Rehearsal Chase Odds
One of the highlights of early December every year in the National Hunt season, the Rehearsal Chase at Newcastle brings some of the top staying chasers to the North East, First run in 1979, the race took place at Chepstow until 2004 when switched to Newcastle. Check out the latest Rehearsal Chase odds here...
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What is the Rehearsal Chase?
The Rehearsal Chase is a Premier Handicap race, which is run over a trip just shy of three miles at Newcastle in December.
The race is open to horses aged four and over, and takes place on the same day as the Fighting Fifth at the same course. The race is often used as one of the last trials by elite horses hoping to step up to the King George, as L'Homme Presse attempted to do last season after giving away weight in victory here.
Nineteen fences await the entrants in what is sure to be a gruelling test for these top level handicappers and potentially some graded horses. In normal years the weather means the ground is soft, however with the 2023 winter being relatively dry the ground could be on the good side which could make the race more about speed than stamina than usual.
What happened in the 2022 Rehearsal Chase?
Sent off a well backed 6/4 favourite, the Brown Advisory winner of 2022 L'Homme Presse bounded to glory in the North East with a wonderful round of jumping. Venetia Williams; star chaser was sent to Kempton on the back of this performance as 9/4 favourite, but unseated his rider and has not been seen since.
The history of the Rehearsal Chase
The original incarnation of the race took place in 1979 at Chepstow, and was at first run over an extended three miles at the same meeting as the Welsh Grand National..
Between in 1979 and 2004 the race was run at Chepstow as a handicap but was called off in 1980 as the track was flooded. Since the move to Newcastle, the race was not run in 2008 or 2010 due to adverse weather but has taken place every other year.
Over the last decade, the race has attracted more and more quality entrants and in 2023 the mighty Shishkin could come here along with hot Fighting Fifth favourite Constitution Hill for Nicky Henderson. The enigmatic sort of course refused to race in the 1965 Chase at Ascot just last weekend.
Who is the most iconic winner of the Rehearsal Chase?
Hey Big Spender is the one of just two horses to have taken the title three times, winning the 2011 renewal before regaining the crown in 2013 and defending in 2014. This was a brilliant effort from Colin Tizzard's charge, with Joe Tizzard riding in 2011 before Brendan Powell steered him to glory in 2013 and 2014.
However, it is the other three time champion that steals the headlines due to the nature of his wins. See More Business was a brilliant representative of Paul Nicholls' stable, but the most iconic Rehearsal Chase arguably ever his 2002 triumph which was his third. He won the race as just a seven year old in 1997 before defending his crown in 1998. In 97 he also took out the King George, while in the 1998/99 season he followed up his Rehearsal Chase win with the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Already a bona fide racing legend at this point, few gave him a prayer at 12 of regaining the title five years after his first win, but he battled brilliantly to send the crowd wild in a superb display.
Are there any trials for the Rehearsal Chase?
There are no races that are classified as trials for the Rehearsal Chase, however with the busy programme for staying handicappers or graded level chasers there are plenty of avenues that horses can take to arrive here.
Who is the most successful jockey in the Rehearsal Chase?
Peter Scudamore is the most successful jockey in the history of the Rehearsal Chase, with his four wins coming in 1984,1986, 1989 and 1991. The aforementioned See More Business was ridden in all of his successes by Andrew Thornton. This makes him the second most successful Rehearsal Chase jockey.
Who is the most successful trainer in the Rehearsal Chase?
The most successful trainer in the history of the Rehearsal Chase is Paul Nicholls, with five wins. The Somerset handler has won the race with Belmont King (1996), See More Business (1997,1997 and 2002),and Neptune Collonges in 2007.