CV - I have other reservations against the horse; I don't think he'll find anything off the bridle, and like Ballydoyle I think his form is nothing to shout about, but that's just my opinion! I'm not trying to push my opinion on to anyone, I was merely stating why I have concerns about horse being able to handle the atmosphere of a festival!
Everyone has their own opinion on this, but no obvious way of backing it up, because the truth is, having never run at the festival before, no one knows how he'll react to it, and while people can guess that he'll be ok, I have it good authority from someone who knows more about the nature of horses than any of us that there is a good chance he won't!
If people want to take anything from that, they should be allowed too, but in all honesty I find it a touch offensive that the point I made is being argued against by people like yourself, who although obviously a horse racing fan, know very little I suspect about the nature of horses and their behavioral patters!
When you have a first class degree in equine science, and have worked with horses day in day out for three years, you are then qualified to argue against this theory.

You've still not understood my point. Nevermind.

I'm not talking about 7-year-olds not having the right attitude to win the Champion Hurdle, I am talking about horses aged 6 or 7 not having the same capabilities to adapt to change as those aged 4 or 5.

If you're not going to read what ive written properly, then stop wasting everyone's time in replying to it!

How old was Quevega!? 5.
How old was Mikael D'Haguenet!? 5.
Rule Supreme was 8 but i'll think you'll find he ran over here at Kempton before hand, and finished 3rd.

Cooldine ran in the Bumper behind Cork All Star.

excuse the predictive text mistakes below.

official = horse

Interesting stuff, dwm. Good read.

here is your detailed arguement 'CLASS CLASS CLASS' that is why he may win,simple as,anyway unlike you dwn i just cant be bothered putting in the effort to write page after page of thoughts on here (have a life you see) i will just post my selections and let them do the talking as to how well i know this game,you are right in assuming that Zaidpour is my nap for cheltenham and i can 100% tell you that he will be running in the supreme in which he does not have one serious rival in the race and i am including cue card in that who will never in his life win a championship grade 1 race over hurdles at 2 miles,it is laughable to me that 90% of so called racing people can read a horse and one piece of form so wrong,he needs a trip and you will learn this come march,i have also backed hurricane like you say,but by no means think he is a certainty as i am terrified of binocular who i have also backed and again i can promise you that this is a 2 horse race between the 2 of the and the others have nothing like there ability,they will finish 1-2 in the champion hurdle 'FACT' and by the way ruby will be riding him along with zaidpour if he wants,he is the number one jockey for both mullins and nicholls yards and gets first choice of all there horses in every race,if both trainers have a strong fancy in the same race then ruby simply picks the horse he thinks the best chance of winning,he is not tied down to one stable rather than the other,it is 50/50 and both trainers accept that.
SUPREME NOVICE HURDLE-ZAIDPOUR
ARKLE CHASE-GHIZAO
CHAMPION HURDLE-HURRICANE FLY/BINOCULAR
NEPTUNE HURDEL-MINELLA CLASS
RSA-TIME FOR RUPERT/MIKAEL D'HAGUENET
CHAMPION CHASE-BIG ZEB
MARES HURDLE-QUEVEGA
GOLD CUP-IMPERIAL COMMANDER
write them down dwn,watch them win and then come back and show me some respect come march when its all over

lastly i will finish with the sort of thing that i would expect you to post

dwn767
'spoke to paul nicholls this week,told me that big bucks ate 3.6 grams of grass on wednesday,checked my record books and no horse who has ever eaten 3.6 grams of grass on the 26th of the month before the festival has ever won the world hurdle' lay lay lay

TheFormMan, would you care to tell me how you found Ghizao, Imperial Commander, Time For Rupert, Mikael D'Haguenet, Binocular, Big Zeb and Quevega? What form entitles them to win?

Cheers.

