A GLANCE at results of the first day of Cheltenham would suggest a race meeting that went as expected; three winning favourites, two of the apparent bankers, and only one winner returned bigger than 6/1.

The run-up to the Tuesday was anything but predictable, however. Neither the Supreme nor the Arkle winner were supposed to be in those races a week beforehand, the star attraction of the entire meeting was absent while the ground came up much softer than anticipated after plenty rain over the previous 24 hours.

The going change to heavy after race two put the emphasis on stamina and the official time of the Supreme (4m 12 secs) was notably slow, only Shishkin in 2020 (4m, 8 secs) and Summerville Boy in 2018 (4m, 5 secs) coming close in recent years.

Into the hands

This ground change played into the hands of Slade Steel who again looked a strong stayer at the minimum trip, though the suspicion is that the result might have been different on a sounder surface, the runner-up Mystical Power showing the speed that befits his sire Galileo to get to the lead after the last only to be passed up the hill.

Mystical Power was wearing the first-time hood and it helped him in the preliminaries as he relaxed well (has been inclined to get warm on previous starts) while his jumping was the best it has been in three starts over hurdles. He could well reverse the form at Punchestown on more typical spring ground.

Firefox looked in need of a stiffer test in third, unable to quicken before the last and hampered when keeping on well late, and it is possible the decision to sit in worked against him; he has tended to look best forcing the pace at this trip.

Nothing travelled better than Action Master to the turn-in before his roots as a stayer became evident; Willie Mullins has trained speed into him since joining the yard, but he should improve again for stepping up in trip.

The decision to run Slade Steel in a race that had not been his initial target showed that the top trainers tend not to make these switches willy nilly, and that idea was reinforced when Gaelic Warrior won the Arkle in brilliant style.

‘In Willie/Aidan we trust’

Indeed, this was a return to form akin to that of Auguste Rodin in the Irish Champion Stakes last September, and punters that took the ‘in Willie/Aidan we trust’ approach were well rewarded.

Like Mystical Power, Gaelic Warrior was in a first-time hood, and it had a transformative effect in the race at least, his trainer commenting afterwards that it meant he ‘ran like a normal horse.’

Arkle winners typically have an excellent record in the following season’s Champion Chase, the two races essentially identical, but with his Grade 1 form over as far at three miles Gaelic Warrior’s targets next spring will be as harder as ever for ante-post punters to figure out.

In behind him, the Irish Arkle form worked out to a point, Found A Fifty coping fine with the left-handed track and Il Etait Temps again showing his dislike for the track, doing very well to finish as close as he did, considering the number of jumping errors he made. The road to next season’s Dublin Chase starts now for him.

Champion Hurdle

The CH (Champion Hurdle) unfortunately made for little good copy with no CH (Constitution Hill).

State Man again showed his workmanlike brilliance to win his fifth Grade 1 in a row, perhaps not as good here as at Leopardstown the last twice but likely to have pulled out more if needed.

That more will only be required should he meet Constitution Hill at Punchestown with Lossiemouth having other options at the meeting and further afield.

She too did what the market expected of her to beat the three de Bromhead runners in the Mares’ Hurdle, though again looked as if speed more than anything is her strong suit and a drop back to two miles is eagerly awaited with her.

Gavin Cromwell is reaping the rewards

IRISH horses, connections and punters got their traditional Cheltenham send-off at Naas last Sunday where the Bar One Racing Leinster National went to trainer Gavin Cromwell and owner Derek Kierans with Hartur D’arc, the race worth €59,000 to the winner.

Cromwell has enjoyed much success in Britain this winter, but this was the most valuable race he has won in Ireland since Perceval Legallois and Final Orders won on the same card at the 2023 Dublin Racing Festival.

One couldn’t but be taken by the way the winner travelled through the race and will have vindicated his owner’s decision to move some of his expensively bought horses to Cromwell.

Hartur D’arc cost £125,000 while Hypotenus (€215,000), Encanto Bruno (€210,000) and Velvet Elvis (£95,000) were also pricey, and each has joined Cromwell recently having been with either John McConnell or Tom Gibney, and won on their first start for their new trainer.

The runner-up was Positive Thinker in first-time cheekpieces, well-backed through the day despite being 6lb out of the handicap, and he continued a fine season for his trainer Michael McDonagh, while the third Fakiera did likewise for Eoin Griffin.

The first four home all raced more towards the near side late on, often an advantage at Naas on the chase track on slow ground, and the fifth Macs Charm was not seen to best effect racing around the inner.

Disadvantageous route

Perhaps he prefers a rail on his inside as he took a similarly disadvantageous route in the Paddy Power at Christmas but there is a suspicion that he has a bigger performance in him when his yard gets back among the winners, Colm Murphy now 42 runners and 233 days without a success. His jumping here was as good as it has been over fences.

The most impressive winner of the day was Fun Fun Fun in the earlier Grade 3 Bar One Racing Kingsfurze Novice Hurdle, where she again looked suited by front-running tactics, easily defying a 4lb penalty.

It was a performance that would not have been out of place in the Dawn Run at Cheltenham though connections were of the view that the meeting may not have suited her, but she is improving, and her jumping is getting sharper with each start.

Disappointing

Odds-on favourite Mirazur West was disappointing, unable to even confirm previous course bumper form with Mahon’s Way.

Unlike his stablemate, his hurdling was less than fluent and the first-time hood, the de rigueur item for free-going Closutton runners at this moment, did little to settle him.

Mullins’ record using the hood for the first time was underwhelming prior to last weekend. Over the last 20 years or so, his strike rate in them with National Hunt was around 17% whereas his base return with all jumps runners in that time was more like 25%, though that was to improve at Cheltenham during the week.