Sprinter Express Max and stayer Chicago will accompany Seamus Cahill’s Betfred Gymcrack hope Southfield Jock to Kinsley on Sunday.
There are only a handful of non-Yorkshire based runners for the supporting two and six bend competitions though they do include the 2014 Scurry and Grand Prix winners, Baliff Cairo and Farley Rio.
Cairo has been sidelined with injuries since his last outing at Nottingham at the beginning of November and, although owner-trainer Ian Aylward is happy with his current condition he admits that he will be walking on eggshells for the next few weeks.
He says: “The dog tore a calf muscle at Nottingham, the same injury as he suffered last summer. It is a serious injury and it is hard enough to bring them back from that once never mind twice. We gave him a couple of months off and trialled him at Towcester, but he picked up another niggle there and that set us back again. However, he is bouncing again now and his recent trial at Belle Vue saw him very close to the clock he won the Scurry in there last year.
“I was looking for a race where he might miss out on the top sprinters and I though the event at Kinsley was not a bad place to start him off again, particularly if he does qualify for the final we will have ten days to get him ready for that. But it will be one race at a time for him and I will be looking more at suitable races on the provincial circuit to ease him back as best as I can.”
