Tag Archive for: Paul Nicholls

Nicholls – I would dearly love to win another Gold Cup

/in /by

In the slightly dotty world of jump racing, Paul Nicholls has ticked just about every box, yet the fixation on possibly the most uninspiring trophy to look at outside of cricket’s Ashes remains.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup weighs 644 grams of nine carat gold and is plated in 18 carat gold. No matter the actual size – its stature is immense.

For Nicholls – master of 13 championships – training the fastest horse over the 22 fences, up hill and down dale, over three and a quarter miles of the Boodles-sponsored Gold Cup is the Holy Grail.

“I would love to win the Gold Cup,” he said. “I’ve been lucky to win it four times, but I’d love to win it again.

“It’s hard to describe what it feels like to go to that winner’s enclosure when you win a Gold Cup. It is like a drug and you want it again.”

See More Business (1999), Denman (2008) and Kauto Star (2007 and 2009) brought the trophy to Ditcheat, Somerset, and he will rely this time on the aptly-named Bravemansgame.

Winner of six of his seven starts over fences, he has been seen just twice on a racecourse this season, landing both the Charlie Hall at Wetherby and the King George VI Chase at Kempton.

He has raced beyond a three-mile trip just once before and it produced his sole defeat, when last of four to Ahoy Senor at Aintree in April.

“I think we have a nice team for Cheltenham,” said Nicholls. “But to have a real, live chance in the Gold Cup is the most important thing to me.

“That’s what we do it for, that’s the most exciting thing. That is what I am really looking forward to.”

The eight-year-old Bravemansgame gives Nicholls arguably his best chance in 14 years of winning the blue riband for a fifth time. It looks an open contest, with current favourite Galopin Des Champs also not having raced beyond three miles and last year’s champion A Plus Tard having an interrupted preparation.

“I think we have a lovely chance,” Nicholls said of the John Dance and Bryan Drew-owned gelding.

“It is a competitive race. We have got to step up again, but I think we are in there with a chance.

Co-owner Bryan Drew with Bravemansgame
Co-owner Bryan Drew with Bravemansgame (John Walton/PA)

“He is good fresh, so we didn’t need to run him in between his last run on Boxing Day and now.

“He won the Charlie Hall, he won the King George. You’ve got to stay to win those races, so I don’t think the trip is going to be a problem.

“Galopin Des Champs is a bit like Bravemansgame – they both galloped strong through the line in the races they ran over Christmas, so it would be interesting.”

Cheltenham, of course, is all about the Irish invasion. Increasingly so, in fact – two years ago Irish runners won 23 of the 28 races across the week.

The Irish make this a special place – and have had a vice-like grip on the prize-money in recent years, with Willie Mullins, Gordon Elliott and Henry de Bromhead leading the charge.

Mick Fitzgerald and See More Business gave Nicholls the first of four Gold Cup victories
Mick Fitzgerald and See More Business gave Nicholls the first of four Gold Cup victories (John Giles/PA)

Mullins won a record 10 races last year and is the most successful trainer at the meeting, victorious 88 times.

Competing against the Irish battalions, never mind beating them, brings pressure, as Nicholls concedes.

“Cheltenham is a hard week – it is hard to prepare and people think Cheltenham is the be-all and end-all of everything,” he said.

“You don’t feel the pressure, but it is there, isn’t it? You’ve got to deal with it and I think we deal with it quite well.

“We have some great horses in this country and some great racing. We just have to stop worrying about what the Irish are doing and just focus on what we do, and we will be a lot better off.”

There are several stables, particularly over the Irish Sea, where there is a concentration of firepower. It is not uncommon to see Mullins and Elliott having multiple runners in each race.

Nicholls and Nicky Henderson dominate in Britain, yet the champion fears the sport suffers for the assembled talent in a select few yards.

“Can you imagine, if in every race me or Nicky had six runners or 10 in a handicap? People would go mad. It is not good for racing. It wouldn’t work in this country.

“Myself, Nicky and Dan Skelton have good teams, but we don’t completely take over everything and have six in every race.

