No, it certainly is not. I agree. He's the Champ. Nothing can get near him when he's fit. Even when he's been below par (2012 Cheltenham) he still finished a close third. Age, Illness or injury can beat him but apart from that I don't think any other horse in training can do it over hurdles. It's up to Willie and Patrick to get him there in one piece.
Why? He's not run against his elders yet. You've no idea how good the novice form really is and to win the race you'd have to think he'll be beating Solwhit and Big Bucks. If they both turn up (and that good horse in France that won the French Champion) he'll not be much shorter than he is today.
I will be siding with Big Bucks too. There really is nothing to get near him in the stayers in my opinion. I think even a 90% fit Big Bucks should be good enough to win. AFC, like Bob said, needs to prove himself against his elders. I don't really get involved too much ante post, the only horse I have backed in the past was Hurricane Fly for the last 3 Hurdles. This season though, on the Saturday after the Festival I put a little accumulator on HF, SS, BB and BW.
If you're good enough you're old enough in my opinion. Merely only needed a shake of the reins in his successes. Agree with the price point though Bob as he'll be about the same on the day, however saves me putting a lump sum on the day and if he was to have his colours lowered then I won't feel the hit.
I always find ante post betting a bit too much of a risk, i mean how do you know what race a horse is going to run in when they usually have multiple entries like at cheltenham, a bit too much guess work for my liking and could end up losing a bit of cash if you pick the wrong race
This is where my knowledge is severley lacking. I do enjoy Cheltenham when it comes round and have done for the past couple of years but i'm mainly a flat racing fan so still have a lot to learn
I agree SMP, the town is lovely and great for a few pints and that but the track is absolutely dreadful. Pointless having a bet there
