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The Ryanair Chase Grade 1 is the race which winds up a lot of racing purists. They think it takes away horses who are good enough to run in the Champion Chase or the Gold Cup.
In the past the Ryanair Chase hasn't been competitive races, you've had easy winners, especially when Allaho was running in them, but this race was looking like a competitive renewal till Shishskin returned to form…
Cheltenham 2:50 – Shiskin 10/11 (3pt)
I won't waste any time, I'll dive straight into the market favourite Shishskin. This horse has confused me over the last season. I thought he was a rocket, a superstar of the National Hunt World, but then he was pulled up in the Champion Chase and then ran well below par in the Tingle Creek. I started to question whether was he really that good and was the form behind him in the many wins he's had, was it any good. At the time you had Energumene who finished 3rd in the Clarence house etc, but then Shishskin bounced back to form and put in a proper performance at Ascot recording an RPR of 178, beating Pic D'Orhy who had previously been running some very nice races this season. On the back of that run, you've got to say this is his race to lose. Furthermore, I'd like to say I was very wrong about his ability and his form, I doubted him too soon and Energumene showed that Shishskin is a top-quality animal as he couldn't beat him last year at Ascot and he just sauntered home to a very easy win in the Champion Chase yesterday. He will be another short-priced horse, but if he's on his A-game he should be tough to beat.
Blue Lord and Janidil are the main rivals in this, but both have it all to prove if they want to upset the apple cart. Blue Lord is a multiplied Grade 1 winner over fences but was firmly put in his place last time around by Gentleman De Mee. That was over 2m 1f, and he had previously won over 2m 4f on seasonal reappearance, but I can't say that's great form as he beat a horse who won the King George the year before and the 3rd was put in his place by Janidil later on in the season.
Janidil was second in this race last year when finishing 14L behind Allaho. This trip is his trip, he runs well over further but doesn't quite get home over 3m. I think he will run a good race today, but might lack the quality to win. He will have conditions in his favour, and his comeback run was a good effort.
I can't see any of the others really getting in this. You have Hitman who simply isn't that good, and a rating of 159 is still probably too high for him. Fury Road has run well in Grade 1s over further, and at a price, I can see him running well up until a point, as he does travel well over 3m, but he isn't on the same level as the favourite. Envoi Allen once was the horse for the future, he won at the festival two years in a row but went off the boil when leaving Gordon Elliott's yard, he's won a couple of Grade 1's since, but doesn't look like the same horse.
