Well it's my opinion (which generally isn't worth paying much attention to, much like the long winded waffle below isn't worth reading to be perfectly honest :highly_amused

that he wont, but obviously he can as most things are possible and plenty clearly fancy him. He would have been a good winner in last seasons book after all, you couldn't avoid being impressed by his early season bumper runs. But anyway:
- I'm not overly convinced a huge amount will come out of last seasons champion bumper, even if most of us think the winner will go on to do very well (I accept that if you think that then for the purposes of this debate you have to consider AM a contender). Redemption Day (Posted a better RPR than AM after only 3 runs) put in a cracking performance at Punchestown to make up a little for the disappointment of his Cheltenham run, but was it flattered by FV being tired at the end of the season? AM well behind on that occasion. Out of the three, FV was the only one to run at the DRF, Cheltenham festival and Punchestown, getting the job done on markedly different goings.
- As above, the Punchestown run. Has there been an excuse for it? Even if there was, I tend to err on the side of taking most of them with a pinch of salt. Jamie Codd says in the recently published
JTF that he just didn't feel the same on the day. Sir Gerhard gets a pass on his Punchestown runs, AM hasn't earnt such a right yet.
- If Facile Vega goes there (My book would prefer Supreme, but I think i'd make the Ballymore 60/40 the more likely at this stage), it'll quite likely take something special to beat him especially as we know he handles any ground, and I don't see that being AM.
- If Facile Vega doesn't (Just as Min, Douvan and Jonbon didn't of the same sire), It looks like there's an above average mob of pointers about to enter the fray. Walk In The Park, Sholokhov, Presenting, Yeats etc... sire some of the more highly fancied, the sort that warrant keeping a keen eye on, going to the right yards. I'm more interested in finding the right one of those than I am in AM at this stage. But again, I appreciate that's all nothing more than an opinion.
- Mahler at the festival, the evidence is piled pretty high at this point. They probably had their best chance last season given the ground, but both AM and JWM failed. My opinion is pretty much centered around this to be honest, I could have saved writing all the rest but i'm bored :biggrin-new:
- Owners at the festival. Almost certainly not a valid reason but one that potters about at the back of my mind. They seem to spend an awful lot of money on horses that are very good, but not quite good enough. Saying that, take out Bob Olinger and you could look the same way at Robcour, and to an even greater extent. Neither have horses with Mullins though, which does tend to pay to at least consider.
To conclude, if he wins it then fine, but he's just not for me unless he does something beforehand that makes him impossible to ignore. At current prices, I find him easy to ignore for the time being.