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Poor Many Clouds
I think running the race of his life cost him his life. He got an RPR of 170 for winning the National, I think today he and Thistlecrack ran close to 178.I think Thistlecrack’s chasing bubble has been somewhat burst. He did 178 winning the World Hurdle and probably had 5 in hand (183). I don’t think there was anything wrong with him today or that he has any going preference. Simply he is not going to make a better or even as good a chaser as potentially he is a hurdler. This is because, turning to chasing relatively late, he is not fluent enough over fences. Today this lack of fluency meant he kept having to use up energy to recover his position and, having less reserves left in the tank, at trip & ground he was marginally outstayed. He ran a fine race and did stay well but relatively not as well as he can over hurdles where his fluency does not deplete energy. I don’t think he will prove any more effective in a Gold Cup on good ground because they will be going a stride faster making fluency harder, increasing the risk of a fall, and just as much energy will be used up recovering from (probably more) non-fluent leaps due to the speed other horses will be going away from him.
Having said that Thistlecrack could still be competitive in what now looks an open GC. It’s up to the owner and may depend on the ground (per what suits other GC runners) but, seeking a title and with Cue Card & Native River up his sleeve, would Colin Tizzard consider switching back to the Stayers for what could be the clash of the meeting with Unowhatimeanharry?
I can’t see why, in any scenario, Tizzard would switch the best horse in training, and most impressive King George winner for years, to Hurdles.
Would be ridiculous
Desperately sad about Many Clouds. RIP
As for the Gold Cup, I will be opposing Thistlecrack in a race that suddenly seems a lot more open
I’ll be filling my boots at a decent price now on Thistlecrack. Never jumped with any fluency and with hopefully better ground in March and better jumping he will win nicely as I believe he is the best in training over that distance
I’ll be filling my boots at a decent price now on Thistlecrack. Never jumped with any fluency and with hopefully better ground in March and better jumping he will win nicely as I believe he is the best in training over that distance
Agreed
If he’s 2/1 or 5/2 ish on the day, he will be getting some of my Alpha Des Obeaux winnings from earlier in the week in the RSA…
Smad place was 17 lengths behind thistlecrack and many clouds today. I don’t think he ran a shocker of a race at all. He probably ran to a mark of 155, meaning thistlecrack and many clouds ran to 172. And many clouds just had slightly better stamina. I think to beat Cue Card, Djakadam, outlander, native river, etc that thistlecrack will need to run about 175. That doesn’t take a whole lot of improvement from where he was today. And he also has the added advantage of one serious rival sadly no longer with us. I believe many clouds was the best horse in coneygrees gold cup but things just didn’t go for him that day. I believe the horse was a gold cup horse and thought before the race today that he would be a serious threat in the gold cup come March, sadly we will never know. I also believe that today was many clouds best ever performance in terms of rating.
So for those reasons I wouldn’t be too downcast about thistlecrack at all.Thistlecrack landed awkward a couple of times, I think his nose hit the deck at one point.
It was a trial and I don’t think they would have wanted him to have had a hard race and leave his Gold Cup behind today as mentioned by Joe but the rain the night before making the going soft was always going to make it more of a stamina test, I don’t think he failed on that count by a lot considering the horse that beat him had an abundance of it and Tom only went for the whip in the final half furlong or so. Agree with the above posts that he’s back to a back-able price.Gaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
Not like he was going completely backwards either, he’s still alongsides after the line.
Other possibility is Thistlecrack wasn’t quite right. Alary apparently wasn’t right last week, may be something in the yard.
Ginge, Alary scoped badly and was coughing after the race. Tizzard said that they moved him to another area of the yard as a precaution because he was close to Thistlecrack, NR & CC.
I read it in one of the trade papers this week.
The bubble certainly hasn’t burst, that was probably Thistlecrack’s best chasing performance yet.
It’s not inconceivable that poor Many Clouds had improved following his wind op – he certainly looked the business at Aintree last time. Smad Place was beaten 17 lengths back in 3rd, with no indication that he didn’t run his race, then you’ve got Conti beaten a total of 44 lengths (roughly the same as Cue Card beat him at Haydock). I pay little attention to times, but I came across one report that described it as a “monstrous” performance on the clock.
