Noel
Noel
Thoughts from man of the moment
Noel Fehily: Many Clouds has Gold Cup potential but my Silviniaco Conti can improve again
Silviniaco Conti’s rider Noel Fehily believes Many Clouds is capable of a stellar performance at Cheltenham on Saturday that will launch him into the Gold Cup picture.
But the rider warns Paul Nicholls’ ante-post favourite will be mightily hard to beat in March and is capable of improving further, taking his form up a notch from his King George win.
Fehily, fresh from another Grade One masterclass on the trainer’s Dodging Bullets last weekend, will be watching Cheltenham’s weekend Gold Cup trial with interest from Doncaster, where he is currently booked for two rides.
And it’s Oliver Sherwood’s eight-year-old, not Dynaste, the horse Silviniaco Conti beat at Kempton, who he feels could take the BetBright Cup Chase on the way to staking a major claim in two months’ time: “I thought Many Clouds was the obvious one,” he said.
“He’s a good, solid staying chaser. His Hennessy win was a good performance. It’s a very hard race to win and he’s a horse on the up. He’s making into a Gold Cup horse and is definitely the one to beat. “
Many Clouds is 16/1 for the Gold Cup and 3/1 second favourite for Saturday’s contest that has been used as a springboard to glory in the Festival’s biggest race by horses like Master Oats (1995) and See More Business (1998).
One of the elder statesmen of the weighing room, Fehily’s association with Silviniaco Conti plus his reliability in other big races for trainer Harry Fry has taken his reputation to a new high this season.
While he has plenty of respect for the opposition the Gold Cup is expected to throw at him, including second favourite Road To Riches, he feels ‘Conti’ holds all the aces: “The King George performance was his best by a fair way,” he said.
“I was confident of his chances but he did surprise me how well he did it. His form this season has been rock solid. I think he’s probably a better horse.
“First time out (fifth at Wetherby) I wasn’t too disappointed, he felt very well. Paul’s horses were needing their first run and I thought there was plenty left to work on. It was on quicker ground and he was a bit ring-rusty.
“At Haydock (first in the Betfair Chase), Menorah (second) was in the form of his life at the time. I think he improved again on to the King George. He jumped and travelled even better.
“It has been well documented the horse wasn’t quite right in the Gold Cup last year. If he had fallen at the last everyone would have said he would have won. Handling the track is not a problem to him.
“He jumped great to the point where he nudged one in the Gold Cup the year he fell. I’m hoping this year he can show how good he is.”
Fehily has been working away in the saddle since the nineties but for the first decade and more he was marooned in the second tier of the sport.
He had three years of ligament and tendon injuries plus a few broken bones which held him back, but he has aged like a fine wine and is now tasting more glory at the top level.
Success is sweet for the man two years younger than Tony McCoy, who has had many rides for Charlie Mann, Jonjo O’Neill and Emma Lavelle over the years, but it’s the Nicholls horses that have thrust him into the spotlight.
A few years ago the yard’s former jockey Ruby Walsh was injured and he seized the opportunity to strike gold: “Silviniaco Conti has been fantastic for me- horses like him are hard to find,” said Fehily.
“He’s a very straightforward, tough, genuine horse and I’m just very lucky to ride him.
“Paul Nicholls is a master of training these horses for the big chases and I’m sure he can improve him again. There’s no reason why the horse can’t finally win a Gold Cup.
“His form is the best and it’s more of a case of him doing everything right on the day. As for me, I don’t think I’m doing a lot different in the saddle compared to the last 10 years. I’m fortunate to be riding good horses.
“As long as they keep coming along and I remain in one piece, I’ll keep on going.”
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