The New Lion shaping up well for potential Sir Gino clash
CLASSY OPERATOR: The New Lion was an impressive winner of the Turners Novices' Hurdle at last year's Cheltenham Festival. Picture: Healy RacingÂ
Dan Skelton is relishing a potential Cheltenham Festival Trials day showdown against Sir Gino with The New Lion after keenly observing the best of the action over the festive period.
The front-runner for the trainers' title has been steadfast in his belief his Festival winner has all the qualities to land the two-mile hurdling showpiece in March, despite falling in a dramatic Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle.
And although watching on while many have been stating their Cheltenham claims, Skelton has continued to be delighted with his progress as he builds towards a Champion Hurdle dress rehearsal in the Unibet Hurdle at Prestbury Park on January 24.
Skelton said: "The New Lion jumped on New Year's Day and jumped beautiful. We've jumped him three times since he fell and that's the happiest we've been with him.
"It sounds like we might clash with Sir Gino on Trials day and we'd look forward to that."
Set to join The New Lion at Cheltenham later this month is Skelton's Betfair Chase hero Grey Dawning, who will put his Gold Cup credentials to the test in the Cotswold Chase.
Assessing the picture of some of the Festival's biggest events, Skelton added: "Grey Dawning looks fantastic as well as The New Lion, so we're happy with what we've got and our plan.
"Whether the others show their hand now or not until March, we know the opposition is going to be hard to beat.
"I think it's a very open Gold Cup because there are so many quality horses and I think it's becoming a slightly more concentrated Champion Hurdle. Sir Gino looked very good (in the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton on St Stephen's Day) and very speedy, so I would say he's going to be very hard to beat."
Meanwhile, Kabral Du Mathan looks set to swerve a Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle run, with Skelton favouring Fontwell and Aintree options this term.
The six-year-old is two from two since transferring from the care of Paul Nicholls this term, supplementing an initial wide-margin Haydock success for Skelton with an equally striking Relkeel Hurdle win at Cheltenham on New Year's Day.
Kabral Du Mathan was cut to as short as 6-1 to successfully step up to three miles in the Stayers' at the Cheltenham Festival, but Skelton is instead looking to the two-mile-three-furlong National Spirit Hurdle at Fontwell on February 22 before possibly heading to Aintree in the spring.
He said: "Plan A is going to be to go to Fontwell for the National Spirit and then on to Aintree if it's appropriate. We will enter in the Stayers' in the meantime, just in case we feel differently and just in case the race takes a different shape.
"Given his tender age and the way he races — he races very enthusiastically — we don't want to turn up in the Stayers' and give him a really hard race, get to the bottom of him at that age and find maybe some horses don't come back from such a gruelling experience.
"Next year, when he is another year older, you have to submit them to more questions but I think we can make up into that horse rather than just turn up first time over three miles in a Stayers' against Teahupoo and say 'we're as knowledgeable and as hardened as you', because we're not.
"We're going to take the sensible option unless something odd happens."
