2013 Gold Cup: Review

An emphatic, top class winning performance from Bobs Worth, beating Sir Des Champs 7L (27f Soft).

Bobs Worth has a brilliant trainer and a superb jockey but the horse himself is of a rare kind of quality, becoming the first horse to equal Flyingbolt's record of winning three different festival races in consecutive years. Rain on the Friday turned the ground officially soft giving propulsion to murmurings that for a horse not built all that powerfully the ground could be a hinderance. It probably was, too, among other factors. Truly top class horses win on any ground and any type of track, however (excluding direction, which sometimes innate physical confirmation cannot overcome) and in winning so emphatically from a high class field Bobs Worth confirmed his level of residual class to be amongst the very highest in training.

Stamina, class and a mentally gruelling race with an uphill finish are the ingredients par excellence for this animal. He has his own style of racing which relies on high levels of class to travel through a race anywhere from the middle to near the front end and then a progressive wave of stamina that pours strength into the legs enabling him to finish his races supremely well. In the Hennessy he outclassed his rivals reflected by a smooth-progression curve through that race. At elite level, in the Gold Cup, he was asked his first really big question: could he find running power, composure and accuracy at the same time as top class horses moved away from him slightly. Going uphill to five out he was still very much on the tail of the main group in sixth including the strong-travelling Silviniaco Conti but over that fence the leaders had already begun racing proper after it and over four out. Bobs Worth didn't lose touch: there was no dramatic loss of place or pace; he was still close enough to Silviniaco Conti to have to manoeuvre around that horse when he capsized after the third last. Ground, inexperience, elite level rivals: all that and yet still Bobs Worth was able to maintain his gallop sufficiently to allow his legs to energise with resolute stamina and will. Approaching the last he was already in front and the race was won having been 10L behind the front two turning the bend onto the downhill run. It is true that the front two involved themselves in a protracted duel some way out but they were racing for the line and had little other choice: had they been good enough they would have won but they were reached and passed in seconds by the winner.

The scenarios for next year's race relate to the passage of the race where Bobs Worth moved from sixth to swerve around a faller in third to surge through to lead: effectively the stage that created a pace differential as Bobs Worth switched fully behind the bridle. On good ground it is possible that those freewheeling away from him on the descent would have maintained the 8-10L advantage for longer, something that wasn't fully tested when Silviniaco Conti fell given how well he was moving at the time. That is counterbalanced by Bobs Worth himself possibly moving better for longer on better ground prior to the downhill section, particularly with a bit more experience next season. Physically it has to be considered that Nicky Henderson is a master of preparation techniques for his horses and whilst Bobs Worth won't run many times he is all but certain, health permitting, to take in a standard preparation race in 2014 prior to March. This in conjunction with natural physical growth and/or maturation mean he is potentially better than he showed this season. He may need to be of course (or not): another tactical scenario arises from connections of other runners being more aware of Bobs Worth's preferred 'target and pass' running style with those connections less likely to want to make their horse a target for the Gold Cup winner with a strong gallop: a glance at the possible make-up of contenders for next season hints at such tactical issues with Long Run far more effective racing prominently at Kempton than he is at Cheltenham. Either way, Bobs Worth has very high levels of residual class to be a threat under any circumstances.

The runner-up, Sir Des Champs, shortened his stride dramatically fifty yards before the line and looked an extremely tired horse having gone head to head with the astonishingly resilient Long Run. A lot of focus can adequately be directed to the various form lines he represents but of much more interest here is his physical and mental development following this race. At the start of the season it was notable just how strong and powerful Sir Des Champs had become. Already a dual festival winner it therefore made sense for his trainer to harness his raw power early on and prime him for his March assignment. His seasonal performances underlined this strategy. In the Gold Cup he was prominent the whole way but having looked set to take the lead following a head to head with Long Run his jump at the second last was slow and he dropped to third, rallying over the last to regain second as the winner flew. This slight dip in what had hitherto been a powerful, even gallop may have been his physique catching up with him: if he was still maturing from 6 into 7 the pressure on his frame to respond at the most taxing part of the race would have been too much causing a temporary evaporation of energy from lungs and legs before a 'second wind' brought a limited surge back into second (not unlike what happened to Long Run in the race last season). The full effect of that effort was seen as he approached the line, which he all but walked over. Several scenarios present themselves for Sir Des Champs next season, none of which are easily predicted. It is possible he will suffer mentally from this race (something to bear in mind for Punchestown) even if recovering from the immense physical exertion of March. His size, power and class may well take him deep into Grade One races but his mental resolution has to stand up. To fashion another Gold Cup assault it is possible that he will again reappear on the burly side next season and on the same slow curve towards March. A source of potential improvement is the possibility of better ground, given his powerful and prominent running style a more tactical ride from just off the pace on good ground would see him as more of a threat with another summer and three quarters of a season immersed into his frame but again all that is reliant on the mental will to want to break through the pain barrier. Attempts to improve upon a placed effort in a Gold Cup have not been fruitful of late (position of highest place finisher from previous year: 35022FP34) and there will be some difficult tests awaiting Sir Des Champs over the next eleven months.

Finishing third for the second consecutive time was Long Run who ran another excellent elite level race to continue his simply astonishing record of finishing in the first three in all twenty-five of his lifetime starts. His (particularly mental) brilliance and innate suitability for Kempton and the King George VI Chase in particular has been successfully analysed already and he will be a popular choice for many to complete a formidable hattrick in that race in December.

The Giant Bolster is admirable, tough and lacking in elite level residual class. He ran another excellent Gold Cup race.

As with Sir Des Champs a similar route back to the Gold Cup will likely be mapped out for Silviniaco Conti. The inevitable question of 'what if' is irrelevant and of much more interest is that he showed a mix of courage and vulnerability in his next start at Aintree: courage to run his race right to the line after his crashing fall at HQ and the tenacity to continue to do so after an impacting blunder at the 14th fence; and the vulnerability that led to a slightly more cautious approach to his fences culminating in that mistake. The HQ tumble had affected him no doubt. At the start of the season his burgeoning talent was obvious and it was more his mental toughness that shifted into focus: could he deal with elite level pace and a range of ground conditions. Physically he had already been prepared by skipping the festival and demolishing his rivals at Aintree. In the Gold Cup his jumping was generally excellent once again: one mistake on the first circuit and another at the third last which ended his race. He jumped the fence fractionally close but went through the top with his hips and buckled on landing. Now that mental toughness will once again define him after his summer off. There appears to be a physical reason for his trainer not wanting to run him right-handed in the King George - a race he is seemingly made for - so as with Bobs Worth he is unlikely to appear at Kempton leaving the way clear for the same pathway to March as this season.

Surge: Bobs Worth powers away from his Gold Cup rivals