John Ingles provides an overview of the key things to note on the first day of the Cheltenham Festival.
Lossiemouth defends unbeaten Cheltenham record in Champion Hurdle
It’s ten years since Annie Power, trained by Willie Mullins for Susannah and Rich Ricci, won the Champion Hurdle, becoming the first mare to win the race for more than 20 years. But since Annie Power, other mares Epatante, Honeysuckle (twice) and, last year, Golden Ace, have all been successful. Golden Ace bids to defend her title this year, but it’s two other mares who head the Timeform weight-adjusted ratings in this year’s Champion Hurdle (16:00), Lossiemouth and Brighterdaysahead, the former representing Annie Power’s connections.
Lossiemouth has only been beaten three times in her 16 completed starts and none of her defeats have come at Cheltenham where she has raced four times, including at the last three Festivals. She gained her first win there in the Triumph Hurdle and has since landed the odds in the last two editions of the David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle. In winning easily last year, she ran to a higher figure than Golden Ace did when winning a chaotic edition of the Champion Hurdle. Lossiemouth also won the International Hurdle on Festival Trials Day in 2024 in impressive fashion.
In the last 12 months, Lossiemouth has also taken on and beaten male rivals in the Aintree Hurdle, Morgiana Hurdle and December Hurdle, in the last-named going with her usual enthusiasm on the way to beating Brighterdaysahead by a length. However, the tables were turned when the two mares met again back at Leoopardstown last time in the Irish Champion Hurdle. Lossiemouth didn’t travel with anything like her usual zest, Brighterdayshead also putting in the better round of jumping and winning by just over three lengths. But a back-to-form Lossiemouth should be capable of getting the better of Brighterdaysahead whose Cheltenham record reads less well, having lost her unbeaten status against Golden Ace in the Dawn Run Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle two years ago and then run most disappointingly when second favourite to Constitution Hill in last year’s Champion Hurdle.
Lossiemouth, who wears cheekpieces for the first time, heads the Timeform weight-adjusted ratings from Brighterdaysahead and last year’s Turners winner The New Lion who remains open to improvement, while Willie Mullins, bidding to win his sixth Champion Hurdle, has the ‘Hot Trainer’ flag.
Old Park Star on a par with Altior going into Supreme
Nicky Henderson and Nico de Boinville have won the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (13:20) three times in the last ten years with some of the best horses the pair have been associated with, namely Altior, Shishkin and Constitution Hill who beat Jonbon three years ago. Shishkin and Constitution Hill had the ‘large P’ symbol on their ratings going into the Supreme, indicating they were considered capable of much better, while Altior had the highest rating of the trio, coming from a wide-margin win at Kempton on Boxing Day which, in hindsight, could have been rated higher still. Altior went on to put up a high-class effort in the Supreme, beating the favourite Min by seven lengths, with his stablemate, the future dual Champion Hurdle winner Buveur d’Air, back in third.
This year’s renewal of the Supreme looks full of potential too, with ‘large P’ horses Mighty Park and El Cairos representing Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott respectively, while Joseph O’Brien’s Talk The Talk brings the best form from Ireland and should probably be unbeaten over hurdles.
However, ‘Hot Trainer’ Henderson and De Boinville look the trainer-jockey partnership to beat again with Old Park Star whose Timeform rating of 155p is the highest for a Supreme contender since Altior, who was rated the same going into the race. Old Park Star was beaten in all three of his bumpers when trained by Paul Nicholls last season but has taken brilliantly to hurdles this term, winning at Kempton, Cheltenham and Haydock. He was impressive when winning by a dozen lengths at Cheltenham in December and even more so in the Rossington Main Novices’ Hurdle the following month, jumping accurately in front and forging clear to win by 18 lengths, earning the ‘Horse In Focus’ flag. Having all the qualities of a Supreme winner and 7 lb clear in the Timeform ratings, Old Park Star can keep his unbeaten record over hurdles with further improvement to come.
Lulamba the pick in exciting Arkle clash
Henderson and De Boinville can continue a flying start to the Festival with Lulamba who is set for a fascinating clash with Willie Mullins’ Kopek des Bordes, the winner of last year’s Supreme, in the Arkle (14:00). The two stables have dominated the race since 2012, winning 11 of the 14 renewals between them. Henderson added to his record number of Arkle wins last year when Jango Baie provided him with an eighth win, while Mullins was denied a seventh win in the race with the defeat of odds-on favourite Majborough.
Majborough was bidding to become the first five-year-old to win the Arkle since Voy Por Ustedes in 2006 when five-year-olds were still entitled to a weight allowance, which has since been scrapped. Lulamba faces the same challenge this year, but last year’s Triumph Hurdle runner-up has a bit more chasing experience under his belt, including outside of novice company. He was impressive when following up a debut success over fences at Exeter in the Henry VIII Novices’ Chase at Sandown – where he did enjoy a weight allowance – and then followed in the footsteps of a couple of his stable’s best Arkle winners, Sprinter Sacre and Altior, by winning the Game Spirit Chase at Newbury. Helped by a well-run race, Lulamba ultimately won readily by six and a half lengths from Saint Segal who runs in Wednesday’s Queen Mother Champion Chase.
Lulamba, who earned the ‘Horse In Focus’ flag at Newbury, is 10 lb clear of Kopek des Bordes in the Timeform ratings, though the latter, with a ‘large P’ on his rating and very smart form to his name over hurdles, has scope for plenty of improvement. However, he hasn’t been out since making a successful chasing debut – coincidentally on the same day as Lulamba – at Navan in November. Typically travelling strongly, Kopek des Bordes guessed at some of his fences but was largely more assured in his jumping than he often was over hurdles. Having had surgery to remove a bone chip afterwards, Kopek des Bordes missed an intended return in the Irish Arkle to be given more time for this assignment. Lulamba can put his relative experience to good use and get the better of Kopek des Bordes, while the latter’s stablemate Kargese, winner of last year’s County Hurdle, is in receipt of an allowance as a mare and looks best of the rest in a race to look forward to.
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