Five things: Ben Linfoot on the Gordon Elliott team

Elliott’s Going To Be Hard To Reel In

“I’d say I’ve absolutely no chance,” says Gordon Elliott, for the thousandth time in the last month. He is, of course, referring to the race to become Ireland’s champion trainer.

But Willie Mullins on Monday was talking of ‘the scale of his task’ to overhaul Elliott and the €350,000 gap between the pair, in Elliott’s favour, will not be an easy one to bridge. Indeed, Paddy Power make Elliott the 2/5 favourite.

“You keep telling me that every time you’re at the races,” Elliott says, his broad smile the pre-cursor to an acknowledgment, of sorts, that this year could well be his. 

“I was asked the same question last year and the year before and I thought it would take ten years for it to happen so, if it happens it happens and if it doesn’t hopefully it will happen at some point. 

“It’s something you dream about to be champion trainer but I have my feet firmly on the ground. Of course you think about it, I’d be lying if I told you otherwise, but I’ve got lots of respect for Willie and the firepower he has. He’s going to be very hard to beat, but we’ll see what happens.

“I’m not going to start talking about it until the last day of Punchestown. I’d say everything that can walk will run at Punchestown if we’ve got a chance! Of course we’d have to give it a rattle if we’ve got a chance. But I have masses of respect for Willie.”

The key race, in all of this, could well be the Boylesports Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse. A major prizemoney boost this year sees a purse of €500,000 up for grabs, and Elliott is eyeing up a significant slice of the pie.

“We’ve around 29 or 30 entered in the Irish National,” he says. 

“I was going through the entries yesterday as they close tomorrow [Wednesday]. That’s all I can find for it! 

“The Irish National will have a big part to play in it [the title race] but we’ve been really lucky to win all those big handicaps this year so we’ll see.”

We will see. Considering those numbers, it’s getting difficult to see anything other than the crowning of a new Irish champion trainer come the spring.

Cheltenham Team Stronger Than Ever

This time last year Elliott proudly paraded Don Cossack as the spearhead of his strongest ever team for a Cheltenham Festival.

The Don went and won the Gold Cup, the obvious highlight for Elliott’s Cullentra stables at last year’s meeting, and that win formed part of a treble that took his trainer’s tally to eight Festival wins overall.

There’s no Don Cossack this year, but the strength in depth is even stronger. The influx of Gigginstown horses has boosted both his numbers and quality and Elliott was in no mood to be conservative about what he expects in a couple of weeks’ time.

“I’d say we’ll have 30 going over and most that are going will have chances of getting in the winners’ enclosure,” he said. 

“In my own head I know where I’m going with them all, but we’ll have to see what the handicapper does with some of them.

“I’ll have a runner in most races, apart from the bumper. This is Cheltenham, it’s the Olympics, so nobody will be missing it because of the ground. There’s no excuses on that score, not unless it’s rattling quick or bottomless and I don’t think that’s going to happen. 

“You need luck every day you get out of bed don’t you so yes, you need a bit of luck.”

Don Cossack had no luck after his Cheltenham Gold Cup victory, his career ended prematurely by injury, but Elliott is not one for wallowing in what might have been.

“If it had happened the week before Cheltenham last year I would’ve been gutted. But at least he retired a champion. 

“When they’re coming back from injuries like that it’s hard, so I didn’t really get upset about it. If he wasn’t 100 per cent I wasn’t going to take a chance with him. He’s too good for that. 

“Someone else might’ve given him another go but I couldn’t. I just hope we can find another one like him.”

Elliott Fears Native River Over Cue Card

Outlander and Don Poli are charged with the responsibility of bringing Elliott and Gigginstown another Gold Cup, hot on the heels of Don Cossack’s success in the race.

“I’m not stupid enough to think I can have another one the following year,” says Elliott, but Outlander and Don Poli finished one-two in the Lexus Chase at Leopardstown over Christmas and they, along with Djakadam and Sizing John, form part of a strong Irish challenge.

“There’s not much between the Irish horses,” Elliott says. “I’d say Outlander and Djakadam could be the two as they’re going there fresh, the others like Don Poli have had two races since, but I don’t think there’s a lot between the Irish horses. We’ll see what the English have you know.“

The English, or, more specifically, Colin Tizzard, have Native River and Cue Card following stablemate Thistlecrack’s unfortunate absence.

And Elliott fears the younger Hennessy and Welsh National winner more than the veteran.

“You’d love to be training Cue Card but he’s had chances in a Gold Cup hasn’t he. 

“I’d have Native River over him myself to be honest, the way he galloped to the line the last day, he’s an improving horse, he keeps going forward and he’d be the horse I’d most fear from England.”

Kennedy In Line For Tombstone Ride

Elliott says whatever Bryan Cooper doesn’t ride in the Gold Cup will be ridden by Jack Kennedy, and the brilliant 17-year-old jockey could be picking up a mighty spare in the Champion Hurdle too.

With Gigginstown’s Petit Mouchoir the current 11/2 third favourite the odds would suggest Cooper will ride Henry de Bromhead’s charge, leaving the door open for Kennedy to get the leg up on Tombstone. 

Elliott said: “If Bryan doesn’t ride Tombstone, Jack will ride him in the Champion Hurdle. As far as I’m concerned anyway, I haven’t discussed it with Michael and Eddie [O’Leary] but I can’t see it being a problem myself. 

“Bryan would sit on the fence until the morning before the race I’m sure. He’ll say it’s a hard decision but I’m sure he’s already made his mind up. If we have Bryan brilliant but if not I’m happy to have Jack.”

Time On Side Of McManus Hurdlers

Two horses that won’t be going to Cheltenham are JP McManus’ hurdlers Campeador and Sutton Place, but both are clearly highly-regarded with big-race targets in the future mentioned for the pair. 

“Sutton Place won’t travel over,” said Elliott. “We’ll save him for Aintree or Fairyhouse. The Grade One Aintree Hurdle or maybe that Grade Two hurdle on Easter Monday at Fairyhouse.” 

Meanwhile, Campeador has been roughed off for the season following his second consecutive last-flight fall. He fell when in contention for the Fred Winter at last year’s Cheltenham Festival, while he was about to put up a sparkling performance in a competitive €43,000 handicap hurdle at Fairyhouse on his return in December when he came down at the last again.

Indeed, the Irish assessor put him up 6lb to 148 despite him failing to negotiate the final obstacle.

“He did a little thing to his neck after the fall at Fairyhouse,” said Elliott. 

“We didn’t discover it until a fortnight after but we had to miss six weeks. And if you miss six weeks at this time of year that’s it your season’s over. 

“We thought that’s it for the year but he’s a young horse. Falling in two handicaps at the last like that, he’s just been unlucky. He normally jumps very well, I don’t know if it was lack of concentration or what. 

“He’d probably have to improve to be a Champion Hurdle horse next season, but the way he was going when he fell at Fairyhouse, he could be. He’s a fair horse.”

He’s one to look forward to next season, but, in the more immediate future, Elliott has a few more ‘fair horses’ to go to war with at Cheltenham in a few weeks’ time.

Perhaps another Gold Cup is too much to ask. But this year’s squad has quality as well as depth and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Elliott were to beat last year’s tally of three Festival victories this time around.