Graham Cunningham's Festival File Part Three | Elite jocks and potential switcheroos

Cometh the hour, cometh the front man

One minute he’s pottering round in reticent thirtysomething fogey mode with no apps on his phone, the next he’s firing the content cannon telling Paddy Brennan to “shove that where the sun don’t shine” after Constitution Hill’s third Christmas Hurdle success.

Perhaps it’s unkind to watch the re-invention of Nicolai William Chastel De Boinville and think of Jacob Rees-Mogg trying to shed his Minister for the 18th Century image on a Discovery+ reality show.

But there’s nothing like the promise of primetime telly coverage and a huge pot of new money to change a man’s mindset.

So forget that hardly anyone among an ITV audience of almost a million knew Nico was blasting Bishop Brennan for dissing his famous partner on ATR’s Unbridled show and focus on the background to the clickbait clapback.

Nico had signalled his desire to embrace modern media just before Christmas, telling the RP’s Peter Thomas that “I can be a front man if that’s what’s needed because I see the bigger picture.”

And that bigger picture might just be one framed by Champions: Full Gallop along with its richly endowed stepchild, the David Power Cup.

‘Beef with Brennan’ will surely be on the menu in Season 2 of CFG but it all felt a bit phonus bolonus and, ten years after the man who changed the game decided to give the game away, an awkward question beckons.

How stacked is the current jump jockey pack?

And is one of the aces getting a fair deal at the Festival?

But first, let’s go back to Newbury on this very day in 2015:

Fresh from sealing a ninth double century in the Game Spirit Chase, an emotional AP McCoy looked down from the back of Mr Mole and gave Rishi Persad one of the scoops of the season by revealing that he would be retiring that spring.

Uxizandre forged clear of Ma Filleule and the following year’s Gold Cup hero Don Cossack in the Ryanair five weeks later, giving the 20-time champ one last Festival fling in what proved a vintage meeting.

Ruby ran riot on Douvan, Un De Sceaux, Faugheen and Vautour, while Barry delivered on The Druids Nephew and Peace And Co amid a star-studded supporting cast included Johnson, Russell, Fehily, Cooper, Scu and a couple of Carberrys.

But golden eras can’t shine forever.

The retirement of jumping’s equivalent to Roger, Rafa and Andy, with over 130 Festival scores between them, left the sport shorn of three legends whose names rang out beyond the racing parish.

There’s nothing controversial in suggesting that most of their successors seem somewhat plain by comparison and McCoy has delivered his own dour verdict by repeating a claim that he would still be champ at 50 had he stayed in the game.

Now the first rule of Jock Club is that you don’t question the old guv’nor – who has more than a touch of Djokovic about him - but it’s tough to win a Major if you spend the biggest week of the year playing with wooden racquets on the outside courts.

Paul Townend (34 wins) and De Boinville (16) have commanded the Festival lawn since McCoy and his pals retired - but how many of their 50 wins were for trainers not named Willie or Nicky?

Spoiler alert, it’s three …

Yes, just three.

Markets suggest the big two will dominate the Festival Grade 1 contests again in 2025 but, with elite riders routinely riding to 40 and beyond nowadays, you wonder what goes through the minds of younger blokes who don’t have an in with the super yards.

It’s not hard to guess what the up-and-coming Ben Jones thought when The Jukebox Man was ruled out of the Brown Advisory last week but at least he has the memory of Shakem Up’arry’s thrilling success in last year’s Plate.

Various seasoned British riders have barely had a sniff of a Festival winner after many years of trying, which brings us neatly to the curious case of the former prodigy now on the cusp of becoming a champion.

Sean Bowen was a cherubic little 17-year-old when he pipped the older Nico to the leading conditional title with a big race double on the day AP took his final bow at Sandown in April 2015.

Ten years on, the affable Welshman is closing in fast on a thousand British winners and is 13 clear of Harry Skelton in his quest to win a title that slipped away last season due to injuries sustained in a heavy Boxing Day fall at Aintree.

Bowen’s ability to lift one home in a tight finish carries echoes of McCoy and the rare blend of finesse and balance he showed to get Moon D’Orange home after a jarring final fence blunder on Trials Day would have done Ruby or Barry proud.

And yet his Festival cupboard remains bare after a decade riding a mixture of longshots who were in much too deep and a handful of good horses who weren’t good enough.

Ain’t no sunshine?

Yes, there was a near miss as Arpege D’Alene was worn down by Davy and Mall Dini in the 2016 Pertemps, while Fugitif went close by splitting Seddon and Shakem Up’arry in the 2023 Plate.

But Bowen has never come remotely close to Grade 1 glory in March and opportunity is the key factor as the mind wanders back to that historic 2015 Festival again.

De Boinville was still battling Bowen for the conditional crown that spring when the late Mark Bradstock put his faith in one so-called rookie to get the best out of another in the Gold Cup.

That trust was repaid in spades as the trailblazing Coneygree turned Ruby and Djakadam away and the rest is history for the man who partners all four of Britain’s brightest hopes at the 2025 Festival.

So hats off to the all-new Nicolai, who has silenced his doubters with poise when the pressure is highest and returns to Cheltenham with a flawless record of 23 wins from 23 spins aboard Constitution Hill, Jonbon, Sir Gino and Lulamba.

I’m totally here for the bantering frontman chumming it up with Chip Chapman and the lads but the greatest show on turf is missing something valuable if an engaging, authentic, high-class rider like Sean Bowen can’t get a look in.

