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Melling and Bowl entries and will decide nearer the time but like the bowl as that’ll tell them which way to go next season.
Horse isn’t quite over Ascot hence missing this. Fair play to Ruth for how she’s dealt with the whole situation.
My post-race comment on Ascot Chase thread:
“Just watching the finish again, Waiting Patiently has very nearly pulled himself up – it looked like he might suddenly have gone wrong – before picking up somewhat reluctantly and, having jinked right on the run-in, looked to jink left crossing the line. I hope he pulls out sound in the morning.”
Trainer says now:
‘if you’re going to send a horse for a race like that you have to be
100% certain he’s in the best form he can be in,” Jefferson said
yesterday.“Having run at Ascot. he came back in and he looked all right –
then we started to ride him and the weight dropped off him.“i don’t think it would be beneficial to run a horse in a
championship race that is not. in my mind. In his peak form.“it’s better to back oft him and give him a little longer.”
Sets me wondering if the horse was just knackered after the last rather than idling/quirky, but if so, he’s most unusual to go from travelling sweet as you like to almost nothing in a hundred yards. Reminiscent of Cue Card’s reported trapped epiglottis in the 2013 King George.
Anyway, I’ve no doubt at all that the others had a hard race – especially Cue Card – and maybe the winner was almost as gutted as the rest despite the way he travelled toward the last. I hope he recovers fully. 25f at Aintree will suit him very well indeed imo. Cue Card would be a place lay for me in the Ryanair.
Connections of WP said the horse has lost weight after Ascot and that is why they are missing Cheltenham – sods law the weather will turn nice and the ground at Aintree will be considered to quick for him to run.
Think with Cue Card they will try the exact same forcing tactics that they did at Ascot (to turn it more into a stamina test) and I can see Ruby sitting in on UDS
Not one for aying I told you so but Ruth Jefferson seemed pretty certain WP would not run in this and even though I think UDS will win this am happy with my Cloudy dream bets!!
Four more sleeps
I accepted it that Waiting Patiently would not turn up. The vibes were always bad for me.
8/1 I had but that’s the gamble. He’d paid for his bet by winning last time.
I’d like to have seen if he could have won a Ryanair but it’s likely that he’ll only try that distance if he doesn’t stay the 3 miles.
It may be that he proves a King George horse but not a Gold Cup one.
The Aintree Bowl is what it is, but for me it’s a bit like doing the Football Pools with Vernons, rather than Littlewoods back in the day,when comparing it to Cheltenham.
Thanks for the good crack. Time for me to move on. Be lucky.
With the form you are in Wasp, I’ve followed you in especially with Waiting Patiently and Top Notch out of the running
Gaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
I like Cue Card in this. Geraghty made an interesting comment on a preview night recently, that as horses get older they cope with their racing much better. With this in mind, I wouldn’t be too concerned that Cue Card appeared to have a hard race last time out, especially when UDS looked in the Clarence House that the Hilly Way took plenty out of him. He will love the ground, the course isn’t an issue and he’s still got plenty of class.
Owner decision apparently keeping him apart from Min
Gaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
Racing Post
@RacingPost
2m2 minutes ago
Clarification on earlier tweet re Douvan. Willie Mullins has stressed that no final decision has been made on his target, but that the Ryanair Chase is being seriously considered. Apologies for the miscommunication.
Gaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
Fake news …aka lies from the racing post. Mullins said the Ryanair is under serious consideration for Douvan, but the Racing Post reported that he WILL run in the Ryanair. They twisted his quote, and if I were Mullins I’d boycott them
This race needs to go. Year after year farcical scenes ensue over who goes where and races like the Champion Chase and Gold Cup suffer from it. The Champion Chase is the main victim this year. It’s a shame.
Fake news …aka lies from the racing post. Mullins said the Ryanair is under serious consideration for Douvan, but the Racing Post reported that he WILL run in the Ryanair. They twisted his quote, and if I were Mullins I’d boycott them.
Ricci says “I had a chat with Willie yesterday and we are open to the idea. We’ve got until tomorrow to change our minds. But I would be leaning towards the Ryanair, which would still be a big ask for Douvan.”
So they’ve made a decision, but could “change their minds”.
So is it that the Racing Post have “twisted” things? Or others have twisted what the Racing Post have said?Quotes from Mullins and Ricci can often be misleading, not surprising people (including journalists) get things wrong.
Value Is EverythingSurprising to me as nothing in his past suggests that Douvan wants to go 2m5f and on likely very soft ground – the furthest he has ever gone is 2m1f. In some ways you could argue that trying a new trip on testing ground for the first time will be a more demanding test for a horse coming back from a year off.
Not really buying the reason about keeping the two apart (they have in the past but Vroum Vroum Mag & Limini took each other on last year) and surely having two shots at the race is better than one especially when you know that one has already had his rear end handed to him in the past by the favourite – it suggests that they think that Douvan is not even capable of beating Min let alone Altior.
Don’t really think that this is best for Douvan if they do switch him as in either race there is going to be no hiding place pace wise and to me staying at 2m 1st time out seems the most sensible option to take.
If Douvan was thought to be in A1 condition make no mistake he’d be going for the Champion and Min Ryainair.
If – quite a big IF on very soft ground – “if” he stays the trip they probably believe Douvan could win the Ryanair even though he’s not fully fit… ie Probably need to be at his very best to win the Champion Chase… and isn’t. Not wanting to run the risk of Altior beating Douvan which (to many) would lessen the latter’s previous reputation.
One to take on in this race.
Value Is Everything
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