Surrey Quest ‘fit, well and ready to go’ for Sunday return

Connections are confident Scottish Grand National runner-up Surrey Quest remains on the upgrade ahead of his slated return at Cheltenham on Sunday – but Aintree ambitions may be put on hold for another season.

Previously trained by Nicky Henderson, a switch to his former assistant Toby Lawes worked the oracle last season, with the highly-progressive seven-year-old winning twice on his way to rattling the crossbar behind Willie Mullins’ Macdermott in Ayr’s staying showpiece in April.

Now rated 137, the Surrey Racing-owned gelding is being lined up to make his reappearance in the Holland Cooper Handicap Chase at Prestbury Park at the weekend, a race won in previous years by some handy stayers.

Clive Hadingham, co-founder of Surrey Racing with Steve Grubb, said: “He’s doing very well and we think he’s improved. He had a nice break after the Scottish Grand National, he actually got kicked out in the field off a retired horse so has had to take a bit more time out than we would have wanted.

“But we think the break has done him good, he’s had a good summer and he’s back firing and ready to go.

“The plan is to go to Cheltenham for the Holland Cooper Handicap Chase, which is around three and a half miles. There are quite a lot of races around and we could miss a few good staying horses in this, because there are other races like the Hennessy (now the Coral Gold Cup) coming up.

“He’s fit, well and ready to go. We definitely think he’s improved – it’ll just depend on how much the other horses have as well.”

Surrey Quest’s Cheltenham return could set up a defence of the Mandarin Chase at Newbury over the Christmas period, but connections will be keeping a close eye on conditions in the Cotswolds, not afraid to reroute to the many staying chase options available if the ground is too quick.

“It’s good ground at Cheltenham and I know they have been watering to improve, but it would worry us maybe if the ground got too quick,” continued Hadingham.

“He wouldn’t want it too fast, but unfortunately I don’t think anywhere else in the country is going to be better. It’s a long season and he runs well fresh, so if needs be, we don’t mind waiting.

“There’s races like the London National (Sandown, December 7), the Borders National (Kelso, December 8) and there’s a race at Haydock on the Betfair Chase card (November 23) and it’s nice that we have a horse like Surrey Quest where there are lots of nice options.

“But Cheltenham is our preferred option and if all went well, I think we would be looking to defend the Mandarin, so I don’t have to take the trophy back!”

Surrey Quest’s effort in Scotland had his team dreaming of a tilt at the Randox Grand National itself but although Aintree’s big race remains firmly in their thoughts, connections are leaning towards banking another year’s experience before taking aim at Merseyside.

Hadingham added: “We did look at the Becher Chase and I know it was spoken about after the Scottish Grand National – we had all these grandiose plans.

“But that might not be something for this year, he’s only seven and that’s something we could look at with the English National as his main target for the end of next season.

“If we went Cheltenham, then Mandarin, I think we would then be looking at similar races to last year. Maybe back to Scotland and there is also a big race in Auteuil in April we are looking at. There’s a few options and the horse will tell us how he is and where he goes.

“A lot can go right and wrong as the year goes on, so we don’t want to get pigeonholed into a particular route, but I don’t think the English National is one we will go for this season.

“It’s exciting to have these options available and we will keep an open mind and be fluid, because ultimately it’s exciting to have these chats about it with Toby.”

While Surrey Quest’s season is about to begin in earnest, the owners have had to call time on the career of their Flat stalwart Surrey Mist, who will soon be entering a retraining programme with the ambition of a second career in the dressage arena.