Fact To File, the one-time ante-post favourite for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, proved in a different league to his rivals in the Ryanair Chase.
Last season's Brown Advisory Novices' Chase winner Fact To File was propelled to the head of the betting for the Cheltenham Gold Cup when beating Galopin des Champs in the John Durkan Memorial Punchestown Chase on his seasonal reappearance.
However, two comprehensive defeats inflicted by Galopin des Champs in the Savills Chase and Irish Gold Cup persuaded connections of Fact To File to reroute to the Ryanair Chase. Without his illustrious stablemate to worry about, Fact To File, the 6/4 favourite, was able to coast to an impressive nine-length success.
Fact To File was dropping back in trip but always appeared in his comfort zone and jumped on at the third last going strongly, overtaking King George runner-up Il Est Francis who had been allowed to stride on with a circuit to go.
From that point none of his rivals threatened to land a telling blow, but Heart Wood proved best of the rest with 2023 winner Envoi Allen - like the runner-up trained by Henry de Bromhead - eight and a half lengths back in third.
Winning rider Mark Walsh said: "That sort of distance suits him because you can let him gallop on, let him use his jumping. He never missed a beat today and winged everything. He's happier going on that stride.
"We were seeing if he'd make a Gold Cup horse and ran into Galopin des Champs twice. We tried two different things and it didn't work so there was no point trying it for a third time."
It was a sixth win in the Ryanair Chase for an impressed Willie Mullins who said: "That was a hell of a field and he won very easily, he's a proper horse."
On whether the performance was a surprise, he said: "It is in the manner he's won it. I was hoping coming here he'd win it and that he was good enough to win it, but you had Il Est Francais, Protektorat - all those horses who are good horses who anyone would love to have and are horses of a lifetime for most people. He's able to beat them like that, which is huge.
"He was in the Gold Cup but we felt it was better to divide our options and let him come here. He'll probably be a Gold Cup horse next year. He'll be a year older, we just felt at this stage of his career it may be a hard race in the Gold Cup if the ground turned up soft. Now, it's not like that but that's the way our thinking was all season. JP [McManus, owner] was very pro that, and didn't want him to have a real hard race in the Gold Cup this year as sometimes that can ruin a horse's career. I'd imagine that's where he'll be aimed next year."
De Bromhead delighted with Heart Wood and Envoi Allen
Heart Wood and Envoi Allen may have been no match for the top-class winner, but De Bromhead was proud of their efforts and said: "I’m delighted with both of them. Heart Wood ran a cracker and he is only a baby and he is coming along really nicely. It was a really good race, and they went a savage pace, and the winner is obviously very good.
"I think this is the right trip for Heart Wood as I’ve tried him over three miles a couple of times and he just wasn’t getting home, however he is only seven so we will see.
"Envoi Allen is just a legend and he was brilliant. Rachael [Blackmore] said he was really tough and that he really dug in up the hill to hold onto third. She was delighted with him and we all were as he is such a good horse.
"He is 11 now and those younger legs probably just have the edge on him, but he owes us nothing and he gives us so much fun. I thought he ran an absolute belter."
Analysis: Performance of the week - Fact
We’ve had some drama at the Cheltenham Festival this week but the first ‘wow’ performance went to Willie Mullins’ FACT TO FILE in the Ryanair Chase.
This intermediate trip over fences at Cheltenham can lend itself to beauty – think Vautour sauntering to success in the Golden Miller as a novice – and Fact To File can add himself to the list of barnstorming halfway house champions.
The Ryanair Chase doesn’t receive universal love given it is another of those races that can take the shine off championship events, in its case both the Champion Chase and Gold Cup, but it has grown as a contest since its inception and there’s no doubt it can be a springboard to even higher glory.
Imperial Commander won this race on his way to winning the 2010 Gold Cup and you would think Fact To File will take his chance in next year’s Blue Riband event after this.
He was favourite for this year’s Gold Cup until stablemate Galopin Des Champs pulled rank by beating him in both the Savills Chase and Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown, but as it turned out the Ryanair was the perfect race for FTF at this stage in his development.
Only eight-years-old with seven steeplechases under his belt, he wasn’t quite ready to take on the mantle from Galopin, but he absolutely loved sitting off Il Est Francais on the second circuit in the Ryanair and some fantastic jumping took him to the front on the bridle.
Il Est Francais ran well, but he cried off up the hill and faded into sixth, leaving Fact To File to storm his way to a sumptuous nine-length success over the running-on Heart Wood.
The performance of the week so far, this was a career-best from Fact To File and it confirmed that he can bring his best form out on livelier ground. He stayed three miles well in last year’s Brown Advisory and with this experience under his belt he looks all set to be campaigned towards the 2026 Gold Cup.
Slightly more immediately it would be interesting if he came over to Kempton for the King George to take on Il Est Francais at his favourite stomping ground. The French horse jumped really well for a long way here before the closing incline just seemed to catch him out, but a rematch over three miles at Kempton would be an interesting head to head.
Henry de Bromhead, who won two races on Thursday including Bob Olinger in the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle, has his team in fantastic shape again and he trained the second and third here with Heart Wood and the 11-year-old Envoi Allen.
Last year’s winner, Protektorat, was caught out by the livelier ground and on softer conditions he’d have had a better chance. As it was he was outpaced but ran well enough in fourth.
Djelo was well backed for Venetia Williams but was taken off his feet at the back of the field and could only manage seventh.
But this was all about Fact To File, simply too good for the Ryanair division. Time will tell if it helps propel him into the big league in 12 months' time. (Ben Linfoot)
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