There will be no Ryanair Chase three-timer for the Willie Mullins-trained ALLAHO, as the 9 year-old has suffered an injury that will rule him out of the 2023 Cheltenham Festival.
Two-Time Ryanair Chase Winner Allaho Ruled Out Of 2023 Cheltenham Festival
Allaho has won the last two renewals of the Grade One Ryanair Chase at the Cheltenham Festival by a total of 26 lengths, but he won’t be able to try and extend that record on Thursday 23rd March after suffering abdominal bleed after a workout on Saturday.
Mullins told the Racing Post “We found nothing on x-rays or anything like that and I just hope the thing settles down now and that it’s not life-threatening. When he came home from the gallop he was fine, but finishing up after lunch, he was lying down in the box and was obviously in discomfort. He wasn’t making the classic signs of colic, but we knew he was in pain. So we loaded him up and got him down to the hospital.”
Since his Ryanair Chase win in 2022, Allaho, who was the clear favourite for the Cheltenham race, had only been seen once more which was an easy win of the Punchestown Gold Cup at the end of April 2022. His career record over fences stands at 7 wins from 12 runs and has finished in the first three in 14 of his 17 total career starts.
Allaho Has Won the Last Two Runnings Of The Ryanair Chase
The Ryanair Chase is one of the newer Cheltenham Festival races, with just 18 previous renewals, but no horse is yet to win the prize more than twice. Albertas Run did the double in 2010 and 2011 – while, with the two-time winner Allaho now set to miss his title defence, there will be a new name on the Ryanair Chase roll of honour this time.
Blue Lord and Fakir D’Oudairies New Ryanair Chase Favourites
With Allaho now on the side lines this has paved the way for a new Ryanair Chase favourite and the ‘good news’ for trainer Willie Mullins is that he could still have a strong say in the outcome with Blue Lord now joint-favourite @ 11/4 with BetUK.
Blue Lord was a shock loser at Leopardstown on 5th February last time out in the Dublin Chase, with many feeling the 8 year-old looked a tad one-paced that day and a step up in trip and a possible tile at the Ryanair Chase would suit. He’s still also in the betting for the Champion Chase at Cheltenham Festival odds of 7/1, but with Allaho now making the Ryanair an easy race, then connections could easily switch their focus here.
The other joint Ryanair favourite is Fakir D’oudairies @ 11/4 with BetUK. This Joseph O’Brien runner was a winer last time out at Thurles in the Horse and Jockey Hotel Chase and prior to that ran second to the Cheltenham Gold Cup favourite Galopin Des Champs at Punchestown over Christmas.
Fakir D’oudairies can now be expected to be a popular Cheltenham betting tip and also has history in the Ryanair Chase after running second to Allaho, albeit beating 12 lengths, in 2021. He was also second in the 2020 Arkle Chase at the Cheltenham Festival and fourth in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle back in 2019.
Shishkin and Fury Road Other Possible Ryanair Chase Runners
The 2021 Arkle Chase winner Shishkin is another potential Ryanair runner, but having flopped in the Queen Mother Champion Chase last year and running down the field in the Tingle Creek Chase is on a recovery mission. The Henderson horse holds an entry in Saturday’s Ascot Chase (18th Feb), so you feel that it’s make-or-break time for this former star in that race before deciding if heading to Cheltenham.
Fury Road also figures high up the betting in the Ryanair Chase now. From the Gordon Elliott yard, who are yet to win this Grade One Thursday feature, this 9 year-old was a fair third in the Irish Gold Cup over 3m last time out at Leopardstown and looks the sort to benefit from the drop back in trip having seemingly run out of stamina the last day.
His previous Cheltenham Festival runs saw him finish third in the 2020 Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle and was pulled up in the 2021 Stayers’ Hurdle.
Latest Ryanair Chase Betting with BetUK
- Blue Lord @ 11/4
- Fakir D’Oudaries @ 11/4
- Shishkin @ 7/2
- Fury Road @ 5/1
- Conflated@ 6/1
- Envoi Allen @ 8/1
- Pic D’Orhy @ 8/1
- French Dynamite @ 10/1
Note: Odds are subject to change and others on request
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