Kauto Star, under Ruby Walsh, on his way to a second Gold Cup victory in 2009
Kauto Star, under Ruby Walsh, on his way to a second Gold Cup victory in 2009 (David Jones/PA)

“I wouldn’t want that and I couldn’t train that number of horses, 150 for us is plenty to do it properly.

“The Irish are having a good run at Cheltenham. It doesn’t change overnight. It will take two or three years to turn things around. Nicky has a few nice chances. Dan has, too.

“It is probably cyclical. All those years ago when I had all those super ones that won everything, it was probably the other way then.

“I’m sure it will turn, but I’m not bothered. We just get on with our own thing and do the best with what we’ve got.”

It seems odds-on that Nicholls will add to his 46 Festival winners, with the likes of Hermes Allen (Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle), Irish Hill (Coral Cup), Hitman (Ryanair Chase), Il Ridoto (Magners Plate Handicap Chase) and Secret Investor (St James’s Place Festival Hunters’ Chase) all having leading chances.

Nicholls (right) holds the Gold Cup with part-owner Paul Barber and 2008 winner Denman
Nicholls (right) holds the Gold Cup with part-owner Paul Barber and 2008 winner Denman (Barry Batchelor/PA)

Yet Nicholls admits he would swap another championship for a Gold Cup and his ambition to train the most National Hunt winners in Britain remains undiminished.

He added: “I want to train 4,000 winners and would love to keep on winning the championship, but I’d dearly love to win another Gold Cup.

“You just need to keep doing your best, keep training loads of winners.

“We are only about 400 off training 4,000 GB jump winners and nobody has done that, so that would be a nice thing to do.

“All those things drive you, but to win another Gold Cup would cap it all.”

Cobden full of hope with ‘best’ Cheltenham team for some time

/in /by

Harry Cobden believes he is going into the Cheltenham Festival with the strongest book of rides he has had for several seasons.

The 24-year-old is the stable jockey to 13-time champion trainer Paul Nicholls, for whom he enjoyed his greatest Festival success to date when landing the 2019 RSA Chase aboard Topofthegame – a race now known as the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase.

Cobden’s other Festival triumph came aboard Colin Tizzard’s Kilbricken Storm in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle in 2018, with Festival rides since Topofthegame’s victory proving winless.

This season, however, the team at Ditcheat have high hopes for a string of contenders that include Bravemansgame, Tahmuras and Hermes Allen.

Cobden – who was stood down following a fall at Ffos Las on Sunday, but later described as “absolutely fine” by his agent Sam Stronge in a Twitter update – said: “Certainly in the time I’ve been at Ditcheat we would be going to Cheltenham with our best team with the likes of Bravemansgame, Hermes Allen and Tahmuras.

Harry Cobden after winning the King George VI Chase aboard Bravemansgame
Harry Cobden after winning the King George VI Chase aboard Bravemansgame (John Walton/PA)

“It is quite exciting and fingers crossed we have a bit of luck there this year.

“I think for the last few years there have not been too many stand-out teams we have sent to Cheltenham.

“We’ve had good horses like Politologue and Silviniaco Conti, but they were not Denman, Big Buck’s or Kauto Star, and whether we will ever see horses like that again, who knows?”

Despite a winner proving elusive, Cobden still feels the Nicholls runners have posted good performances but ultimately have not been able to get the better of horses trained in the big Irish powerhouse stables.

He said: “The last couple of seasons Paul has had 143 and 176 winners and we go to Cheltenham for four days and we end up having horses run well that put in career bests to finish third or fourth behind some Willie Mullins or Gordon Elliott-trained hotpot.

Trainer Paul Nicholls and Harry Cobden
Trainer Paul Nicholls and Harry Cobden (David Davies/PA)

“It can be frustrating, but I wouldn’t say it has ever got me down as you get off one and put your colours on and go back out for the next race. Racing is a great leveller as for 30 minutes you can be down then in your next ride you could have a winner.

“I’ve been lucky enough to have a couple of winners at the Cheltenham Festival with Kilbricken Storm and Topofthegame and they were amazing days. It would be lovely to walk away with just one winner from this year’s meeting.”

