Case hopes Midnight Jazz can strike the right notes

The seven-year-old will line up in the Grade 1 OLBG Mares Hurdle on the opening day of the meeting.

The home-bred, who runs in the colours of the late David Allen, has won six times from 21 starts and has only been out of the frame five times.

The Wardington Gate Farm handler said: “She’s a very tough, hardy mare and a couple of the times that she wasn’t placed, she was either under the weather or things hadn’t quite gone for her.

“She’s always run well at Cheltenham, we’re in a conditions race so she’s going to be up against some slightly higher rated horses. But from what she’s done this season she deserves to take her chance and she’s going there in good form.”

She heads to Prestbury Park on the back of an impressive run at Doncaster last month when was just beaten a short head by the highly-rated Vroum Vroum Mag.

Case said: “It was frustrating to watch the race at Doncaster. On the ratings we were always going to finish second but it would have been easier to accept if we’d been beaten by a few lengths rather than a short head!

“It was a really good effort by my mare and gave us plenty of time to get ready for Cheltenham.”

Either Kielan Woods or Daryl Jacob will get the ride because they’re the only two jockeys to have ridden her. Both of them get on really well with Midnight Jazz and have had success on her but Case will leave that decision for another day.

Stablemate Croco Bay is set to line-up in the Grand Annual Chase on the final day of the Festival following his third place at Wincanton on Saturday.

The ten-year-old, who is owned by Lady Jane Grosvenor, has won six times from 36 starts.

Case added: “Croco Bay gets in off a nice mark of 141. He ran well enough at Wincanton to finish third on Saturday.

“He’s carried lot of weight in the last couple of years but he’s been dropped down a few pounds.”