I don’t disagree up to a point but he has finished 4th in the last two trainers championships earning around £2.2m in prize money both years with 76 and 91 winners (which is a 19% and 21% strike rate respectively) so that hardly spells a trainer who’s time is ‘nearly up’. His strike rate over the last 14 days is 33% (10 winns from 30 runners).
Yes Skelton has superceeded both him and Nicholls in the last couple of years but that doesn’t mean that they are not both fully capable of turning that around as there are always peaks and troughs with regards to the top class horses that each trainer gets to go to war with.
Is he more on the back foot at the moment……..well yes but equally with horses like Sir Gino (assuming he is none the worse for his issues), Lulamba, Impose Toi, Jango Baie and Jonbon etc that could quickly be turned on its head.