Bravesmansgame is Cobden’s hope for the Gold Cup, with the eight-year-old currently the leading British chance and second-favourite behind Willie Mullins’ Galopin Des Champs.

Last seen securing an impressive 14-length King George VI Chase success, the bay will tackle a three-mile-two-furlong trip for the first time in March – but his rider is not concerned about his ability to stay.

“I don’t think the extra quarter of a mile will be a problem,” he said.

Bravemansgame winning the King George VI Chase
Bravemansgame winning the King George VI Chase (John Walton/PA)

“He is a good traveller and I think I’ve learnt to ride him a lot better now. He was very good at Kempton considering how wide he went.

“To my mind the only question would be the track because he has won on a lot of big galloping tracks and he has never really been tested on an undulating course. He is a well-balanced good jumper so I don’t think that will be an issue.

“The Irish horse (Galopin Des Champs) is the one they are going mad about, but I think he has been overlooked.

“When he has come up short before he has always had an excuse, whereas on Boxing Day he had no excuses.

“I thought it was his race to lose and I thought he showed how tough he was from the back of the fourth last to the line. I was at him a long way out. He put his head down and galloped all the way to the line. He jumped great and was very brave.

Bravemansgame with trainer Paul Nicholls
Bravemansgame with trainer Paul Nicholls (Adam Davy/PA)

“I think the fact he has only had two runs and before going straight there will make a big difference this season as he has been specifically trained for this race.”

Cobden will also ride Hermes Allen, the general 9-4 favourite for the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle having won all three of his hurdles starts – latterly landing the Grade One Challow Hurdle by a conclusive margin.

“Hermes Allen is probably our best chance of a winner there this year. The only thing he did well at home before going to Stratford first time out was jump as he never really galloped that fast, but when he gets to the track he is a different animal,” said Cobden.

“I thought he was very impressive at Newbury in the Challow Hurdle. He jumped well and went a very good gallop on soft ground.

“He turned in and absolutely scooted away, he barely came off the bridle. It was probably one of the easiest Grade One winners I will ever ride.

Hermes Allen winning the Challow Novices’ Hurdle
Hermes Allen winning the Challow Novices’ Hurdle (Nigel French/PA)

“You are not going to get an easy lead in a Ballymore. They might go quick in front and I will have to sit in third or fourth and he might run free and run no race at all, whereas he might go to sleep and bolt up.

“He has got to raise his game again, but we haven’t got to the bottom of him so we don’t know how good he is. It will be a good race, but he jumps well, is quite relaxed and laid back. He is everything you want in a good horse.”

Tahmuras was the winner of the Tolworth at Sandown on his last outing and is preparing for another tilt at a Grade One title in the Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle.

“Tahmuras was very good in the Tolworth Hurdle and showed he had a great attitude. He missed the last couple of hurdles which he is unlike him as he is usually a very good jumper,” Cobden said.

“The only thing I would be a little bit conscious about is whether he is quick enough to travel all the way round.

Tahmuras and Cobden at Haydock
Tahmuras and Cobden at Haydock (Nigel French/PA)

“In a Supreme on soft ground I would fancy him. If it was a good ground Supreme I think he would be a bit on the back foot.

“The experts say he has got a couple of pounds to find on the top ones, but Facile Vega bombed out on his last start so it has opened the race up a little bit.”

Clan Des Obeaux on course to defend Aintree title

/in /by

Dual King George winner Clan Des Obeaux is making good progress from a suspensory tendon injury, leaving trainer Paul Nicholls “very pleased” as he builds up to a return at Aintree’s Grand National meeting.

The 11-year-old, owned by Paul Barber, Ged Mason and Sir Alex Ferguson, is being aimed at the Betway Bowl on April 13.

The five-time Grade One winner was last seen finishing second to Allaho in the Punchestown Gold Cup in April.

Nicholls is expected to give him a racecourse gallop ahead of his return, providing the ground eases sufficiently.

He said: “Clan Des Obeaux has been coming on beautifully. He has been doing a lot of work and the plan is to go straight to Aintree.

