Most versatile chaser since Kauto Star? Ricci team targeting King George redemption bid after Gaelic Warrior crowned best in training

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The Ladbrokes King George VI Chase at Kempton is the missing jewel in Gaelic Warrior's crown, and will be a major target for the best chaser in training come December. 

The Cheltenham and Punchestown Gold Cup winner was on Tuesday confirmed at the top of the Anglo-Irish Jumps Classification with a mark of 180 and, during a media call to mark the publication of the end-of-season ratings, Rich and Susannah Ricci's racing manager, Joe Chambers, expressed his belief that Gaelic Warrior and Lossiemouth – who is joint-top of the hurdle rankings alongside Teahupoo – are capable of going even higher "granted the right circumstances".

In addition to being 7lb clear of his Willie Mullins-trained stablemates Fact To File and I Am Maximus in the staying division, Gaelic Warrior also posted the best figure (174) over intermediate trips thanks to his win in the John Durkan Chase in November. 

Referring to Gaelic Warrior's stellar season, Chambers said: "It’s going to be pretty hard to replicate, but we still haven’t won a King George, so we need to go back and try to right that wrong at least. We went away [from Kempton] that day thinking we’d enhanced our Gold Cup claims.

"I think the popular opinion was that maybe others had done more than we had. So we’d like to go back."

Chambers added: "Maybe we know a lot more about him now, and I think Paul [Townend] knows a lot more about him as well, particularly over this trip.

"There has been huge trust in him from Paul since the King George into Cheltenham – he didn’t ride him at Leopardstown – and then on to Punchestown. That’s not something that should be underestimated either."

Joe Chambers (second left) with jockey Paul Townend, Rich Ricci and Willie Mullins (right)Credit: Caroline Norris (racingpost.com/photos)

IHRB senior jumps handicapper Shay Quinn hailed Gaelic Warrior’s season as one that stands comparison with any recent champion in the staying division.

Quinn said: "It is a very high mark. A mark of 180 has only been achieved by the likes of Galopin Des Champs and A Plus Tard at their prime, while, to put it into context, Best Mate was 175.

"I think what makes him even more remarkable is the scope and the range of his accomplishments; he’s an Arkle winner over two miles, a John Durkan winner over two and a half, he has an Aintree Bowl over three miles and the Cheltenham Gold Cup over three miles two. 

"That sort of versatility we haven’t seen for a long time. I certainly haven’t seen it since Kauto Star. Comparisons are probably a little bit premature just yet but I think few chasers have shown that ability over different distances, and to be able to dominate over that range of distances. 

"He’s still only eight and does have the chance still to prove himself the best stayer of this generation, and I think he will."

Lossiemouth was rated 162 for her success in the Unibet Champion Hurdle and followed up at Punchestown in the Boodles-sponsored equivalent.

Chambers said: "I think Annie Power was rated 162 after her Champion Hurdle as well and going into Aintree, where she put up her best ever performance.

"So I think ‘Lossie’ is on a par with ‘Annie’, and I think there’s probably more to come from her, if we’re able to get opposition that can drive her onto that performance. You can only give a horse a rating based on what she’s beating.

"The same with Gaelic Warrior. I’d like to think that under the right set of circumstances, both could give the handicappers cause to up their ratings."

Irish domination of the year-end classifications has been a common thread for much of the last decade. Ireland has had a stranglehold on the Cheltenham Gold Cup in recent years, with Native River in 2018 the last British-trained winner of the race. He was also the most recent non-Irish-trained horse to top the chase rankings outright, although Cyrname later shared top honours with Al Boum Photo in the 2019-20 season.

Old Park Star leads home Sover and Mydaddypaddy at Cheltenham, with all three horses figuring in the end-of-season hurdling classificationCredit: Grossick Racing (racingpost.com/photos)

Among the novice hurdlers, the two-mile division was rated the strongest among the three distance cohorts, meaning that Sky Bet Supreme-winner Old Park Star topped a clutch of promising British horses with a mark of 155, though BHA handicapper Michael Harris questioned the strength of the crop.

"Among the novices as a whole it was probably a below-par year, with only five horses, British and Irish, in the classification," said Harris. "That's down from 11 last year. Pleasingly from a British perspective, four of those five are trained in Britain, which is quite a turnaround and a cause for optimism.

"Old Park Star is top on 155, but to give a bit of historical context, Kopek Des Bordes last year was 158. If you compare some of Nicky Henderson's previous Supreme winners, Constitution Hill is obviously an outlier at 170, Altior was at 160 and Shishkin was 159. So Old Park Star is obviously a step below those horses at the moment."

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