Envoi Allen ready for Cheltenham Gold Cup swansong

Envoi Allen remains on course to bring the curtain down on his glittering career in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Henry de Bromhead’s 12-year-old has carried the Cheveley Park Stud silks to 10 Grade One victories and will be running at his eighth successive Cheltenham Festival, a record which includes victories in the 2019 Champion Bumper, the 2020 Turners Novices’ Hurdle and 2023 Ryanair Chase.

He won the 2019 Champion Bumper and here we are in 2026 — it’s unbelievable and wonderful to be associated with a horse like this.

Richard Thompson

He has been kept fresh since winning his third BetVictor Champion Chase at Down Royal in November, with connections hoping he can have a glorious swansong in National Hunt racing’s most prestigious contest.

“This will be his eighth Festival in a row, he’s won three times and been placed three times,” said Cheveley Park Stud director Richard Thompson.

“We just thought he’s won the Ryanair, he’s been second in the Ryanair and been third in the Ryanair and it’s his last race, why not give it a spin?

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“It’s 100 per cent his last race – we’ll draw stumps after the Gold Cup. We’ve kept him fresh after Down Royal because he runs well fresh and, bearing in mind he was running through the line at Down Royal, we thought the Gold Cup was worth a go.

“He’s 12 years old and it’s a long shot, but he’s working well and he’s in great form, so let’s see. I said to Henry ‘let’s go for the Gold Cup’ and he was all for it – I think he thinks he’ll run well.

“He’s won 10 Grade Ones, it’s hard to put it into words. He won the 2019 Champion Bumper and here we are in 2026 – it’s unbelievable and wonderful to be associated with a horse like this.

“It’s an open year. The Gold Cup, as we know, is all about dreams, we lived the dream and it became reality four years ago with A Plus Tard winning. It’s hard to expect it again, but it’s fantastic to be part of it.”

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Envoi Allen is one of three planned runners for Cheveley Park in the Cotswolds next week, with Ballyadam set to contest the newly-named BetMGM Cup for the third year in succession, having been placed in each of the past two years, and Quilixios ready to line up in the Queen Mother Champion Chase on what will be his first competitive appearance since falling at the final fence in the same race last year.

Thompson, who has enjoyed 11 Cheveley Park-owned Festival winners, said: “Ballyadam has performed well at the Festival over the years. He was second in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, he’s finished fifth in the County Hurdle twice and has been second and third in the Coral Cup (BetMGM Cup) in the last two seasons.

“He’s 11 now and he’s been another good horse for us over the years. He had a nice spin on the Flat the other day, so let’s see how he goes.

“Quilixios hasn’t run for a year so it’s a tough ask, but Henry is keen to run him and we’ll let him have a crack. He won the Triumph Hurdle five years ago and he was running well when he came down last year.”