In less than three months’ time, the 2026 Cheltenham Gold Cup will be in the books, but it feels like there’s a long way to go and a lot to learn about the race before we get there.
A handful of big races have taken place already, and I’m not sure we’ve learnt too much just yet. Of course, the festive period is always a big time for racing, and in terms of clues for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, none come bigger than the King George at Kempton, or so that’s usually the case.
But this year, I get the feeling it may be a little different. Could we actually end up with more questions than answers this year? That certainly wouldn’t surprise me, given the make up of the field set to take part at Kempton.
Stamina Doubts Cast Shadow Over King George Runners
The three horses at the head of the market to win the King George are Gaelic Warrior, Fact To File and Jango Baie.
Those three are three of the top six in the market for the Gold Cup, so are definitely considered as being leading contenders for March, but they’ve got one thing in common that sets them apart from the rest.
All three, in my opinion at least, have plenty to prove in terms of stamina for the Gold Cup, and this is where I think the questions are all going to be thrown up after the King George.
The two tests are very different, but despite this, we all consider the King George to be the best trial for the Gold Cup. But if one of these three wins, unless they win doing handstands and on the bridle, the first question to be asked will be about their stamina for the Gold Cup.
I expect winning connections to come out and say their horse will get the trip, if that’s where they choose to go, but whether they actually do or not will remain to be seen.
Gaelic Warrior and Fact To File, both trained by Willie Mullins, had a huge tussle to start their season, with Gaelic Warrior coming out on top in a thriller. The distance that day was 2m3f.
Jango Baie won the Arkel Chase at the 2025 Cheltenham Festival, over two miles, and while he’s run over further since, and won, it’s a huge step to go from 2025 Arkle Chase winner to Gold Cup winner in 12 months.
I believe all of them will get the King George trip of three miles no problem around this easy track of Kempton, it’s what comes next where the problem lies.
So, what exactly will we learn from the King George? Well, I think we’ll learn plenty about horses over three miles and about the quality of the competitors, but for me, we need to park the idea that we’ll learn plenty about the Gold Cup from this race.
That might come from across the Irish Sea, with Inothewayurthinkin, last year’s Gold Cup winner, and Galopin Des Champs, winner of the two previous years, are both set to be in action.
But if you ask me what’s the most likely scenario to happen, I’d say many of the main contenders run, some win, and we either learn nothing, or end up having a lot more questions about the Gold Cup.