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Part-owner Malcolm Kimmins admits Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Bobs Worth is likely to have plenty on his plate as he kicks off his season in what looks a mouth-watering renewal of the Betfair Chase at Haydock on Saturday.

The Nicky Henderson-trained eight-year-old made just two appearances in the whole of the last campaign, claiming the Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury before securing his fifth win from as many starts at Cheltenham in the blue riband in March.

Bobs Worth will encounter new surroundings when he heads to Merseyside this weekend and is the star name among a list of 10 entries that also include last year's winner Silviniaco Conti, Long Run, Cue Card, Dynaste and Tidal Bay.

Kimmins, part of owning syndicate The Not Afraid Partnership, said: "It is going to be a very exciting day and it looks like being a fantastic race - a mini Gold Cup if you like.

"I've been at Seven Barrows today and the horse is well. He's done everything right so far in his preparation and he's ready to start. It is going to be a tough race, but we're looking forward to it immensely. It will be good to get him out and get him started.

"When you win the Gold Cup you inevitably set the standard. Haydock is obviously a very different track to Cheltenham, but we're not too worried about that. This is the first step on the way back to Cheltenham in March, which is his ultimate objective."

With temperatures set to dip below freezing later in the week, Haydock's clerk of the course Kirkland Tellwright will consider deploying frost covers if the need arises.

He said: "We're good to soft at the moment and the forecast is for it to be showery up until Wednesday and then it is due to turn colder.

"We'll just have to keep an eye on things as to whether we're going to need to use frost covers. We're looking at dawn temperatures of around minus 2C, but at the moment the soil temperature is 8C.

"We're hopeful at this stage we won't need the covers, but we'll see how things go."