“I’m very pleased with him. It was touch and go at Christmas as to whether we’d carry on, but he’s done a lot of work and he’s been fine.

“He has improved enormously. We are not wrapping him in cotton wool – he has got to be ready.

“He’d have run at Newbury, but he skipped that and he will go to Wincanton one day on some good ground. It has been so fast.

“We will get a nice gallop into him and then go to Aintree.”

Clan Des Obeaux will bid to add to his haul of over £1million in prize-money in the Grade One race he won in 2021 and 2022.

Nicholls added: “We are going to have a huge team at Aintree. It is just the way it works out with some of the horses we’ve got.

“And I love Aintree as much as I love Cheltenham – it is a great meeting. It is not ducking and diving from Cheltenham – if we have horses good enough, we’ll be there. It will be the same with Aintree.”

‘Livid’ Nicholls hits out at BHA over whip regulations

/in /by

The British Horseracing Authority “need a bit of backbone” with regard to whip regulations, according to Paul Nicholls – who has described himself as “livid” with the timing of the new rules ahead of Cheltenham.

New rules and a tougher penalty structure for misuse of the whip were introduced on February 13, with 19 jockeys – including one of Nicholls’ stable riders Lorcan Williams – committing offences in the first week of implementation.

Williams was banned for 18 days for a winning ride at Haydock, with the suspension ruling him out of the Cheltenham Festival in its entirety.

Nicholls has voiced his concern about the timing of the new rules previously, but he described himself as “livid” and accused the BHA of “appeasing” critics of the sport rather standing up for participants.

Lorcan Williams was banned for 18 days
Lorcan Williams was banned for 18 days (John Walton/PA)

Speaking during an exclusive Betfair Cheltenham Festival preview podcast aired on Friday evening, he said: “I’m actually disappointed with the way BHA have handled it – talk about shooting the industry in the foot.

“There are people in the BHA (who) need to take a real look at themselves. Are they doing the right thing for the industry? Because I think they are letting us down and I think this whole thing is wrong.

“We don’t want to appease people who don’t understand the game. We’ve got to stand up for ourselves and say ‘look, this is where we are’, it’s not a welfare issue. We need a bit of backbone – the BHA need a bit of backbone to stand up for us all the time instead of appeasing the wrong people.

“There’s a lot of us trainers who have kept quiet really and are very, very annoyed with the way it’s been handled and that’s not just trainers, a lot of owners (are) upset about the whole thing and it will drive people away if they are not careful.

“I’ve been livid all along with the timing of it.

“Nothing seems to be simple with the BHA these days, which is sad because they’ve got a tough job to do. But I think honestly they do need to take a look at themselves and see what they are doing towards the industry and they need to be a little more proactive at getting things right.”

While a total of 20 bans were handed out in the first week, the number of referred rides during the second week under the new structure reduced to 12, with nine suspensions issued, two results pending and one ride found not in breach.

They have also been two disqualifications, the first being the James Moffatt-trained Lunar Discovery, with her rider Charlotte Jones banned for 14 days after striking the horse 11 times.

The whip review committee, which now assesses offences, disqualified a second horse earlier this week, as amateur rider James Turner was found to have used his whip five times above the permitted level of seven strikes when riding the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained Mavis Pike to finish second at Newcastle last Saturday.

The changes to the whip regulations were the product of a consultation process, with the steering group including a variety of industry figures, including trainer John Gosden, broadcaster Nick Luck and jockeys Tom Scudamore and PJ McDonald.

The whip has been a hot topic since revised rules were announced
The whip has been a hot topic since revised rules were announced (David Davies/PA)

Initial proposed changes included prohibiting using the whip in the forehand position, but that measure was rescinded in January following rider outcry, with harsher penalties and further a cut in permitted use of the whip instigated instead.

David Jones, chair of the Whip Consultation Steering Group, said: “The changes to the whip rules were the result of an exhaustive consultation process. The new rules are based on recommendations which were put to the BHA Board by a Steering Group which consisted of expertise drawn from across the racing industry and beyond, including prominent jockeys and trainers.

