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Ground conditions will dictate whether Coneygree will return to action at either Ascot or Down Royal this weekend.
The 2015 Cheltenham Gold Cup hero has not been seen in competitive action since pulling up in the Ladbrokes Trophy at Newbury last December, but is closing on a comeback.
Saturday’s JNwine.com Champion Chase at Down Royal has been his intended target for some time, but trainer Mark Bradstock has also entered his charge for the Sodexo Gold Cup at Ascot on the same afternoon.
Bradstock said: “We want to go to Down Royal really – that has been the plan for three or four months.
“The whole thing is very ground dependent. I’ve had one or two people walk the track at Down Royal, and they tell me it’s pretty quick.
“The thing is if we don’t go to Down Royal or Ascot, where do we go?
“He’s in good form, and we’ll be doing a rain dance for the rest of the week.”
Coneygree is one of 18 entries for the Sodexo Gold Cup.
Other contenders include Jonjo O’Neill’s 2017 Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up Minella Rocco – who was a non-runner at Cheltenham on Saturday – Colin Tizzard’s veteran Kings Lad and the Tom George-trained Double Shuffle.