Thistlecrack far too sharp for Newbury rivals Cheltenham Gold Cup favourite Thistlecrack continued his education over fences with victory in the Grade Two bet365 Novices' Chase at Newbury. The Colin Tizzard-trained World Hurdle hero was having his third outing over larger obstacles, following wins at Chepstow and Cheltenham, and was sent straight to the head of affairs by Tom Scudamore. Festival winner Ibis Du Rheu attempted to get upsides from time to time, but the 1-8 favourite never had to engage top gear at any stage, producing a virtually faultless round of jumping. Bigbadjohn denied Ibis Du Rheu the runner-up spot, some eight lengths behind the impressive winner. Scudamore said: "It was a great thrill. "He's really learned from that and he keeps on learning. "Even at this early stage, he's something different. "I'm just the lucky man who gets to sit on him. Tizzard said: "I don't think it gets any better than that. "He was immaculate. He was brilliant. "We came here because what went on at Cheltenham - he was a bit sketchy then. "Any fears we had about Cheltenham last week were put to bed. "We needed to get some runs into him before we decide what to do at Christmas."