“They were unanimous in agreement that changes must be made to ensure more judicious use of the whip for encouragement, and improve the perception of whip use.

“The changes include a reduction of one in the permitted number of uses of the whip to six in a flat race and seven in a jumps race, and increased penalties for offences. Jockeys consulted were in agreement that increased penalties were necessary.

“Similar changes were recently announced in France, where the thresholds for acceptable use are already lower than in British racing.

“This is not about appeasing those who wish to see the sport banned, or attempting to convert them. It is instead about ensuring that racing takes control of its own destiny, and ensuring that we safeguard the sport against changing perceptions amongst its future audiences.

“Racing has so much to be proud about. We all look forward to celebrating the magnificent horses and people and the wonderful stories that our sport produces in the coming weeks.”

Horse named in honour of late Queen finds friend in a corgi

/in /by

A promising horse named in honour of the Queen has won the approval of a four-legged animal forever associated with the late monarch – a corgi.

Champion trainer Paul Nicholls is behind the four-year-old named Thank You Ma’am, who took a break from training to meet pet dog Sam from a breed loved by the Queen.

The corgi, a rescue dog, and the gelding hit it off during their time together at the Berkshire home of the pet’s owner, who has ties with the racing world.

Nicholls is hoping to add a fifth Cheltenham Gold Cup victory to his name later this month with Bravemansgame.

Thank You Ma’am the racehorse and Sam the Corgi meet in Berkshire
Thank You Ma’am the racehorse and Sam the Corgi meet in Berkshire (David Morgan/PA)

He said about Thank You Ma’am: “He’s got a cracking pedigree, so looks the part on paper and I hope we can have plenty of fun with him.

“I’m looking forward to Cheltenham and to Bravemansgame’s outing and, you never know, in a couple of years Thank You Ma’am could be at Cheltenham.”

Racegoers will be gearing up for the Cheltenham Festival, the highlight of the jump season, which begins later this month and in recent years has been attended by the Queen Consort, a passionate racegoer.

There has been speculation in the racing world the King will take up his mother’s interest in the sport and also become a leading figure at Royal Ascot.

Paul Nicholls with Bravemansgame
Paul Nicholls with Bravemansgame (Adam Davy/PA)

Thank You Ma’am is destined to compete over jumps but his introduction to the sport will be a flat race, at point-to-point fixture at Bangor on March 12.

Would-be horse owners can buy a share in the thoroughbred, for £50 plus VAT, through the website www.theposhpundit.co.uk a racing club managed by Rupert Adams, a well-known figure in the horseracing and betting industries.

Adams said: “The kind of syndicate we’re putting together will hopefully bring racing to the masses, it’s giving people the opportunity to be a racehorse owner for £50, whereas there are horses out there that cost millions.”

Stage Star’s Cheltenham role yet to be cast

/in /by

Connections are still open minded about a Cheltenham Festival target for talented novice chaser Stage Star.

The seven-year-old was a Grade One-winning hurdler who made a great start to his career over fences when landing a Warwick novice on debut by 13 lengths for trainer Paul Nicholls.

He was the runner-up next time out in a Newbury Grade Two in November, but won once again at Plumpton in early January and then secured a third chasing success at Cheltenham on Trials day.

Stage Star pictured at Ditcheat earlier this week
Stage Star pictured at Ditcheat earlier this week (Adam Davy/.PA)

A return to Prestbury Park is next on the agenda for the gelding, who holds entries for the Brown Advisory and Turners Novices’ Chases.

The latter is over his proven two-and-a-half-mile-trip, whereas the former would involve a step up to three miles and half a furlong.

Connections are yet to decide which path the bay will take, with the ground likely to be a factor in the decision.

Dan Downie of Owners Group said: “I spoke to Paul this morning and we haven’t decided what we’ll do yet.

“He’s in good form and we’re very happy with him, we’ll have a discussion next week and make a plan with him.

“There’s a possibility it could be ground dependent, we haven’t had much rain and we’re not likely to get any, so we’ll have to see where that leaves us.”

