Betting: Native River to be in full flow in Haydock’s prized Betfair Chase

NATIONAL Hunt racing fans are salivating this week at the thoughts of Saturday’s eagerly anticipated stg£200,000 Grade 1 Betfair Chase at Haydock Park, 3pm.

The 2018 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Native River, Nicky Henderson’s Might Bite, runner-up in that Cheltenham showpiece and last year’s winner Bristol De Mai all have their eyes on this year’s Betfair Chase. 

The sense of excitement is added to further this weekend by the fact that the 2018/19 Jump season will also see the return of the Jockey Club stg£1million Chase Triple Crown, a prize awarded to connections of any horse that wins the Betfair Chase, the 32Red King George VI Chase at Kempton Park and the Magners Cheltenham Gold Cup next March. 

Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up Might Bite currently tops the betting mark with bookies at 1/1, while Native River is available at 3/1. Bristol de Mai is next best in the betting.

To date, the Colin Tizzard-trained Native River has won at seven different racetracks and will have no problem with the anticipated good-to-soft ground.

Native River was four-and-a-half lengths too good for Might Bite in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and at 3/1 is a good bet to prevail again.