The 2020/21 Jump season really gets into gear this Saturday, 14 November with the £130,000 Gr3 Paddy Power Gold Cup, the highlight of The November Meeting at Cheltenham.
First run in 1960, the famous two and a half mile handicap chase has been landed by some great performers with Fortria, Dunkirk, Gay Trip and Imperial Commander all featuring on the roll of honour.
Paddy Power return to sponsoring the contest in 2020, having previously been the backer between 2002 and 2015.
Heading Paddy Power’s market at 4/1 for the 2020 running is Saint Sonnet (Paul Nicholls). The unexposed five-year-old won on his British debut at Catterick in February and was not beaten far on his only subsequent UK appearance when seventh behind Samcro in the G1 Marsh Novices’ Chase at The Festival™. The 11-times champion trainer Paul Nicholls could also be represented by last year’s runner-up Brelan d’As as he tries for a third Paddy Power Gold Cup success following Al Ferof (2012) and Caid du Berlais (2014).
The most successful current trainer in the Paddy Power Gold Cup is Nigel Twiston-Davies, who is based close to Cheltenham at Guiting Power. His four Paddy Power Gold Cup wins were provided by Tipping Tim (1992), Imperial Commander (2008), Little Josh (2010) and Splash Of Ginge (2017). His representative in 2020 is set to be Al Dancer. A G3 winner over hurdles, the seven-year-old was fifth in the G1 Arkle Novices’ Chase at The Festival™ and made a winning reappearance in an intermediate chase at Newton Abbot on 11 October.
Twiston-Davies said: “Al Dancer is in good form and heads for the Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham on Saturday.
“He has come out of his win at Newton Abbot in good form and we were pleased with that performance.
“We are looking forward to running him.”
Al Dancer winning a novices’ chase at Cheltenham in October
Simply The Betts (Harry Whittington) finished off the 2019/20 campaign with success in the G3 Brown Advisory & Merriebelle Stable Plate Handicap Chase at The Festival™ and is the 9/2 second favourite with Paddy Power. Runner-up in that contest was Happy Diva (Kerry Lee), who won the 2019 Paddy Power Gold Cup. Fifth on her reappearance at Wetherby at the end of October, Happy Diva would become the sixth dual winner of the Paddy Power Gold Cup if successful on Saturday and the third to win in consecutive years following Half Free (1984, 1985) and Bradbury Star (1993, 1994).
Nicky Henderson has won the Paddy Power Gold Cup once before with Fondmort (2003). The reigning champion Jump trainer looks to have a very live contender this year with Mister Fisher. The six-year-old won two novices’ chases last season, firstly at Cheltenham and then a G2 contest at Doncaster where he came out a length to the good over Al Dancer. He was last seen when a close fourth in the G1 Marsh Novices’ Chase.
Trainer Colin Tizzard has yet to land the Paddy Power Gold Cup but has two interesting hopefuls this year with Slate House, who fell two out last year when traveling well before going on to win the G1 Kauto Star Novices’ Chase at Kempton Park, and The Russian Doyen, a useful novice two seasons ago and an encouraging third on his return to action over hurdles at Fontwell last month.
Martin Pipe sent out a record eight winners of the Paddy Power Gold Cup, with his son David saddling Great Endeavour to victory in 2011. David Pipe has another interesting entry this year in Siruh du Lac. The seven-year-old won two G3 handicap chases at Cheltenham in the 2018/19 campaign for former trainer Nick Williams, including the G3 Brown Advisory & Merriebelle Stable Plate at The Festival™. He was pulled-up in the 2019 Paddy Power Gold Cup before falling two out when leading in the Brown Advisory & Merriebelle Stable Plate. He has yet to start for the Pipe stable.
The Paddy Power Gold Cup is not the greatest race for favourites, only winning 14 of the 60 runnings, most recently Tranquil Sea in 2009. Trainer Sean Curran is hoping outsider Domaine de L’Isle can make the line-up on Saturday. The seven-year-old won three of his five outings over fences last season, including a valuable handicap chase at Ascot in January. He reappeared this season at Cheltenham on 23 October, when he kept on to finish fourth in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle.
Upper Lambourn-based Curran said: “Domaine de L’Isle is in fine fettle at home and the Paddy Power Gold Cup is the plan, rain permitting.
“There is rain forecast for Cheltenham and hopefully it gets there as we are looking forward to running.
“I was really pleased with his run at Cheltenham last time out when fourth over hurdles. He was making ground up all the time and we were delighted with that as a comeback effort.
“I think he would have finished much closer if a horse hadn’t fallen in front of him three hurdles from home. He just needs more testing ground to be seen at his best and so we are hoping for plenty of rain before Saturday. “It’s great to have a runner in the Paddy Power Gold Cup and he has been a real stable star for us.”
Similarly, trainer Alexandra Dunn is hoping that Pinson du Rheu can defy his odds. The nine-year-old has yet to start for Somerset-based Dunn but is a three-time winner at Auteuil in France.
Dunn said: “Pinson du Rheu will run in Saturday’s Paddy Power Gold Cup.
“It is his first run for us having come from France, but we have been really pleased with what we’ve seen from him at home. He is owned by Stephen Bean who is a new owner to the sport and it is fantastic to have a new owner in the yard who can see his horse run in a big race on a Saturday, particularly at Cheltenham.
“Saturday is just a starting point for Pinson du Rheu. He is a horse who we really like and we are hopeful that there is plenty to come from him this season.
“The Paddy Power is a nice place to start him off and after that there are loads of options for him. He has run over three miles in Auteuil, but we may even drop him back in trip after the Paddy Power – he is just a horse to look forward to.”
