In this 1xBet horse racing review, we will assess the chances of the key favourites to triumph in the main marathon of the season at Cheltenham. Speed, experience, or no pressure for results — which of these factors will prove decisive and lead to victory?

We were treated to some spectacular National Hunt racing over Christmas, and for all the doom around the sport, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic. Massive crowds descended on Kempton, Cheltenham, Leopardstown, Limerick, Punchestown and Tramore; trainers rolled out their heavy artillery; and several potential superstars announced themselves in the novice chase division. Clues were everywhere, bubbles burst, and a few reputations were beautifully rebuilt.

Yet while we enjoyed a thrilling King George VI Chase at Kempton, the overall Gold Cup picture may actually have become murkier, not clearer. I haven’t had a bet in the race yet, but at the halfway point of the season, here is my current shortlist.

The Jukebox Man – A Proper Player

The Jukebox Man did incredibly well to win the King George on just his fourth start over fences, and given that he remains unbeaten, we simply don’t know where his ceiling is. Some will point to his defeat in the Albert Bartlett as a negative, but I choose to see it differently. He placed in a Grade 1 novice hurdle at Cheltenham, has valuable experience of the new course, and is a vastly better horse over fences.

The clock backs that up. He won the King George in the quickest time recorded since Kempton installed its all-weather track twenty years ago. As an unbeaten chaser with course form on the big stage, he gives Britain their best chance to land jump racing’s Blue Riband since Native River in 2018.

Gaelic Warrior – The One That Got Away

Barely half a length covered the first four home at Kempton, so supporters of Jango Baie and Gaelic Warrior have every right to keep the faith. Watching the replay back several times, my feeling is that Gaelic Warrior may well have won had he led off the home turn. Either way, it was a tremendous effort.

He is already a proven Grade 1 three-miler, having beaten Grey Dawning in the Aintree Bowl last season, and his Cheltenham Festival record is 2nd, 2nd, 1st. Crucially, he has not yet been through the Gold Cup’s attritional test. As an eight-year-old, he feels the right age, and he looks sure to improve mentally and physically again.

Inothewayurthinkin – A Warning from History

At Leopardstown, Inothewayurthinkin ran a shocker in the Savills Chase. Someone clearly feared the worst: he drifted from 7/4 to 13/2 in the forty-eight hours before the race. Since 2000, the post-Gold Cup profile is brutal: horses who place in the first three in racing’s toughest race rarely return the same animal.

It is possible that he is simply a spring horse who comes alive in March – his two previous seasons suggest as much – but winning the Gold Cup takes such a monumental effort that very few ever replicate it. Galopin Des Champs might have misled us into thinking recovery is routine. It is not.

I’m sceptical he can return to peak form, but he’s in the right hands.

Galopin Des Champs – Crowd Favourite, Clock Ticking

When Galopin Des Champs swept into the straight at Leopardstown, the roar was visceral. When Affordable Fury fought back coming to the last, it felt as though the sound was vacuumed out of the stands. It was lovely to see Noel Meade back in the big-race spotlight, but I do not believe Affordable Fury is a Gold Cup winner.

That said, GDC can still roar back. He is entitled to come on from his reappearance and should take all the beating in the Irish Gold Cup. But he is now ten, and the armour is denting. He has surrendered his unbeaten record when completing at Cheltenham and his previously perfect Leopardstown tally. Time waits for nobody.

But, again, I am choosing to be optimistic on his behalf. Moscow Flyer won two Grade 1s at eleven. Kauto Star won the Betfair Chase and a King George at the same age. If anyone can coax one more great day out of him, it is Mullins and Townend. But were he to be beaten in the Irish Gold Cup, one suspects Townend jumps ship to Gaelic Warrior.

Grey Dawning – A Sleeper With a Puncher’s Chance

A fascinating contender who skipped Christmas entirely. Grey Dawning is a Cheltenham Festival winner, a Grade 1 winner on the new course, and a Betfair Chase winner on the bridle. Trainer Dan Skelton has been bullish since. The trainers’ championship implications are huge: a Gold Cup win would be season-defining. He is a far bigger player than his current 10/1 odds with 1xBet suggests.

Haiti Couleurs – Admirable, But No

He won the Welsh Grand National like a horse going places. But the last two Welsh National winners to go on to Gold Cup glory – Synchronised and Native River – were already Grade 1 operators before winning at Cheltenham. Haiti Couleurs simply has more to prove at the very top.

Spindleberry – Not This Year

An appealing idea, but her owner doesn’t decide her Cheltenham target – Willie Mullins does, and he will send her to the Mares Chase, where she will take the world of beating.

Final Verdict

My working shortlist is:

⭐ Galopin Des Champs – sets the standard
⭐ Gaelic Warrior – the one with upside
⭐ Grey Dawning – overpriced, improving

I haven’t had a bet yet and see no reason to rush: Gaelic Warrior and Grey Dawning may be available at similar prices when Non Runner No Bet arrives. But if Galopin Des Champs wins the Irish Gold Cup, 6/1 disappears overnight.

Maybe younger legs will outrun him in March. But if he does it, if he bounds up that hill again, he will emulate Kauto Star by regaining a Gold Cup, and become the first three-time winner since Best Mate in 2003. History is against him. But Willie Mullins has made a habit of rewriting history.

The analytical piece was prepared by Emmet Kennedy — Presenter, Producer, and Owner of The Final Furlong Podcast, Broadcaster with TalkSPORT, and Broadcast Consultant —  with the support of 1xBet Ireland.

1XBET AND TERMINUS PLATFORM IRELAND LIMITED DO NOT SPONSOR ANY OF THE EVENTS ABOVE AND HAVE NO PARTNERSHIP WITH ASSOCIATED SPORTS LEAGUES AND/OR ASSOCIATIONS.