Festival Trials...i dont think so.

Yet another manufactured meeting,i remember when this was just another Cheltenham fixture that happened to feature the Cotswold Chase but the powers that be moved the Cleeve hurdle,added a couple of other graded races and we end up with this.Four so called trials that apart from one obvious winner will,in my opinion,have no bearing whatsoever come the real deal in March.
Triumph Trial threw up a good spectacle with three in line over the last,Grumeti seemed a shade fortunate to be awarded the spoils,Pearl Swan did veer of a true line but i thought he was the winner on merit and the swerving probably hindered him more than the runner up.Is there a Triumph winner in this race? i dont think so,theres probably a least a handful with as much untapped potential kicking about and 4yo hurdlers are like 5 furlong 2yos,to be avoided like the plague.
Neptune Trial again provided a good race with four pulling clear of the rest,Batonnier finally resting the spoils up the Hill.He had shown a nice level of form in previous outings but had the look of a "bridesmaid" and the fact that he triumphed probably tells you all you need to know about the form.I'll be amazed if hes good enough for the Festival equivalent.
Argento(Gold Cup Trial) was just a total lesson in the adage that good jumpers win good races.Midnight Chase grabbed the race from flagfall and put the rest to the sword,jumped from fence to fence under a super ride from Dougie Costello and never looked like being caught.His Gold Cup run from last year,if taken at face value,gave him solid claims in this event and so it proved,if hes run to his mark,no reason to think he hasnt,thenfor all that this was a very honest and worthy performance,it still leaves him 20lb to find come d day in March.The reputations of Time For Rupert and Diamond Harry,in particular,took a pasting,they are starting to look like "nowhere to go" chasers,cant cut it against the big boys but to high in the weights for handicap claims.The winner will probably go for Gold Cup glory,he'd be playing for third at best on all that we know.
Cleeve(World Hurdle Trial) nothing to be said apart from that Big Bucks is the best staying hurdler ive seen,probably ever will see,ever read about and ever heard about.An absolute superstar,a legend,a true Champion.Doesnt matter who he comes up against,doesnt matter what tactics they employ,doesnt matter what course they run on,doesnt matter what the state of the ground is like,he just wins.Only an act of God stops him making it four in a row at the Festival.

How lucky can Mr Stewart be. His horse falls at Cheltenham, decides to switch back to hurdles & a Star is Born.

Who says sometimes you just get lucky....

Having said that, would it have beaten Istabraq in his day ?

As King Kenny once said, maybees aye or maybees no.