The stats for Ryanair winners in the GC aren’t that great – Imperial Commander is the only horse to double up though Cue Card might have,had Brennan not put him on the floor. Fact to File to me is a Florida Pearl type, a speedy, genuine G1 three mile horse who maybe is not quite good enough to win a Gold Cup.
I think there is a lot of truth behind that. Florida Pearl won this race four times, but didn’t stay the 3m2f at Cheltenham and FTF is just too speedy imo to win a Cheltenham Gold Cup. Having said that he showed plenty of stamina today, but with GDC easily 10 lbs. below his Leopardstown best and Firefox finishing upsides I wonder how good the form really is. Gaelic Warrior is a decent yardstick and I think both showed what they’re capable of in testing conditions and fully deserve to line up for the GC rather than the Ryanair.