Topham Handicap Chase – Aintree – Friday 4th April

With 62 entries for the Randox Supporting Prostate Cancer UK Topham Handicap Chase at 4.05 at Aintree on Friday 4^th April, quite clearly it might be tricky to pick through and nail down a respectable shortlist right now.

There isn’t much juice in the price and place terms all round, but there is one horse who has caught the eye at a whopping 100/1 each-way with Paddy Power, Betfair Sportsbook or Unibet, and is worth a small 1-star * ante-post play at this stage for WhichBookie.

Escaria Ten is the horse in question and looked for all the world like he’d be one of the glut of horses ranging between 16/1 and 33/1, but the 100/1 is just too big to ignore at this stage. He looks an ideal type of horse to run extremely well for a very long way, and given his non-staying efforts in the 2022 Grand National and then similarly in a couple of Cross-Country races at Cheltenham, and a decent 3m handicap at Sandown Park, it might just be that the speedier jumping test of the Topham Chase is what he has been seeking all this time.

If you watch that 2022 Grand National back, your eye is drawn to Escaria Ten, as he worked his way into contention on the second circuit and crossed the Melling Road just over a length down on the leaders. The petrol light flashed on soon after turning in towards the final two fences and given the next two seasons he firmly entered the wilderness, that ability looked as if it may be lost forever.

But, not for the first time, Martin Keighley has sweetened up an older horse to good effect, and around the twists and turns and agility test of Cheltenham’s Cross Country course in December and at the Festival earlier this month, Escaria Ten has really come to life again.

In combination with James Best, who is notable at getting a tune out of front-running chasers like Moroder, My Silver Lining, Tommie Beau and Back On The Lash, that he has faded into a finishing positions that haven’t caught the attention of many, is probably the reason the layers are hurling out those 100/1 quotes.

There will likely be horses with more progressive profiles to be added as selections nearer the time, but there won’t be many who will enjoy the test as much as Escaria Ten looks likely to.