Diva Luna primed for next step on the road to Cheltenham

Diva Luna will be cramped odds to maintain her unbeaten record over fences in the eventmasters.co.uk Lady Godiva Mares’ Novices’ Chase at Warwick on Thursday.

A winner at Grade Two and Listed level in bumpers, Ben Pauling’s charge managed only one victory in five starts over hurdles, but made a brilliant start to her chasing career with a 19-length verdict over Joyeuse in a Listed event at Bangor last month.

She carries a 5lb penalty for that success, but faced with just two rivals Pauling expects the six-year-old to take some stopping.

“She’s in very good order and looks a million dollars,” he said.

“People thought she was fit last time out, she wasn’t. She’ll improve a ton for that run, so I’d like to think she’ll be tricky enough to beat if she jumps and travels nicely.”

Pauling is open-minded regarding plans for the rest of the season with Diva Luna, but hopes she will end up competing at the Cheltenham Festival in March.

He added: “I’d love to think she’d be good enough to run in the Mares’ Chase at the Festival. There are some very nice mares in that division, but I’d love to think she’d be good enough for that.

“We might see how she fares against the boys with the mares’ allowance if all went well at Warwick, too.”

With Gordon Elliott’s Speculatrix a non-runner, Diva Luna is set to be taken on by Henry Daly’s Wyenot and the Neil Mulholland-trained Blue Las.