'You don't become a slow horse overnight' - our experts believe El Fabiolo still has something to offer despite Navan defeat

El Fabiolo failed to reel in 50-1 shot Senecia in the Webster Cup on his first try over two and a half miles. So where would our experts be aiming next with a chaser who looked to have the two-mile division at his feet this time last year?

'The longer distance of the Ryanair doesn't look within his compass'

I would freshen him up and send him back over two miles. Admittedly, his jumping has been found out at that trip before, but you don't become a slow horse overnight and he beat Jonbon on merit in the 2023 Arkle.

He travelled strongly but appeared not to stay in a relatively slowly run race at Navan, and the longer distance of the Ryanair doesn't look within his compass at this stage of his career.

I would probably encourage connections to skip Cheltenham, where the pace pressure may not be to his liking, and target Aintree and Punchestown instead. The latter, in particular, could be a good fit, while hurdling could be a tempting option, too.
Maddy Playle, reporter

'It's too early to be giving up on El Fabiolo'

Clearly the main task for Paul Townend was to get El Fabiolo to put in a clear round of jumping to rebuild his confidence after two failures to complete in his last three starts.

In that sense it was mission accomplished, as he was largely error free at this slower tempo.

But a steady pace over two and a half miles with a stiff uphill finish didn’t look to play to his strengths and if connections are eyeing a return to Grade 1 level, then the Champion Chase at Punchestown looks a better bet than the Melling at Aintree over the intermediate trip.

He’s still only eight – a year younger than Jonbon – and I think it’s too early to be giving up on El Fabiolo.
Scott Burton, France correspondent

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