BY rights, Champ should be having a second crack at the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March, but it is very possible he could turn up there a day earlier for the Stayers Hurdle after he won the Howden Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot on Saturday.
The race was billed as a “confidence booster” before going back chasing but it is funny how these things work out and, of course, it is not like we haven’t been here before; the most successful staying hurdler of the past two decades, Big Buck’s, only switched back to hurdles after fluffing the last and unseating his jockey in the Hennessy Gold Cup.
Two seasons ago, Champ won the RSA Chase and looked like a chaser of immense promise, but it all went wrong last season. After a delayed start, Nicky Henderson had to run him in the Game Spirit Chase over two miles at Newbury for his Gold Cup prep and, after tanking through the race and running a blinder to finish second, he went to Cheltenham as the great British hope (no hope?) against Ireland in the Gold Cup.
It was a bit like the English cricket team against Australia – he broke the first six fences and was pulled up at the seventh. Clearly something was wrong and he was diagnosed with a kissing spine, undergoing an operation for it in the summer.
Henderson had hoped to use the Long Walk to see whether his Cesarewitch winner, Buzz, got three miles over hurdles, but the gelding fractured his pelvis (he is proving a good patient by all accounts) at the end of a routine eve-of-race gallop on Friday, which gave Champ’s win some poignancy.
Denne historien er fra December 23, 2021-utgaven av Horse & Hound.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra December 23, 2021-utgaven av Horse & Hound.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Gemirande provides 24-carat magic
Venetia Williams sparkles again in the December Gold Cup and jockey brothers dead-heat
‘Happy hunting, everyone'
“The season for talks, dinners and parties has finally arrived for Tessa Waugh, whose distress about the snags of middle age fades away with some rousing festive spirits
'Monaco deserved this victory
Seemingly destined always to play the bridesmaid’s role, Harrie Smolders’ great partner Monaco finally tops an incidentpacked Rolex grand prix
'It had to end sometime'
The closure of beloved Hampshire saddlery Calcutt Sons is a loss to the hunting and wider equestrian worlds, as Octavia Pollock reports
'You couldn't want for more
The Ludlow's peaceful country makes for a day in \"hunting paradise\"
The greatest gift of all
Christmas is fast approaching and while we all like a bit of tinsel, the festive season is also a perfect time for giving to a horse charity. Niki Hinman finds out some of the options
Winter him well
A horse's winter routine can differ dramatically from his summer structure but what’s the knock-on effect? Ellie Hughes asks vets how to optimise routine management for the season
Neat feet
Excellent hoof care is a year-round concern but the winter months present their own problems. Richard Stephenson MRCVS explains the seasonal challenges afoot and how to stay one step ahead
In bygone days
Modern vets have much scientific knowledge behind them, but what about their forebears? Kieran O’Brien MRCVS opens up the world of Victorian vets in London
'When I joined the Pony Club it was just two boys and 48 girls'
Pepsi Kohler on being delightfully outnumbered by girls in the Pony Club, a leg-up from a royal and the H&H advert that changed his life
