Harbour Pilot's ship could upset Best Mate

13 April 2012

If you were old enough to be there when Arkle won his third consecutive Gold Cup, you may well be reading this with the aid of a magnifying glass from the comfort of a seat in an old folks' home.

And if you weren't old enough to go racing back in 1966, then throw a sickie and head for Cheltenham tomorrow to see Best Mate make his bid for sporting immortality.

The script for this year's £350,000 showpiece is blindingly simple.

In short, Best Mate will be backed off the boards and jump 22 forbidding black fences with uncanny precision before bounding clear up the hill.

Cue 60,000 adoring fans in a state of collective euphoria, and cue the Channel 4 close-up shots of Henrietta Knight and Terry Biddlecombe leaping into each others' arms like Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable at the end of Gone With The Wind.

History beckons the most charismatic chaser seen in decades and you could be forgiven for thinking fate has already decreed that it finally is time for Arkle's treble to be equalled.

One by one, potential threats to Best Mate's dominance have fallen by the wayside or dented their chance with lacklustre performances.

Young pretenders such as Strong Flow and Kingscliff will miss the race through injury, while Jair Du Cochet's hopes of dethroning the king met a sorry end when he broke a leg on the gallops last week.

No wonder the question on most lips at Cheltenham this week has revolved around which horses will fill the placings.

But from a betting viewpoint, the most important question of all relates to whether punters want to risk £100 in order to win £50? And, without wishing to detract in any way from the achievements of a superb chaser, I don't.

Best Mate clearly has the best form in tomorrow's line-up and, granted normal luck in running, jockey Jim Culloty ought to be saluting the stands at about 3.25pm.

However, if history tells us one thing, it is that no horse is unbeatable. So steer away from the crowd and have a few quid each way on Harbour Pilot at around 20-1.

At that price, you will hardly be stunned to hear he comes with a few negatives in his baggage. A tendency to clout the odd fence has long been part of his make-up, while even his best form falls a fair way short of Best Mate.

But there are also a few significant positives. First off, he ran a blinder in this race last year when staying on strongest to be beaten 12-and-a-half lengths into third. Second, he comes here just as fresh as the champ after only two runs this season. Third, he looked ready to show improved

form at Leopardstown last month until a blunder at the second-last handed the Hennessy Gold Cup to Florida Pearl.

Jumping problems have also blighted the progress of several other horses in tomorrow's field.

Beef Or Salmon clearly has something to prove after some cumbersome efforts this season, while Truckers Tavern's technique has let him down badly since he finished second in this race 12 months ago.

Therealbandit and Irish Hussar have fewer jumping worries and remain open to plenty of improvement, while the enigmatic Keen Leader has it in him to run a big race for Barry Geraghty.

But as the field roll down the hill for the final time, the roar will be for Best Mate.

Logic suggests he will answer every bit as emphatically as in 2002 and 2003, and anyone who takes him on does so knowing he needs to have an off-day to be beaten.

Will Best Mate have an off-day tomorrow? Probably not. But at 20-1 for the win and 5-1 for a place, it might be worth taking a chance that the boat can come in through Harbour Pilot.

Cunningham's Gold Cup 1-2-3

1 Harbour Pilot (ew)
2 Best Mate
3 Keen Leader

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