Carruthers is set to make his seasonal reappearance at Ascot and not Wetherby on Saturday afternoon.
Connections feel the ground at the Yorkshire track won't be soft enough to allow him to compete in the bet365 Charlie Hall Chase.
Instead Mark Bradstock's stable star, fourth to Imperial Commander in the totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup in March, will head to Berkshire for the United House Gold Cup.
Bradstock's wife, Sarah, said: "It is almost 99% certain that we'll now go to Ascot. Wetherby was our first choice, but they haven't had a lot of rain and there are still good to firm patches.
"Carruthers is a soft-ground horse and while he'll go on good ground, we don't want to risk him if conditions aren't ideal.
"We'll walk the course in the morning, but Ascot looks most likely now. He'll get top weight there which will make him vulnerable, but at least the ground should be fine. He's summered well and looks to have got much stronger.
"It is a shame that two similar races are both scheduled on the same day. It's not easy to find races for horses with his rating, so to have two on the same day seems a bit short-sighted."
