Another major Cheltenham Festival favourite has been ruled out of next week’s showpiece event after Marine Nationale was withdrawn with a sore neck.
Barry Connell’s charge will now not defend his Queen Mother Champion Chase crown, a race in which the nine-year-old was well fancied to take victory again.
His absence is the latest major blow to the Cheltenham Festival following withdrawals by Narciso Has and Constitution Hill.
Hope for Marine Nationale
Connell told the Racing Post: “He was very sore through his neck this morning.
“We had the vets in this morning and they put him on pain relief medication and we’re just going to be out of time with the withdrawal times.”
There is some hope that Marine Nationale can make the Punchestown Festival at the end of the year.
His absence has seen his Dublin Racing Festival conqueror Majborough take over at the head of the market, followed by Dan Skelton’s L’Eau du Sud and Il Etait Temps from Willie Mullins’ stable.
After so many high-profile non-runners recently, it will be a nervous wait for fans and punters alike ahead of the start of the Cheltenham Festival on Tuesday, March 10.
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