The Cheltenham Festival has landed. The highlight of Day 1, and likely the week, is the Champion Hurdle. The starter will be vainly shouting at disobeying deaf ears around 4pm.
The camps behind favourite Constitution Hill and next in the betting, Brighterdaysahead, are both bullish. The crew manning the State Man ship are much quieter. Don't let that put you off - like the horse, they are understated. While he, for all his achievements, is underrated.
Three years ago Constitution Hill obliterated the Supreme Novices Hurdle. Turning for home only Jonbon was able to stay in his company, by the line he wasn’t within kickback, 22 lengths between them. In the ’23 Champion he made light work of State Man, a mere nine lengths the margin.
Last term unfortunately, the Nicky Henderson string were out tune. After a few terrible gallops, Constitution Hill was rightly put away for the year. With that time out and somewhat conservative campaigning he has yet to gain the recognition of a great.
A great he might be and thankfully the opposition in this renewal gives him the chance to bolster his claim.
Many doubters questioned if he could return to his peak after ill health. Connections stayed confident throughout and now appear fearless.
Nico de Boinville, like most runners this week, comes from a French background. He speaks with a plum laden mouth not normally found in a weigh room but not much dribble comes out of it. When he talks, listen.
Not forthcoming when chatting with Nick Luck, the wily interviewer eventually drew from Nico that he "didn’t care what showed up" for the race. His trainer is also on high, he has handled superstars but one feels even he has special regard for this one, calling his last gallop "frightening". This coming from the man with a record ten winners of the race to compare him to.
Gordon Elliott also sounds sure of the ability and condition of Brighterdaysahead. When asked if this is his best chance in this race so far, he quickly responded with a certain yes. That too says a lot when he has had a second and two thirds. There is a bullish vibe emanating from his entourage.
She was visually stunning over Christmas, following her pace-setting stablemate, quickly spreading the field going solo from two out to finish 30 lengths clear. I often question that which looks too good to be true and inspect a little further. The opposition wasn’t spectacular and State Man clearly didn’t perform. However the time was lightning, her jumping slick, it all adds up, you can’t find a hole in it.
State Man’s victory last year was not as spectacular as some of those put in by his two big rivals and they have both beaten him, so it’s easy to see why he is well outside that duo with the layers. It’s just as easy to make a case for him. In an amazing run he collected ten grade one prizes either side of that defeat to Constitution Hill, the only interruption to his streak.
He races a touch lazily, is not super slick in the air and doesn’t exert any more than needs be when winning. He just doesn’t spark the imagination enough to do his ability justice. A defeat in the Morgiana, a flop at Christmas and Lossiemouth’s fall rendering the Irish Champion a non-event means we are yet to see anything like the star who made it five from five last season.
A race to relish for sure. It could have been better though. At declarations, Lossiemouth’s name didn’t appear in the line-up for the Champion, she will keep company with her own sex 40 minutes earlier, to the disgruntlement of many punters.
A much-calculated decision by connections and surely a race she is more likely to win. I must admit to being amongst the disgruntled myself. Willie has won ten of the 17 runnings of the Mares' Hurdle, one more won’t boost his legacy. Owners Susannah and Rich Ricci are very sporting characters and I’m surprised they didn’t roll the dice in the big one.
The one man who will be delighted with that decision is Paul Townend, it will relieve him of a brain wracking choice between the two in the Champion and leaves him with a very obvious first string for the Mares.
While obvious, he will be vacating the seat on Jade De Grugy, so super sub Danny Mullins will have also been delighted at declarations. When Paul last took that seat, the combination won with ease at Punchestown, her only start in almost a year. While Lossiemouth is taking the easy option, it ain’t no gimmie.
The festival’s leading trainer for the past ten years could quickly put this year’s contest beyond doubt. He saddles six in the curtain raiser, Kopek Des Bordes easily the standout. There was much not to like about his maiden hurdle win. Pulled hard, jumped terribly, veered left, yet won well.
At the Dublin Racing Festival he raced better. Townend placed him perfectly, cover in front to get him relaxed and settled, cover on the inner to stop him from straying left approaching his flights. It worked, for the most part. Still keen but not to the same extent and jumped with far greater fluency and directness.
Smooth, relatively speaking, until a loose horse dragged them out at the end of the back straight. It was a race-costing incident, yet within a matter of strides Kopek was back on course and put the race to bed in strides. Phenomenal to the eye, akin to Constitution Hill’s Supreme victory, I hope this can be another in that league.
WP follows that with only one in the Arkle, but one should be enough. Majborough won the Triumph last season, at only five he too is a very exciting prospect. Two runs over fences have hardly seen him break sweat. Another exciting novice, but Willie’s can’t all be superstars, can they?
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