Like last year, the ground was officially soft on the chase course, but in reality conditions were very different on Friday, a fact reflected in a winning time for the Gold Cup some 20 seconds slower than a year ago.
Certainly the most demanding ground Gold Cup runners have encountered in the past decade, but, while the testing surface proved too tough for others, it couldn’t stop Galopin Des Champs (Racing Post Rating 183) landing a second successive Gold Cup.
With his stamina proven, he was ridden much more forward this time around and, while nowhere near as visually impressive as when slamming runner-up Gerri Colombe (178) at Leopardstown over Christmas, it was another performance out of the very top drawer from a horse who rates the best staying chaser since the era of Kauto Star and Denman.
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