Going the distance - Champion or the Stayers for Yanworth?

Graham Dench
When an owner has as many good horses as JP McManus there is bound to be a fair bit of chopping and changing to keep them apart as long as possible, but I got the distinct impression at Ascot, where Yanworth took his time mastering Lil Rockerfeller, that the team were leaning heavily towards a 3m campaign. That has only changed because of the emergence of Unowhatimeanharry as a strong contender for the World Hurdle, and if anything were to happen to the new acquisition between now and March it's a fair bet Yanworth would be back on the 3m beat. He might anyway. It's understandable trying 2m, but they are not averse to running two in the World Hurdle if it's the right race, as we saw when More Of That won in 2014, with At Fishers Cross third.

Pietro Innocenzi
I'm rarely averse to a horse dropping in trip and don't see why Yanworth will be inconvenienced in races run at championship pace. Indeed, he is unbeaten in three starts over hurdles at around 2m and could hardly have been more impressive when completing the hat-trick in a Grade 2 at Ascot around this time last year. Although he has since proved equally effective at around 2m4f, the real key to him appears to be cut in the ground – his two Cheltenham Festival defeats came on good ground, while his most impressive performances have been on soft/heavy. That is a big worry as we rarely get that type of ground in March, but he has to go somewhere and I would rather he went the Champion Hurdle route. In fact 12-1 could prove a big price if there is any ease in the going come the opening day next year.

Graeme Rodway
I'm not certain Yanworth has the pace to win a Champion, but six of the top eight in the market are trained in Ireland and the top 2m hurdles in Britain, starting with the International at Cheltenham on Saturday, look there for the taking. For that reason alone, the decision to drop to the minimum looks the right call. Yanworth is unbeaten in three starts at around 2m over hurdles and travelled as though he has the speed to cope with a return to the minimum when bolting up in a 2m 4f Grade 2 at Cheltenham in January. On his return from a summer break over 2m3f at Ascot last month, Alan King's gelding raced keenly through the early stages and shaped as though he would be suited by a faster pace at the shorter trip. He would need to settle better to stay 3m in the World Hurdle and is only a six-year-old, so if the 2m experiment doesn't work, the longer trip could still be an option in future.