Either way, Stage Star’s most recent win provided valuable evidence of his ability to perform at Cheltenham, with his only previous run at the track being a pulled-up effort in the 2022 Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle.

Stage Star won the Challow Hurdle
Stage Star won the Challow Hurdle (David Davies/PA)

“He jumped really well, he relaxed and it was similar to how he jumped round when he won at Warwick earlier in the season,” Downie said of the Trials day run.

“It was really good to see him in form, he’s a great jumper and he’s got loads of scope.

“It was good to see him perform on that track as well because that was previously a bit of a question mark – whether or not Cheltenham would really be his track.

“His previous best runs have been at places like Newbury, but I think he coped with it beautifully.”

Hermes Allen backed for Ballymore glory

/in /by

Paul Nicholls is confident he has picked the right Cheltenham Festival contest for his hugely-impressive Challow Hurdle winner Hermes Allen.

The six-year-old, who was an expensive £350,000 purchase following victory between the flags at Kirkistown, holds entries for both the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle and the Albert Bartlett over further at Prestbury Park.

But it is the shorter of the two Grade One contests that has always been identified as the preferred option and the son of Poliglote is the general 9-4 favourite for the two-mile-five-furlong event.

Nicholls has seen Gold Cup contender Bravemansgame and the admirable Stage Star both turned over in the day two opener on the back of success at Newbury in the past two years, while Denman is another famous Ditcheat name to suffer defeat in the contest.

However, the champion trainer is bullish his unbeaten charge heads to the Festival as one of his best chances of the week.

He said: “He surprised me first time out when he won at Stratford. He then went to Cheltenham and won very nicely and then went to Newbury and won very nicely on heavy ground.

“I didn’t think he’d want that ground, but he was the only one with the ability to go through it and plenty of those that finished behind him have won since – it’s turned out to be a very good race.

“He’s obviously got huge ability and I’m excited about him going to Cheltenham of course, but I’m as excited about the future with him as he’ll be a lovely horse to go chasing.

“He’s working nicely and is in good shape. He’s in the Albert Bartlett, but I’ve always thought the Ballymore over two-and-a-half (miles) would suit.

“It’s a very good race, the Irish have got some very good horses in there but he’s got a great chance.

“He jumps and can be ridden forward and, on paper, he’s our best chance of the week.”

Nicholls also hopes Tahmuras’ staying prowess means he will be a live candidate in the Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle.

The race has an open feel following the defeat of Facile Vega at the Dublin Racing Festival and the champion trainer believes the Tolworth Hurdle winner – who is a best-priced 10-1 for success – gives him similar vibes to the previous Ditcheat winners of the Festival opener, Noland and Al Ferof.

“He looks fantastic and is three from three this year,” continued Nicholls.

Tahmuras with trainer Paul Nicholls during a visit to Manor Farm Stables, Somerset
Tahmuras with trainer Paul Nicholls during a visit to Manor Farm Stables, Somerset (Adam Davy/PA)

“He’s surprised us a little bit to be honest. He won a bumper at Wincanton and we thought he was a nice horse who would win plenty of races, but I never dreamt he’d be going for a Supreme Novices’ Hurdle.

“He didn’t really enjoy the ground that much in the Tolworth, but he had enough ability to gallop round and win nicely.

“The ground will be much better for him at Cheltenham, which will suit. I’ve won the Supreme with Al Ferof and Noland who weren’t going to go on and be Champion Hurdlers, they were staying chasers and he is very much the same as them.

“Those horses that stay can actually run very well in the Supreme and he has a lot of ability.

“He’s right in the mix in a very open race.”

One Ditcheat inmate that could be swimming slightly under the radar is Stay Away Fay, who heads to the Albert Bartlett on the final day of the meeting.

Stay Away Fay with a stable hand during a visit to Manor Farm Stables
Stay Away Fay with a stable hand during a visit to Manor Farm Stables (Adam Davy/PA)

In his Lingstown point-to-point, he drew six lengths clear of Henry de Bromhead’s Monty’s Star and the pair may lock horns again at Prestbury Park. However, whereas Monty’s Star is single-figure odds for the gruelling three-mile Grade One, Stay Away Fay’s price ranges from 16-1 to 25-1.