I think it was the jumping that cost Thistlecrack yesterday. He was scruffy at his fences, no major alarming errors, but several small ones which all add up. The crucial error came at three out, which is normally the point in the race where that big engine kicks into gear and he motors away from them. He couldn’t do that yesterday, losing ground and momentum at a crucial time, as Smad and Clouds got away from him.
Ultimately he was only just outstayed on holding ground, by an exceptionally brave horse who literally ran his heart out. Phenomenal performance from both, and so very sad that we won’t see them renew that rivalry in March.
In some respects the bubble has slightly burst because he proved yesterday he’s not quite the wonder horse people thought when getting carried away after the King George.
I’m not sure about the time being monstrous? Was a second slower than Coneygree who went nearly a furlong further when winning this race on similar ground…
Going forward I’d be really concerned what mark yesterday could leave? Tom really got stuck into him after the last…for a horse who’s not really come off the bridle for so long I wonder how he’ll come out of that with Cheltenham not that far away…
He also proved his jumping isn’t quite out of the top drawer and prone to the odd little error which he won’t get away with in a Gold Cup which will have more numbers and more quality than yesterday…
The forgotten horse for me is definitely Djakadam! He ran a screamer as a 6 year old and then last year had the fall in the Cotswold which was far from ideal and possibly the ground was a bit on the better side of what he likes…I never take too much notice of Lexus form as it’s such a strange race and always seems to throw up close finishes…
He jumps well, he stays, he’s been beaten by two brilliant staying chasers the last two years who I believe would both be short priced favourites this if they were him the field…his preparation has been different and I think he’ll be a much fresher horse…if he gets his favoured conditions I think he’s the one to beat…
Of course the bubble has burst. 8/11 becomes 5/2 and the supposedly bombproof Thistelcrack has been beat. Personally I think it’s great for the race and both those that support and oppose Thistlecrack. If you support him you have 5/2 to get stuck into as opposed to 8/11, and if you oppose him you have to have more faith in doing so.
The reason why he should be 3/1 is because of that extra furlong in the GC, the better quality of the race and of course the fact that won’t be able to dominate like he did against Aqalim, Ballycross, Ibis Du Rheu, the overrated Bigbadjohn and the other crap horses he beat in his novice chases….
The bubble has been burst to some degree,especially as some were claiming he was the best since,and even comparing him to Arkle after the King George and talking about ratings close to 200!
The horse has a great engine for sure,but he just doesn’t find enough for pressure for my liking. In races like the GC you are not just going to cruise round on the snaff,you need to be a grinder and as good as Thistlecrack is, I just don’t think he has those qualities about him.
I’m not sure about the time being monstrous? Was a second slower than Coneygree who went nearly a furlong further when winning this race on similar ground…
Are you seriously making this comparison? Years apart, with any number of factors that could have affected the time. The time figure on its own is also not sufficient enough to draw solid conclusions from. A guy on Twitter ( @StopwatchRacing ) posted this;
Going forward I’d be really concerned what mark yesterday could leave? Tom really got stuck into him after the last…for a horse who’s not really come off the bridle for so long I wonder how he’ll come out of that with Cheltenham not that far away…
I think Scu only hit him once? In the past half furlong. Only watched the race twice, could be wrong.
The forgotten horse for me is definitely Djakadam!
Seriously? Everyone’s crabbing NTD for running TNO in the Champion and not the Stayers, all while people continue to tip up Djakadam to win this. Fine, throw your money away.
The bubble has been burst to some degree,especially as some were claiming he was the best since,and even comparing him to Arkle after the King George and talking about ratings close to 200!
The horse has a great engine for sure,but he just doesn’t find enough for pressure for my liking. In races like the GC you are not just going to cruise round on the snaff,you need to be a grinder and as good as Thistlecrack is, I just don’t think he has those qualities about him.
If Thistlecrack hadn’t run in the King George, people would be calling him a monster for putting up that performance yesterday as a novice on soft ground on only his 4th start over fences. Very much the one to beat.
I think Scu only hit him once? In the past half furlong. Only watched the race twice, could be wrong.
Try 5 times…
I think running the race of his life cost him his life. He got an RPR of 170 for winning the National, I think today he and Thistlecrack ran close to 178.
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