Absolutely brilliant comment lolololol

dwn767
'spoke to paul nicholls this week,told me that big bucks ate 3.6 grams of grass on wednesday,checked my record books and no horse who has ever eaten 3.6 grams of grass on the 26th of the month before the festival has ever won the world hurdle'  lay lay lay

Moving on.... Unfortunately for dwn, i too am a massive hurricane fly fan. I think the form from last years CH is questionable? Also HF absolutely, beyond all doubt smashed Go Native TWICE as a novice. Go Native has also beaten Binocular twice, but people fail to mention this? This form, as well as beating the 6x G1 winning hurdler Solwhit is why i think he is the best horse in the race and i think he will win. I always take trainers/jockeys interviews with a pinch of salt anyway. Mainly because they are all different and some are very negative and some more positive. Imo, from the interviews i've watched over recent years, Mullins always comes across quite negative/respectful about his horses chances in big races. So maybe this is a reason for him questioning how HF will handle Cheltenham?

1. He's won 8/9 starts over hurdles in IRE - the only hurdles race he's lost was when he wasn't race fit and finished 3rd to Solwhit on his seasonal return - who he has subsequently put in his place.
2. He will clearly get up the Hill - Having won over 2m4f at Fairyhouse in Soft ground
3. He finds plenty off the bridle having been pushed out in nearly all of his races and clearly he has then accelerated away from rivals numerous times.
4. He will be even better on good ground!!!
5. Previous Cheltenham form - not worried because he clearly has the class to win at Cheltenham and most of this stat is about having the class/talent

6. ? No-one knows for sure, how he will handle the occasion. But he's never been a problem before, so how can i suddenly make this assumption? This myth is purely based on the fact he is a Montjeu and his trainers comments.

Dwn - If you have a First Class Degree in Equine Science then i am sure you will agree that all horses are indeed individuals, much like humans? And that even though they will each undoubtedly inherit certain tendencies. Whilst most Montjeu's are very head strong - not all are and i have seen no evidence to think this of HF? Horses are in fact each individuals, are they not??? Just a though, i put it to you sir?

P.S. All other runners beware - There's a Hurricane coming through!!!

Yeah we're definitely going off the topic here. The only thing I reckon HF will have going against him come Cheltenham is the fact that it looks one of the best renewals in quite some time. I still think he'll win though and given his form on the Flat, albeit mostly on soft ground, I actually think he'll be lengths better on good ground and his turn of foot will be seen to much better effect!

The formman

lololololol.

Mourad wasn't available anywhere at 10/11 genius. 8/11 was the best price which I took a chunk of last night with PP. you even say he was 10/11 this morning! drift did he?

All you've done is listed a lot of obvious favourites and told us you're on at smart prices. You're an utter genius.

You got Binocular at 9/1 for this year's CH did you?

In your 20's, set up through sports betting yet you only joined betfair in December.

You've gotta laugh.

I have been backing Bino (and following his price) since he won last years race. He has been 3's since march, drifted to 5's after the fighting fifth, contracted to current price after the delayed xmas hurdle.
Was NEVER 9's for this years race ever!

neill he only jumps to his right when he's on his own, he's straight and slick when there is a horse beside him so it will not be a problem in the champion hurdle.

Theformman

Think we are going to see a lot of Montjeu stock going hurdling in the next few seasons

two*

'2 comprehensive defeats and an average win against dee ee williams' you see this is where we are going to disagree again,i suppose like most people you think that binocular for 3 runs last season had lost himself along the way somewhere and he was not the horse of old or indeed present? when in fact there was nothing at all wrong with those 3 runs,i would advise you to go back and watch those replays again,just like i did a few weeks ago before i napped him all over this forum at 11/4 for the christmas hurdle using words like certainty and unbeatable,everybody knows that he needs alot of work to get fit and right and that was the case in last years fighting fifth,he was way undercooked and massively needed the run that day and that was the reason for such a poor showing,as for his next race,that was a great run in last years christmas hurdle,may only have been 90% but was tanking round and jumping brilliantly until hitting the ground very hard at the 3rd last,a mistake that completley knocked the stuffing out of him and cost him any chance of winning,yet still stayed on to finish a length 3rd to go native with AP taking it easy on him once the race was lost and as for the sandown race,well we must have been watching different races because that was anything but an average run,it was soft ground and he went round easy as he liked never coming out of first gear and never off the bridle to win with any amount in hand,yes the form book says he beat dee ee williams by 1 length but it would have been 40 if he had wanted,i promise you if you go back and watch those replays you will see it exactly as i have described and i never said 'i went in big as you state,i simply said that i backed him