Gaelic Warrior and Fact To File set to clash again

Our podcast team debate whether they are for or against Gaelic Warrior and Fact To File in the King George

By Sporting Life

Horse Racing

Mon December 22, 2025 · 2h ago

Graham Cunningham, Ben Linfoot and Billy Nash discuss the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase on our Christmas podcast special but do they foresee victory for Willie Mullins?

Graham Cunningham: Fact hard to fault

It looks a humdinger and if you're opposing the Willie Mullins big two, you're looking for two proper 170-plus chasers to both underperform on the day. I think that's the short way of summing up the King George, so can't wait for it. It looks a proper Grade 1 contest.

It's 11/4 each of two Gaelic Warrior and Fact To File. I'm a bit surprised to see Jango Baie quite so close to those two, the bookies are taking no chances, but I'm not sure Jango Baie's done enough to be a 3/1 chance in a race as deep as this.

It could be a pretty severe test in more ways than one of stamina and jumping this, because Il Est Francais is pretty one-dimensional, The Jukebox Man doesn't have to lead, but he's a very bold jumper, and he'll be right on the speed. We have to think Gaelic Warrior won't be too far off it, so there could be a proper gallop on.

Also consider the weather. Hardly any rain forecast this week. Watering could come into play. But unless there's significant watering, I think soft ground horses, proper soft ground horses, are going to struggle.

I like Fact To File. I think there's genuine brilliance about him when he's right on his game and I don't think he is a bad price either.

Racing Podcast: Christmas Special

Ben Linfoot: Take on the Mullins pair with brave Brits

Like GC says, you're banking on the front two in the market underperforming, which is always a dangerous thing to do. But I'd be a little bit more concerned than Billy is about the Willie Mullins stable form.

If you look back to last year, he didn't have a great Christmas. I know some of his big guns won, but when you look at his strike-rate between Boxing Day and New Year's Eve, it was around 10%, a below-par Christmas and now this year he's struggling for winners going into the festive season, so it's definitely on my mind.

Of course, he's got loads of big guns running again, and if he ticks along at 35% and wins everything, no one would bat an eyelid, would they?

But I'm a little concerned and also, they both had a really hard race in the John Durkan. That was a crazy race, wasn't it, the way that it panned out, so there's a few things on my mind when they're both taking such a percentage out of the top of the market, and I do think it's a strong British challenge.

I think it's also worth pointing out that both Gaelic Warrior and Fact To File lost at Christmas last year as well, and they are horses that have been particularly effective in the spring.

I like Jango Baie, I like The Jukebox Man, and I do think they're really going to put up a fight, in a fascinating race.

Jango Baie is improving and I think he's going to improve again at the trip. He looks like a three-miler to me all day long. And I like The Jukebox Man, his form was boosted by Iroko at the weekend, he's got that Kauto Star Novices' Chase course and distance win under his belt, he's a bold jumper, and I think he'll stay all day.

I think those two, against the Irish pair, is the way I'll play it.

Dave Ord's Ladbrokes King George VI Chase horse-by-horse guide

Billy Nash: Gaelic by a smidgen

My one concern, as Ben touched on, is that both of them did have hard races for different reasonsin the John Durkan. Gaelic Warrior, very much his own doing, we know what he's like, he likes to get on with things, and he made it tough for himself the last day.

Fact To File had to do an awful lot of running to wear them down, and obviously Gaelic Warrior got back up in a thrilling finish. They've had just over a month, the two of them, which should be enough time, but you never know, we don't know how much that race is going to take out of them, and that would be the serious concern.

From a Timeform point of view, we have Fact To File to come out just on top in the adjusted ratings. He'll be 185, Gaelic Warrior, 184. Very little between them. People will ask, Gaelic Warrior beat him the last day, why is Fact To File coming out on top?

Well, we still think that Fact To File's performance in the Ryanair last year is just that little bit better than anything Gaelic Warrior has achieved over fences, but it's really a toss up between the two of them. I wouldn't put anybody off either.

I've thought for a long time that this race is tailor-made for Gaelic Warrior, but the flip side of that coin is he's his own worst enemy at times, and I'd like to see him jump the first two fences first before I'd wade into him. I think if Paul Townend can get him settled, he'll be very hard to catch around there, so I'll slightly be with Gaelic Warrior, but I'd like to see him over the first couple of fences first.