The lad who beat Nico to the boys’ crown a decade ago doesn’t need a Jacob-style transmogrification or an endorsement from a 50-year-old former champ still pining for the old days.

All Sean Bowen needs is a chance. Give him that and he’ll soon find his way to the Cheltenham spot where the sun does shine.

True Couleurs shining through?

Time will tell whether HAITI COULEURS is the one to break Bowen’s Festival duck but this bold jumper has looked highly progressive in winning two of his three chases, the latest a strong novices’ handicap at Cheltenham in December.

Another piece of his preparation fell into place at Newbury on Saturday when he galloped on willingly for third in a competitive handicap and the fact that Rebecca Curtis ran her best prospect over hurdles gives a broad hint that she’s eyeing the revamped National Hunt Chase – now a Novice Handicap open to professional riders - rather than the Ultima next month.

Curtis is clearly up to speed with important new rules for Festival handicap contenders and it’s worth revisiting those changes before this year’s window for qualification closes.

In case you missed it, three runs over fences are enough to get a horse into the two novice handicap chases but runners in non-novice handicaps need to have run four times over fences and five over hurdles.

And they need to have done so in the next two weeks…

Entries for Festival handicaps close on February 18th but horses can have their final qualifying run at any time until the 23rd with the weights published amid the usual scratching of chins on the 25th.

Most of the main current market fancies have already had the requisite number of runs but there are some notable exceptions and a few trainers need to get a shift on to punch their tickets.

SLADE STEEL needs one more run to qualify for the Jack Richards Novices’ Handicap Chase but his absence from Henry De Bromhead’s RP Stable Tour on Friday suggests it might be best to tread carefully with last year’s Supreme winner.

Whispers from Waterford suggest Henry is aware of the need to get another run into last year’s Martin Pipe runner-up WATERFORD WHISPERS, while O’Neill improver HASTHING needs one more to justify a prominent place in the Kim Muir market.

PEAKY BOY has left Seven Barrows for Jackdaws Castle since finishing third to Haiti Couleurs at Cheltenham but seems very unlikely to make the Ultima given that he needs two more runs.

Henderson may well think twice about running Scilly Isles second JANGO BAIE off a mark in the 150s at Cheltenham but needs to get him out again if he is tempted.

Stablemate SHANAGH BOB clinched his Pertemps place by running at Warwick on Saturday, while Martin Pipe winner BETTER DAYS AHEAD could be Brown Advisory bound but will become novice handicap eligible with a third chase start at Navan on Sunday.

And then we come to Saturday’s runaway William Hill Hurdle winner JOYEUSE…..

Chappers Chapman found a predictably receptive audience when telling Nicky and Nicolai that the new rules re Festival handicap qualification are bonkers but, as Boris said while exiting the Downing Street stage, them’s the breaks.

The whole idea of the new system is to encourage greater winter competition and generate compelling Festival betting handicaps in which the assessor and punters alike can get a fair handle on the field.

Hendo has had over 13 months to get five hurdles runs into Joyeuse since her winning debut at Taunton last January. That seems a wide enough window – but you could always supplement for the Champion!

Who knew that switcheroo was an actual word?

Wikipedia describes it as ‘a sudden unexpected reversal, often for a humorous purpose.’

Festival fans haven’t always seen the funny side of late changes – especially when Vautour vaulted from the Gold Cup to the Ryanair in 2016 - but the switch hitters are limbering up again and all we can do is take a swing and guess where the ball will land.

Lossiemouth

Willie says “we’ve been training her for the Champion for two years” but Rich tells Chappers a call between the Champion and the Mares’ Hurdle will be made at the last minute.

Time will tell but history – and the memory of Willie winning that Vautour debate – suggests the two-year plan won’t be shelved despite that dramatic DRF departure.

Switch Potential – Low to moderate

Brighterdaysahead

Mindful that aiming for the Champion didn’t work for star filly Apple’s Jade, the Gigginstown boys have long seemed intent on picking low hanging fruit against the girls.

But Gordon is getting tempted, saying “I’d love to win a Champion” and adding that his latest star is “a lot faster than Apple’s Jade.”

Brighterdaysahead moved to a Timeform rating of 167 with her runaway Leopardstown Christmas win. That’s arguably the best piece of hurdling form of the season and a 2025 Champion run without this mare would have a maroon and white ghost at the feast.

Switch potential – Formerly low but rising steadily

Fact To File

"He's in the Gold Cup, but I imagine we might be leaning the other way," says Willie. That other way is the Ryanair and RP Undercover sleuth David Jennings says “I'd rather take the 6-4 for the Ryanair rather than the 9-2 for the Gold Cup.

But is it that simple? Willie drives the bus but the McManus team have their own map and Spillane’s Tower as a leading Ryanair player. And, having started the season with a squadron of Gold Cup likely lads, will JP really want to fly solo with Corbetts Cross?

Switch potential – This File remains in the Too Difficult tray.

Il Est Francais, Banbridge and Grey Dawning

The Gold Cup entry has gone for Il Est Francais and it now looks 10-11 each of two between the Champion Chase and Ryanair, while Joseph is keeping every option bar the boat race open for Banbridge and Dan is deliberating between Kelso and something rather fancier for Grey Dawning.

Switch potential – No idea about the first two but don’t be surprised if Dawning rejoins the Gold rush.

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