The Real Whacker Set for King George VI Chase Supplementation

Patrick Neville has confirmed plans to supplement The Real Whacker for the prestigious Ladbrokes King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day.

The eight-year-old, who enjoyed an unbeaten novice campaign two seasons ago, including a memorable victory over Gerri Colombe at the Cheltenham Festival, showed flashes of brilliance last season despite some inconsistency. Notably, he finished fourth in last year’s King George and runner-up in the Cotswold Chase.

This season, The Real Whacker returned to form with an impressive victory in the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby in November. Neville opted to bypass the Betfair Chase at Haydock due to heavy rain, which made the conditions overly testing.

Originally, the plan was to target the Cotswold Chase in January as preparation for the Gold Cup. However, with a relatively dry forecast over the festive period, Neville has decided to seize the opportunity to contest Kempton’s flagship event.

“He’s in good form, and he’ll probably run next week in the King George,” Neville said while at Catterick on Tuesday.

“The weather forecast and everything is coming right, and he’s in great form, so why not?.”

“I didn’t enter him originally as we were going a different route, but with the ground the way it is, we’ll give it a go.”