Bravemansgame and Harry Cobden© Photo Healy Racing
Harry Cobden is expecting Bravemansgame to peak at the right time, as the duo try to turn the tables on Galopin Des Champs in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Paul Nicholls’ star staying chaser jumped the last matching strides with Willie Mullins’ big-race favourite in the blue riband 12 months ago, but it was Galopin Des Champs who pulled out extra in the lung-busting run to the line, with Cobden and Bravemansgame having to settle for a silver medal.
The 25-year-old jockeys’ championship leader is fully aware the defending champion is the one to beat again this week, but is confident Bravemansgame is capable of getting involved in the shake-up and can massively outrun his current odds of around 16-1.
“His preparations have gone very well and he’s schooling well at home,” said Cobden.
“He feels great and worked brilliantly at Kempton last week. I’m very much looking forward to the Gold Cup and I thought he was a big price when I looked at it.
“Obviously, Galopin Des Champs is the horse to beat and I would never say Galopin Des champs isn’t, because on his day, he is definitely the best horse in the race.
“It was no fluke what he did last year and he’s been brilliant on many other occasions, so we have got to step up and we’ve got a bit to find, or we are hoping he is not at his best. But I do think he has a massive chance.”
Bravemansgame was prominent throughout last season’s Gold Cup, while Paul Townend received plenty of plaudits for the way he smuggled Galopin Des Champs into the race and eliminated any lingering stamina doubts.
Cobden has pondered whether it may be worth a change of plan for the Bryan Drew-owned gelding’s second crack at Gold Cup glory – and with Galopin Des Champs himself ridden more enterprisingly this season, it could now be team Ditcheat who play cat to Closutton’s mouse.
He continued: “I could possibly ride him a little differently and maybe we follow him?
“I don’t know and we’ve still got a few days to work it out and discuss it with Paul, and if he turned up and finished in the first three, we would be delighted. But we will be riding him to win the race rather than go out to run well.”
The nine-year-old had to settle for second best three times in a frustrating first half of the season for connections and was last seen narrowly failing in the defence of his King George title, as the fast-finishing Hewick flew home to snatch victory.
However, Cobden feels three runs in a short space of time were a contributing factor to his Kempton reversal and that a fresher Bravemansgame promises to be a whole different proposition in Friday’s showpiece event.
“The thing many people forget is he had a hard race at Haydock only 28 or 29 days before that and that took a lot out of him,” he went on.
“He didn’t have the best preparation in the world for the King George and Paul is well aware of that, he would be the first to tell you. I know we can get him better than when he ran at Kempton. He’s had lots of time, he’s fresh, he’s well and he’ll run his race.”
Although missing out on the Festival’s biggest prize in 2023, Cobden walked away from his week in the Cotswolds with two winners courtesy of Stage Star and Stay Away Fay.
Both are back seeking a repeat, with Stay Away Fay another Ditcheat inmate tasked with taking on a short-priced favourite from Mullins’ all-conquering string when going toe-to-toe with Fact To File in Wednesday’s Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase.
“There’s not many runners in it, but I think it will be competitive,” added Cobden.
“Fact To File looks a class horse and we’re dropping back into novice company after running in the Cotswold Chase.
“I thought the prep run in the Cotswold Chase was a brilliant experience for a young horse and he didn’t have a massively hard race. Paul said he would improve from that fitness-wise.”
It will be far from Cobden’s busiest Cheltenham Festival ever, but the jockey is excited about some of the quality he has to look forward to among his book of rides.
He nominated Fred Winter candidate Liari as a potential Nicholls dark horse, while Ginny’s Destiny and Captain Teague are two other top-quality operators Cobden can look forward to from the champion trainer’s Cheltenham squad.
The four-time Festival winner has also picked up some exceptional outside rides which include Ben Pauling’s Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle hope Handstands – whom he partnered to Sidney Banks success at Huntingdon – and handicap fancies Theatre Man and Libberty Hunter.
He is also poised to maintain the ride on Emmet Mullins’ Stayers’ Hurdle contender Noble Yeats after steering him to victory in the Cleeve Hurdle last month, ironically a mount title rival Sean Bowen has partnered six times in the past, including in last year’s Gold Cup and Grand National.
He said: “I haven’t got the rides of Paul Townend and I wouldn’t have the shorties he has, but it looks to be an exciting book of rides and there will be lots of lads in the weighing room that would love to be on them, so I am very grateful.
“I’m hoping to ride Noble Yeats in the Stayers’ and although it won’t be the busiest week I’ve ever had, there will be 12 or 13 good rides with chances and if I can nick one winner I will be very pleased.
“I’m looking forward to riding Theatre Man in the Plate for Richard Bandey, he will have a good chance and is a great spare to pick up. I will also be on Libberty Hunter for Evan Williams in the Grand Annual and I thought he was relatively unexposed compared to some of the others in the field.
“Liari would be the best handicap chance of Paul’s, I would have thought. I know he has top-weight but he could be a horse that is still improving. He has done nothing wrong and is three from three, it will be a big ask to win the Fred Winter off that weight, but he is a very nice horse.”
