One of the big favourites at next week’s Cheltenham Festival has been passed fit to run after an injury scare.
Blazing Khal, trained by Charles Byrnes, was not certain to take his place in the field for the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle after sustaining “a few bits of nicks” that required treatment after his latest start.
The seven-year-old won back-to-back Grade Two novice prizes at Cheltenham in the autumn of 2021, but missed the rest of the season through injury and did not ultimately return for 14 months.
He was catapulted to the head of the betting for next Thursday’s feature following an impressive comeback in the Boyne Hurdle at Navan in mid-February.
While his preparation has not been ideal, Byrnes confirmed Blazing Khal will take his chance in a race the County Limerick handler won with Solwhit 10 years ago.
He said: “He worked at the Curragh earlier this week. We decided against taking him back there today as we felt it would be counter-productive.
“But I had a chat with the owner this morning and we decided we’re going to run him.”
Blazing Khal is set to lead a team of five Festival runners for Byrnes along with Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle contender Byker, Coral Cup hopeful Run For Oscar, Pertemps Final favourite Shoot First and Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Hurdle runner Grozni.
“The preparation for all the rest of them has gone very well,” he said. “Soft ground would inconvenience Run For Oscar more so than any of them, I would say, but I’d say it won’t be too bad.”
