sectionals that horses be able to run on the bridle seems too quick for Gerri Colombe, who often gets outpaced before stamina reserves kick in.
Although his performance at Aintree looks like he travelled smoothly, he was posting 16 second furlongs on good ground, and with Bravemansgame posting 24 consecutive furlongs under 15 seconds on soft ground last year, it would seem that Gordon Elliott’s stable star will inevitably get tapped for speed.
This will only have a nasty rippling effect upon his jumping too. Native River, Don Cossack and Imperial Commander all exemplify the challenges to these archetypal galloping Gold Cup horses. However, Ryanair horses tend to do remarkably well.
Cue Card, Dynaste, Vautour, Frodon and Tornado Flyer are all horses that ran in the Ryanair and won or came 2nd in the King George. This is something that makes two time Ryanair winner Allaho very appealing but not future Gold Cup winner Gerri Colombe.
Shishkin
On paper, Shishkin looks to be grossly overpriced at 8/1. He won the Ascot chase, beating subsequent Melling Chase winner Pic D’Orhy by 16 lengths, he then ran 2nd in the Ryanair and won the Aintree Bowl when beating course specialist Ahoy Senor. Immediately afterwards trainer Nicky Henderson touted the King George as his intended target.
However, his prep for the race has been disastrous. After bypassing his initial target of the Betfair Chase, Henderson opted for the easier 1965 chase at Ascot.
Yet when jumping off, Shishkin planted his feet resolutely into the ground. It has not been the first time his antics have played up with jockey’s reporting this to have occurred at other meetings despite him eventually racing.
Henderson then entered him into the Rehearsal Chase at Newcastle the following weekend, yet that meeting too was called off. Plan C was to run him in the rearranged Fighting Fifth hurdle at Sandown alongside Constitution Hill (odds on for the Champion Hurdle) but concerns about the deep grown led Henderson to withdraw both runners.
Winning when fresh is one thing, winning the King George when fresh is another. Moreover, that is on the assumption he will indeed jump off. After horses start acting up, they often never stop and Nico De Boinville will have to find some way of seducing him into jumping off and even then, without a prep run, he looks up against it.
Royal Pagaille
Betfair Chase winner Royal Pagaille looks the one horse who doesn’t look to have a fatal flaw. His prep run saw him post a career best, winning a Grade 1 and the first leg of the Triple Crown. Moreover, his trainer continues to be in excellent form, and he’s won at the track as well as being 2nd in the race last year.
However, that 2nd was a 14 length 2nd and he has seen up against it at Grade 1 level. A string of results of 625526 in Grade 1’s led Venetia Williams to run in the handicap company, the Irish national, in April. Both “2’s” were over 10 lengths, and he has seemed a level below.
Indeed, despite his recent best, it was at his favourite track up against a horse that has been beaten in three starts since the Gold Cup. Moreover, his 2nd in the race last year, although admirable, did highlight that a sharp 3 miles around Kempton is not his MO, something which his Irish national entry as well as his Peter Marsh chase wins also highlight.
Although being the most uncomplicated, and more than likely to fill out the frame in 3rd, he is vulnerable for win purposes.
2023 King George Chase Tips
Gerri Colombe, Shishkin and Bravemansgame are all strongly opposable, leaving the race at Allaho’s mercy if he was to travel over. This Ryanair type can win this with a front running ride before collecting a third Ryanair Chase win. Bravemansgame can run well in 2nd at his favourite track whilst Royal Pagaille can get 3rd.
