Cheltenham Bumper talking horse yet to emerge

How strange is it to look at the programme for today and to see the King George and the Christmas Hurdle being run at Kempton?

I can’t get my head around it at all but the way it has worked it, it really seems to signal the beginning of the build-up to the Cheltenham festival.

Of course this is all happening because of the hold-up caused by the weather and that has caused trainers to change their training routines and programmes. The likes of Kauto Star and Binocular are leading fancies for the Gold Cup and Champion Hurdle but haven’t run in longer than might have been expected. With the priority being that they’re spot on for March but with trainers also wanting to win these big races, it will have been a delicate exercise overseeing their preparation.