Spillane's Tower only has Ryanair Chase option at Cheltenham
UNSUCCESSFUL RAID: Spillane's Tower finished a slightly disappointing fifth in the King George after being sent off the 11-4 favourite. Picture: Seb Daly/Sportsfile
The Ryanair Chase is the sole Cheltenham Festival option for Spillane's Tower after connections decided against giving him an entry in the Boodles Gold Cup.
Having rounded off his novice season over fences with successive Grade One victories, Jimmy Mangan's charge made a fine start in open company when narrowly denied by fellow JP McManus-owned rising star Fact To File in the John Durkan over an extended two miles and three furlongs at Punchestown.
While Fact To File went on to finish second to his dual Gold Cup-winning stablemate Galopin Des Champs in the Savills Chase at Leopardstown, Spillane's Tower travelled to Kempton Park for the King George, finishing a slightly disappointing fifth after being sent off the 11-4 favourite.
While Mangan has not given up hope of Spillane's Tower developing into a Gold Cup contender in the future, he feels this year's renewal will come a year too soon.
"We felt he mightn't just be up to the Gold Cup distance for another year," he said.
"He's only just turned seven, so he's only a young horse and the three-mile-two might just take too much out of him for down the road."
Mangan has yet to make any firm plans for his stable star, although a possible clash with Galopin Des Champs in the Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown next month is not out of the question.
He added: "We haven't really made any plans. The Kempton race took a bit out of him, maybe he'll go to the Leopardstown Festival, but we'll see."
Hat-trick-chasing Galopin Des Champs heads 19 entries for the Gold Cup, with just a record-low five British contenders for March's blue riband event.
Willie Mullins' nine-year-old has been imperious in winning the Gold Cup for the past two years and after routing his rivals at Leopardstown over Christmas, is a short-priced favourite to replicate the great Best Mate and win three straight Gold Cups.
His chief market rival appears to be stablemate Fact To File but that horse is also among the leading contenders for the shorter Ryanair Chase after 34 put their name in the mix for that particular contest on Tuesday morning.
King George one-two Banbridge and Il Est Francais both feature in the Gold Cup entries, while at the same time also holding tickets for both the Ryanair and Champion Chase, with Gordon Elliott's Gerri Colombe and Henry de Bromhead's Monty's Star are other notable names for Cheltenham's main event.
The five tasked with upholding British pride are Dan Skelton's returning Festival hero Grey Dawning, Venetia Williams' pair of Betfair Chase winner Royale Pagaille and L'Homme Presse, King George fourth The Real Whacker (Patrick Neville) and Lucinda Russell's Ahoy Senor.
The JP McManus-owned Jonbon heads the betting for the Queen Mother Champion Chase after 26 were entered.
Amongst his potential rivals is a strong Closutton hand featuring two-time winner Energumene, last year's Arkle champion Gaelic Warrior and the beaten favourite in the race 12 months ago in the shape of El Fabiolo.
