Vautour is something very special by any standard

There were so many good performances at Cheltenham this week it is hard to know where to start.

Although I must confess the horse that blew me away the most, leaving aside the utterly captivating Vautour, was Douvan in the very first race of the meeting, the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle on Tuesday.

Ruby Walsh has repeatedly said the best of him will not been seen until next season and the word that seemed to crop up more than once with the paddock experts, prior to the contest, was “unfurnished.’’