He has looked worthy of his £305,000 price-tag since transferring to Ditcheat, claiming a Newbury maiden in good style before just falling short in the Grade Two River Don at Doncaster last time.

“He’s a nice horse and is not that far behind Hermes Allen, he’s just had one run less,” added Nicholls.

“Lorcan (Williams) will say it probably wasn’t his best ever ride the last day at Doncaster. He got into trouble from the start and in the straight and still stayed on and finished second.

“He runs in the Albert Bartlett and I think there’s a lot to come from this horse. He stays and gallops. He lacks a bit of experience, but I think he’s one of the best big-priced outsiders we’ve got.”

Bravemansgame carries Nicholls’ confidence in Gold Cup quest

/in /by

Paul Nicholls is optimistic Bravemansgame has what it takes to provide him with a fifth victory in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup.

It is 24 years since the Ditcheat maestro first landed the blue riband with See More Business (1999) and he went on to win three successive renewals between 2007 and 2009, with Kauto Star’s two triumphs sandwiching the victory of his formidable stablemate Denman.

Nicholls has since seen a couple of dual King George winners come up short at Prestbury Park in the form of Silviniaco Conti and Clan Des Obeaux, but is hopeful it will be a different story in little over a fortnight’s time for his latest winner of Kempton’s Boxing Day highlight.

Speaking at a press morning at his yard on Monday, the champion trainer said: “He’s done nothing wrong at all this year and I don’t think he was right last spring.

“We re-cauterized his palate during the summer, he’s had some time and I didn’t want to make the mistake of running him again between Kempton and Cheltenham.

“He’s brilliant fresh and brilliant very fit. He’s twice the horse now as a model compared to what he was last year.

“We learnt a few things about him last year, you never stop learning how to train one and I think we’ve got it right now.”

There have been suggestions that Bravemansgame is in the same camp as Clan Des Obeaux and Silviniaco Conti in that Cheltenham may not be his ideal track – but Nicholls does not subscribe to that theory.

Bravemansgame and Paul Nicholls at his yard
Bravemansgame and Paul Nicholls at his yard (Adam Davy/PA)

He added: “With Clan we always had little doubts about the track, and Conti – but Bravemansgame has run there once and finished third in the Ballymore as a six-year-old. He got beaten by a horse (Bob Olinger) who on the day was an aeroplane and now can’t raise a gallop.

“He’s won on all sorts of tracks and he’s the finished article now. I can assure you when he was six years old he wasn’t half the horse he is now.”

Another question Bravemansgame will need to answer in the Cotswolds is whether his stamina will last out over the the extended three-and-a-quarter-mile distance.

Nicholls, though, is confident in his staying power, saying: “The one thing he did in the King George was he stayed on really strongly. He didn’t get the best passage that day and horses who win King Georges win Gold Cups.

“In the Gold Cup you turn into the straight and the best horse on the day wins and the horse that stays the best wins.

“I don’t know how he’ll get on up that hill, no one knows, but it was the same with Kauto Star. We didn’t know if he was going to get three and a quarter miles because he’d been winning at Kempton, but he did.

“It’s a good race and it will be hard to win, as any Gold Cup is, but I think he’s got a lovely chance – I think he’s one of our best chances of the week.

“He’s the best staying chaser in England, I think he’s proved that, and now he’s got to go and run probably the biggest race of his life.”

Nicholls readying Hitman to take on ‘awesome’ Shishkin in Ryanair

/in /by

Paul Nicholls believes Shishkin will be “unbeatable” in the Ryanair Chase if he can replicate his recent Ascot Chase performance.

The nine-year-old made a successful switch up to two miles and five furlongs in Berkshire, inflicting a 16-length defeat on the Nicholls-trained Pic D’Orhy as he returned from a couple of disappointing runs in style.

Nicholls may take on Nicky Henderson’s charge with Hitman at next month’s Cheltenham Festival and while the Ditcheat trainer expects his runner to appreciate a drop back in trip, he concedes he would be up against it with an on-form Shishkin.

