STRANGE that Native River’s odds for the Cheltenham Gold Cup were shortened across the board on the back of his win in the Denman Chase at Newbury on Saturday.

The thin blue that tells you during the Cheltenham preamble that some horse has won some race went all the way across the Oddschecker board. The 6/1s and 5/1s dissolved, replaced by 9/2s and 4/1s and even 7/2s in a couple of places.

Native River is a high-class staying chaser who has a real chance of winning the Gold Cup. He improved all the way through last season, his National Hunt Chase form is working out really well, he improved from that to win the Mildmay Chase at Aintree, and he has continued to progress this season, winning a Hennessy and a Welsh National.

However, the strength of his chance of winning the Gold Cup was not increased by Saturday’s performance. He did all that you would have expected of him in the Denman Chase but no more.

Bristol De Mai under-performed quite considerably. Held up, Nigel Twiston-Davies’ horse was deliberate at his fences and he was out to his right on occasion. He never got into any sort of rhythm and he was well beaten in the end. It wasn’t his true running.

That left it up to Le Mercurey to mark Native River. Le Mercurey is a good horse, but he is rated 17lb inferior to Native River, he was receiving just 1lb, and Native River beat him by just over three lengths.

Colin Tizzard’s horse put up a nice performance visually, but it was no more impressive than his previous two performances were and the time was not especially good.

It was actually 1.7secs slower than the time that Final Nudge clocked in winning the novices’ handicap chase over the same course and distance later on the day.

Native River has a big chance of winning the Gold Cup but it was no better on Saturday evening than it was on Saturday morning.

Disko dancing

THERE’S that Grade 1 blue cap again.