Nicholls eager to test Caldwell Potter’s stamina at Aintree

Paul Nicholls is keen to step Caldwell Potter up to three miles at Aintree following his impressive Cheltenham Festival display last week.

The highly-touted grey finally lived up to his huge price tag when making all the running in tremendous style in the Jack Richards Novices’ Handicap Chase.

A Grade One winner over hurdles for Gordon Elliott, he will now step back into top company on Merseyside for either the Manifesto Novices’ Chase over two and a half miles or the Mildmay Novices’ Chase over an extended three.

“It was a fantastic win, good for the horse and good for all the owners,” said Nicholls of the seven-year-old, who ran in the colours of the late John Hales.

“He’d had a fair bit of stick because of his price tag (€740,000), which was quite harsh because he’d actually run well all season.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day. As I’ve always said, it just takes a little while to deal with the problems we’ve got with him, but we got his feet sorted out and in the last month he really took a step forward and was showing us what we wanted to see.

“It was a good, positive, fantastic ride from Harry (Cobden) and he just galloped them in the ground. He jumped awesome, we were thrilled with him.

“He’s come out of the race fine and the idea is we’ll go to Aintree, where he’ll have the option of going over two and a half miles and three. I’m quite keen to step him up to three actually to see where we go next year.

“I don’t think you could say he wasn’t staying the other day, that trip suits him a lot better as he can travel in his comfort zone. He hasn’t had a lot of racing so he’ll definitely join the team for Aintree and I’m quite keen to step him up to three miles.”

The victory was Nicholls’ 50th at the Festival and while he was proud to reach the landmark, there was a tinge of regret.

He told his Betfair Ditcheat Diary: “I’m going to take all the staff out. I never dreamt I’d have 50 Cheltenham winners when I had that first one in 1999 with Flagship Uberalles and Joe Tizzard on.

“It’s been a fantastic journey since, if someone had said at the start of my career I’d be champion trainer 14 times and have 50 Cheltenham winners, it would be what dreams are made of.

“I feel very privileged, I just wish that Paul Barber (former landlord and owner) was there to watch it. I know he’d be up there shouting, as would John Hales when Caldwell Potter won, those were great guys who were a big part of my career and my life, I’ll never forget them.”