Tom Scudamore: “I’ve been looking forward to riding Ramses De Teilee all week”
Published:
Coral ambassador previews hisCheltenham Gold Cup Day rides
Cheltenham 14.50 – Ramses De Teillee
It’s a case of the softer the better for Ramses De Teillee, so if there was a monsoon on Thursday night I’d be the happiest man at Cheltenham on Friday!
Joking apart, he has surprised me with how well he’s done over hurdles this season. He’s tough, he’s hard, this big field won’t bother him, and strange as this might sound, he may not be the best horse in this race – even if he went on to win the Grand National he may not prove to be the best horse in this race – but he could well be the best horse on the day.
The nature of this race, a proper test over three miles, means sometimes the best horse gets beaten, and this New course is a proper stiff test for these novice hurdlers, whereas my fellow is more battle-hardened, his chasing career shows that.
We’ve seen plenty of big priced winners in this race, and my fellow isn’t a rank outsider by any stretch, he’s one I’ve really been looking forward to all week.
It’s a wide-open looking Magners Gold Cup, with plenty in with genuine claims, but if I could get on one of them, I’d have to go with last year’s winner Al Boum Photo.
In fact the biggest negative against him is the fact he won the race twelve months ago, as dual winners don’t happen very often, but it’s a stat I’m happy to ignore.
By all accounts, he’s had a perfect prep into this race and comes into it off the back of the same Tramore race as last season, and while his trainer Willie Mullins isn’t someone I’d say was overly bullish, all the vibes coming from him about this horse tell me he’s really confident.
He also has Kemboy, who beat Al Boum Photo at Punchestown, but when I’ve heard Willie talking about the Gold Cup, he barely mentions Kemboy, it’s all Al Boum Photo.
You can’t come into a Gold Cup with a bad prep, and everything we’ve heard says this fellow has had the perfect lead in.
Tom