Hitman could be up against it with Shishkin
Hitman could be up against it with Shishkin (David Davies/PA)

“He blatantly didn’t get three miles in the Denman Chase and middle distances suit him well,” Nicholls said of Hitman.

“He started the season really well and then went to Kempton and didn’t jump particularly well, but he ran much better at Newbury in a really fast-run race.

“He’s the sort of horse who could run really well in the Ryanair. He’s always there or thereabouts and he could easily run into a place.

“If Shishkin performs like he did the other day, he’ll be unbeatable. He was awesome at Ascot. I thought Pic D’Orhy would win and Shishkin was brilliant.

“Pic D’Orhy probably ran a career-best if you look at the third and the fourth. If Shishkin is in the same form everything else will be running for places I think.”

Greaneteen is a Champion Chase outsider
Greaneteen is a Champion Chase outsider (Nigel French/PA)

Greaneteen finished six lengths in front of Shishkin in the Tingle Creek back in December, when neither could get near the victorious Edwardstone, but Nicholls believes his three-times Grade One victor is perhaps over-priced for the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase.

“He’s been a grand horse, winning all those races at Sandown and two Haldon Gold Cups,” he said.

“He ran at Newbury the other day and was a red-hot favourite and got beat, so he’s gone from 12-1 to 33-1 for the Champion Chase, but actually two years ago he ran exactly the same race at Newbury and he ended up just getting beat at Cheltenham.

“The ground was too fast for him at Newbury, he blew up and then stayed on strongly.

“It would be no surprise to me if he ran really well and finished third or fourth. I’m not saying he’s going to win a Champion Chase, but he’s well capable of running a really tidy race.”

Stage Star at Ditcheat on Monday morning
Stage Star at Ditcheat on Monday morning (Adam Davy/PA)

Stage Star has multiple options at this stage, with both the three-mile Brown Advisory and two-and-half-mile Turners Novices’ Chase on the radar.

He won over the shorter trip at Cheltenham on Trials Day last month and conditions will be key to his target.

Nicholls said: “He’s been a grand horse. He was a Grade One winner over hurdles, he won first time up over fences at Warwick and I just think he found the ground very fast at Newbury next time.

“We went to Plumpton after Christmas and he won well and then he went to Cheltenham and won on Trials Day.

“He’s in the Turners and the Brown Advisory. We’ll just see what the ground does, but he’ll run in one or the other. If the ground was on the good side I wouldn’t be afraid to go for the Brown Advisory as I think he’ll get three miles, but if it’s on the slower side we can run in the Turners.

“You can run really well and finish third or fourth at Cheltenham, but he’s a progressive horse.”

Rubaud makes amends for Betfair Hurdle reverse

/in /by

Rubaud put a disappointing effort in the Betfair Hurdle well behind him with a gritty success in the Sky Bet Dovecote Novices’ Hurdle at Kempton.

The Paul Nicholls-trained youngster was strongly fancied for the richest handicap hurdle of the season at Newbury a fortnight ago but gave himself no chance by racing far too freely.

Front-running tactics were employed this time by Harry Cobden and fitted with a hood he was much more settled.

Cobden was able to dictate matters at his own pace and when he kicked coming out of the home straight, he looked to have an unassailable advantage.

The favourite Hansard soon dropped away, as did Ukantango, but the mare Mullenbeg quickened up to almost join the leader.

She could not quite reel him in, though, and went down by a length and a quarter.

Rubaud leads Mullenbeg over the last
Rubaud leads Mullenbeg over the last (Nigel French/PA)

“We probably should have put a hood on him at Newbury where he got lit up and was far too keen,” said Nicholls.

“He’s a proper horse who jumps nicely and will now go to Aintree for the Grade One over two miles.

“He’s in the Supreme but there’s no point going there, he will have a much better chance of being able to dictate at Aintree.

“He goes a good gallop, he’s a good horse but just needs to learn how to relax.

“We had his wind sorted out and he’s been one that’s needed time, a bit like Solo who we saw at his best in the Pendil.”