Timeform
Cheltenham Gold Cup favourite Silviniaco Conti has a couple of apparently good overall time efforts to his name this season, at Haydock and at Kempton, though the latter saw him receive a near-perfect sectional ride. The time comparison with Coneygree on the latter occasion flatters him, for the novice went very hard up front and was still “ahead” of Silviniaco Conti before the final straight. Indeed, if Coneygree is present in this field – rather than the RSA Chase – he could have a big say in how the race is run and even in the result itself.
Neither the Lexus Chase, won by Road To Riches at Leopardstown, nor the Hennessy Gold Cup, won by Carlingford Lough on the same course, particularly impressed on sectionals and overall times. Many Clouds showed he had abundant stamina when winning a gruelling Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury and more than a little speed when winning a relatively fast-finishing BetBright Cup Chase at Cheltenham, a combination which should stand him in good stead in the Gold Cup itself.
Recent Cheltenham Gold Cups have been notably influenced by pace, with Bobs Worth’s win in 2013 coming in a far more attritional finish than Lord Windermere’s in 2014 (65.3s compared to 58.35s from three out: a difference of more than 30 lengths over less than half a mile). Such swings can easily mean the difference between winning and losing for individual horses, and Timeform will again be producing a time and sectional debrief after racing on each day of next week’s Cheltenham Festival.