Kalashnikov firmly in the mix for rescheduled Peterborough Chase

Friday target at Cheltenham for former Supreme Novices’ Hurdle runner-up.

Amy Murphy’s stable star Kalashnikov is set to return to Cheltenham for the rescheduled Fitzdares Club Loves The Peterborough Chase.

The seven-year-old was not due to contest the Grade Two contest in its original guise at Huntingdon, due to his preference for left-handed tracks.

However, with Huntingdon’s fixture abandoned due to flooding, the race was rescheduled and switched to Friday’s card at Cheltenham, where Kalashnikov was narrowly beaten in the 2018 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle.

Murphy said: “The Peterborough Chase wasn’t Plan A as usually it’s run right-handed, but now it’s been switched to a left-handed track, he’s very much an intended runner.”

Kalashnikov suffered a broken blood vessel on his final start of last season when fifth behind Altior in the Game Spirit Chase at Newbury.

But Murphy was encouraged by his start to the new campaign, when seventh over hurdles at Haydock last month.

She added: “We were very happy with the run at Haydock. He probably just didn’t quite see out the three miles, but he’ll have come on plenty for that and there was no bleed, which was the main thing.”

Seven of the nine horse declared for the Peterborough Chase at Huntingdon are again in contention – Bun Doran, Top Notch, Mister Fisher, Al Dancer, Dolos, Fanion D’Estruval and Glen Forsa – but Nuts Well and Forest Bihan are not.

Clondaw Castle, Master Tommytucker and Militarian are also among the 11-strong field.

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