Racing: Fitzgerald has Call over Tizzard

MICK FITZGERALD scored a treble at Leicester yesterday but the Irish jockey will have taken even more pleasure from news that he has been awarded the sought-after ride on Call Equiname in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.

Call Equiname won the Victor Chandler Chase at Kempton on his only outing so far this season. Paul Nicholls, who trains the grey, confirmed the booking yesterday, saying: "I have booked Mick as Joe Tizzard will be on board Green Green Desert as he has won on him twice this season and gets on really well with the horse."

Tizzard, the stable's No 1 retained rider, rode Call Equiname in the Victor Chandler and will no doubt be disappointed. Call Equiname is a top-priced 5-1 second favourite with Hills for the two-mile chasers' crown, while Green Green Desert is a rank outsider.

Lake Kariba, who would have been Nicholls' third contestant in the race, is now likely to side-step the event in favour of a tilt at the Grand Annual Handicap Chase.

The trainer said: "Depending on what weight he gets and on the ground, Lake Kariba will probably go for the Grand Annual - but if it got soft at Cheltenham he may well by-pass the meeting altogether."

Fitzgerald is 14-1 to be the top jockey at the three-day Cheltenham meeting which starts on 16 March. Corals' book on the London Clubs Trophy for the leading rider at the 1999 Festival has last year's winner, Tony McCoy, heading the market at 13-8 favourite to retain the Trophy.

A Festival absentee will be Young Kenny, winner of the Greenalls Grand National Trial at Haydock on Saturday. He may re-appear in the Midlands Grand National at Uttoxeter two weeks on Saturday. Peter Beaumont, the eight-year-old's trainer, reported that he had come out of the race in good heart and said: "We won't take him to the Cheltenham Festival but we might go to Uttoxeter. There is a very good prize on offer there and the trip will suit him - though he would want some cut in the ground. We also have the Irish Grand National a couple of weeks later in mind so we will see how we go."

Young Kenny's stable companion, Island Chief, started one of five co- favourites for the Greenalls race but was last of the 11 finishers. However, he will be going to Cheltenham. Beaumont said: "We want to run him in the National Hunt Chase so hopefully the ground will not be like it was at Haydock - it was very sticky and it did not suit him at all."

Meanwhile, today's meetings at Chepstow and Wetherby are subject to inspections. Rodger Farrant, clerk of the course at Chepstow said: "We have called the inspection following continuous heavy rain."

A Wetherby spokesman said: "It has been raining most of the day, which was not forecast, and if we get much more tonight we will have problems."

LONDON CLUBS TROPHY: Coral: 13-8 Tony McCoy, 11-4 Norman Williamson, 7-1 Richard Dunwoody, 10-1 Charlie Swan, 14-1 Paul Carberry, Joe Tizzard, Mick Fitzgerald, 16-1 Richard Johnson, 20-1 Adrian Maguire, 33-1 others.