'It might be worth having another go' - Henry de Bromhead pondering King George bid with Envoi Allen

Henry de Bromhead has reported Envoi Allen to be in fine form after his successful reappearance at Down Royal on Saturday, with a second tilt at the King George VI Chase very much under consideration. 

Envoi Allen defeated Hewick in a thrilling climax to the Ladbrokes Champion Chase, with odds-on favourite Gerri Colombe well beaten back in third. It was a ninth Grade 1 victory for the ten-year-old on his first outing since finishing fourth in the Melling Chase at Aintree, the final start of a campaign that featured respectable placed efforts at Down Royal and the Cheltenham Festival.

De Bromhead sent Envoi Allen to Kempton in 2022 on the back of another win in the Champion Chase at Down Royal, but he failed to match expectations, finishing seventh of nine runners and beaten 51 lengths.

However, excuses emerged for that run and De Bromhead is pondering another crack at the festive highlight.

Envoi Allen (right): beats Hewick to land his second Down Royal Champion ChaseCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

He said: "There is not a bother on him and he's really well since. He was great on Saturday. I'm not sure where we go next but I have a couple of ideas. I want to talk to everyone and see first.

“It looks like Christmas next and we'll decide whether we try the King George again or not. It might be worth having another go. Obviously, there is also the Savills Chase at Leopardstown, so we'll see.

"He never turned up at all when he went for the race [King George] before but we found a couple of issues afterwards, so we hope that was it."

Il Est Francais is the 7-2 favourite for the King George and the Martin Brassil-trained Fastorslow is next in the market at 4-1. Envoi Allen can be backed at 20-1.

Inthepocket: 10-1 shot for the ArkleCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

Inthepocket is another chaser that the Knockeen stable can look forward to this season after he put in a sparkling display at Wexford last month to get off the mark over fences, defeating Grade 1-winning novice hurdler Farren Glory by 15 lengths.

The seven-year-old finished fourth behind Marine Nationale in the Supreme Novices' Hurdle in 2023 before taking Grade 1 honours at Aintree. He made his chasing debut in November 2023, finishing second to Facile Vega, but met with a setback afterwards which ruled him out for the season.

He could hardly have been more impressive on his return to action at Wexford which prompted bookmakers to cut him to 10-1 for the Arkle. De Bromhead is keen to keep him to left-handed tracks and said: "Inthepocket is in good form after Wexford. He definitely has a preference for going left-handed. 

"There's not a whole lot coming up for him in the coming weeks, so we'll have to wait and see."

King George VI Chase (Kempton, December 26)

Coral: 7-2 Il Est Francais, 4 Fastorslow, 6 Fact To File, Gaelic Warrior, 10 Galopin Des Champs, 12 Hewick, Jonbon, Protektorat, 14 Banbridge, Capodanno, Gerri Colombe, Grey Dawning, 16 Envoi Allen, 20 bar

Read more:

Envoi Allen comes out on top in thrilling battle with Hewick as Gerri Colombe disappoints in Champion Chase 

 Cheltenham Festival winner and 'remarkable person' Steve Jobar dies at 75 

Ante-post favourite remains in contention after confirmation stage for Saturday's Grand Sefton over the National fences 

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