O'Regan keeps faith with Tidal

Denis O’Regan is hopeful Tidal Bay can return to winning ways wherever he turns up next following his defeat in the Tingle Creek Chase at Sandown last weekend.

Howard Johnson’s charge, an impressive winner of the Arkle Trophy at the Cheltenham Festival back in March, found only Master Minded too strong in Saturday’s feature and O’Regan believes there was no disgrace in that effort.

Although he is now likely to step up in trip, with the King George VI Chase at Kempton being mooted as a possibility, the Irish jockey does not think this is an essential move for the seven-year-old.

“If you took the winner out, we were the winner of the Tingle Creek and while it probably makes sense to step up in trip, that is only because we probably couldn’t beat Master Minded,” O’Regan told At The Races.

“If Master Minded wasn’t around, we would probably be the fastest two-miler in the country. Tidal Bay won the Arkle impressively so you can’t see he doesn’t have the pace for two miles and he battled well the other day.

“I have no doubts that Master Minded is a superb horse. He jumps well, has a high cruising speed and looks to have a devastating turn of foot so he has everything. He put the race to bed very quickly.

“Our horse probably only got going when the race was finished but I didn’t knock him around and hopefully he can get back in the number one spot wherever the boss sends him next time.”