Who is set for King George glory? Assessing the key players in a Kempton cracker

The feast after the famine. We might have been starved of action over the past week due to the weather but fear not – Christmas is nearly here and with it comes a carnival of quality jump racing.

On December 26 at Kempton, day one of the ITV Racing Christmas Festival, the Long Walk and Christmas Hurdle will provide the trimmings but the Ladbrokes King George (2.30) is the showpiece.

It's one of the highlights of the season – a chance for the heavyweights of the staying chase division to flex their muscles. Who can add their name to a roll of honour that includes Desert Orchid, Best Mate and Kauto Star?

Here, we assess the main contenders for another cracker at Kempton.

L'Homme Presse

Form 1113-1

Strengths L'Homme Presse is the shortest-priced home challenger for next year's Cheltenham Gold Cup and is a general 6-1 second favourite behind Galopin Des Champs. He delivered a fine weight-carrying performance on his seasonal bow at Newcastle in November. Venetia Williams' star is a serious prospect and could prove to be the class act in this very strong field.

Weaknesses Will he turn up? Connections had suggested it would be unlikely L'Homme Presse would turn up at Kempton on account of the going and suitability of the track. That stance has clearly softened – but will the ground?

Odds 7-4

What they say Andy Edwards, part owner: "Our intention is to go to the King George, assuming the ground is suitable for him. After Newcastle, he really needs to run now, and is ready to go. He is moving very nicely and we are very hopeful we can go.

"You can't just keep working them, that is why we have every intention of going to Kempton, because he is ready to go. He needs to go and he is a Grade 1 horse, so needs to be running in Grade 1 company."

Bravemansgame

Form 1114-1

Strengths Bravemansgame made an impressive return to action in the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby, giving an assured round of jumping before finishing strongly. Paul Nicholls has been bullish about his star seven-year-old and this race has been the long-term target – he will be bidding to give Nicholls his 13th King George success.

Weaknesses This is by far the biggest task of his career and his first Grade 1 assignment out of novice company. We will know a lot more about how good Bravemansgame really is after Kempton, and whether a crack at the Cheltenham Gold Cup is a realistic prospect.

Odds 15-8

What they say Paul Nicholls, trainer: "He looks fantastic and is in really good shape. We've had a great preparation with him.

"I'd say he was ready to run but not fully wound up for the Charlie Hall – he travelled and jumped well and won nicely. He'll be ready for next week – we've done a lot with him and he looks fantastic.

"He's gone through his novice races, won his first race outside of novice company this season, and now he's in the big boy's league. This is the biggest race there is over Christmas, but I think he's well ready for it."

Introducing the ITV Racing Christmas Festival

The ITV Racing Christmas Festival features six days of top-class action on the channel from 12 different tracks in Britain and Ireland between December 26 and January 1.

Some 41 live races will be shown in all, including eight Grade 1s such as the King George VI Chase, with the Welsh Grand National and Cheltenham's New Year's Day card among the big-race highlights across a spectacular six days of racing on terrestrial television across the festive period.

December 26
Kempton: King George VI Chase day
Wetherby: Rowland Meyrick Chase day

December 27
Chepstow: Welsh Grand National day
Kempton: Desert Orchid Chase day

December 28
Leopardstown: Savills Chase day
Leicester

December 29
Leopardstown: Matheson Hurdle day
Doncaster

December 31
Newbury, Warwick and Lingfield

January 1
Cheltenham, Musselburgh and Tramore

Hitman

Form 232-21

Strengths Hitman, part-owned by Sir Alex Ferguson, is bidding to emulate stablemate Clan Des Obeaux by winning the King George as a six-year-old. He's clearly progressive and nearly carried topweight to victory when he was narrowly denied by Riders Onthestorm at Aintree in October. Hitman went one better when odds-on at Haydock, and while Harry Cobden won't be on board at Kempton, Sam Twiston-Davies is a more than worthy partner.

Weaknesses Aged six, Hitman will have to be special to win one of the biggest and toughest races in the calendar. He has a lot more to prove than some of his rivals and is without a Grade 1 victory on his CV.

Odds 9-2

Hitman: easy winner at Haydock last timeCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

What they say Paul Nicholls, trainer: "I had Hitman and Bravemansgame canter upsides on Wednesday and there was nothing between them, but you never really test them at home. Home work doesn't tell you who's the best anyway, it's about what happens on the track.

"Clan Des Obeaux won the King George for the first time as a six-year-old rated 160. I think three miles will bring out plenty of improvement in Hitman. He's maturing and I don't think we've seen the best of him yet. He'll give Sam a fantastic ride."

Envoi Allen

Form 613-31

Strengths The sole Irish raider left among the entries, Envoi Allen is a fascinating contender for Henry de Bromhead. Once one of the most prodigious horses in training, he was a famous faller in the 2021 Marsh Novices' Chase went sent off a 4-9 favourite and his career has stuttered since. However, he was a smart winner of the Ladbrokes Champion Chase over 3m at Down Royal in November, beating proven top stayers in Kemboy, Conflated and Galvin.

Weaknesses Envoi Allen has proven to be a bit Jekyll and Hyde, and his step up to 3m came after two comprehensive defeats over 2m at Cheltenham and Punchestown. De Bromhead has been bullish about this being his trip but the eight-year-old still has to prove that to be true.

Odds 8-1

Envoi Allen: back to winning ways at Down Royal last monthCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

What they say Henry de Bromhead, trainer (in November): "His last win opened our eyes massively. After the John Durkan last December, I said I'm going back to two miles with him. I made a right balls of him for a while. He hit the deck at Cheltenham and he then pulled up at Punchestown. We ran him over the wrong trip most of the time. He looked so good the other day though. It was great. He was really tough and saw it out really well. I loved the way he ran right through the line.

"He travels really well and, unlike [Minella] Indo last year where I was saying 'I have to force this', you presume he will just travel away in behind them. Hopefully, the race should really suit him."

Frodon

Form 470-13

Strengths The old warrior is back again, bidding for a repeat of his King George victory in 2020. Durable and reliable, he carried topweight to victory in the Badger Beer at Wincanton. With his old mate Bryony Frost on board after returning from injury, he would prove a hugely popular winner.

Weaknesses Time catches up with us all, and Frodon is about to turn 11. You can never write him off but he looks to have a huge job on his plate to compete with younger, more progressive rivals – including two stablemates.

Odds 16-1

What they say Paul Nicholls, trainer: "Going right-handed on good ground suits him. He's had a good gap between his races since Haydock, and he never stops surprising us. Whether he's got the legs of the younger horses is debatable, but he'll be thereabouts."

Ladbrokes King George VI Chase (Kempton, December 26)

Ladbrokes: 7-4 L'Homme Presse, 15-8 Bravemansgame, 9-2 Hitman, 8 Envoi Allen, 16 Eldorado Allen, 18 Frodon, 20 bar

2022 ITV Racing Christmas Festival offers

• Paddy Power are giving away free bets to new and existing customers, and all you need is an account. Sign up here.
• Sky Bet are offering new customers free bets when they sign up. You can get them, along with money-back specials and extra places, here.
• Betfair have lots of offers, extra places and money-back offers. Sign up for a new account here.
• To get a free bet from Ladbrokes today, simply sign up to a new account here.
• Don't have a Coral account? They have an offer for new customers here.
• bet365 have a new customer offer available. Sign up here.
• New William Hill customers can claim free bets here and benefit from their money-back offers here.
• If you're a new customer, Tote will give you a free bet. Sign up here to claim.

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What's on this Christmas - a full rundown of the festive schedule

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