Can Hewick build on his DRF run at the Festival? Hewick has been the horse of a lifetime for his connections but can the Grade 1-winning bargain buy deliver another massive run at the Cheltenham Festival this spring? He's now 10-years-old with plenty of mileage on the clock and he was last spotted finishing seventh in the Irish Gold Cup, as Galopin Des Champs stamped his authority on Ireland's best staying chasers. The Cheltenham Gold Cup looks the likely next destination for Hewick in the Cotswolds. Cheltenham glory now a longshot Hewick still holds entries in the Gold Cup and the Stayers' Hurdle at Cheltenham, with the Blue Riband seemingly the preferred option. He's generally quoted at odds of bigger than 50/1 for both races and it appears as though the opportunity for this pint-sized dynamo to succeed at the Cotswolds showpiece may have passed. Indeed, it may have passed in a fleeting moment in the Gold Cup of 2023. Jordan Gainford had Hewick in a decent position heading to the second last jump when they crashed out. The taps were being turned on at the time, with most observers willing to believe Hewick was going to fade, but given what occurred in his King George win at Kempton just six months later, that can hardly be taken as read. He will return to Cheltenham now two years older and without a win since that Boxing Day spectacular in which he overhauled defending champion Bravemansgame after Shishkin had unseated Nico de Boinville two out when seemingly in control of the race. DRF run hints at decline Galopin Des Champs had far too many guns for Irish Gold Cup rivals at Leopardstown during the recent Dublin Racing Festival. Such was his utter dominance, he's already odds-on for a third Gold Cup victory in the Cotswolds on March 14th. Hewick toiled late in that contest at the Foxrock venue, making a mistake at the last and eventually beaten a dozen lengths behind Galopin as well as the likes of Grangeclare West, Fact To File and Inothewayurthinkin. The three horses Hewick beat home — I Am Maximum, Minella Cocooner and Conflated — are all being primed for the four-mile plus test of the Aintree Grand National in April and that is perhaps indicative of where Hewick now finds himself. Time running out for bargain buy The story of Hewick, with his £800 price tag, has become of the finest in jumps racing in recent times. In his career he has won that memorable King George at Kempton as well as a bet365 Gold Cup and an Oaksey Chase at Sandown, a Galway Plate and an American Grand National. He has pocketed just shy of £750,000 in prize money for what was the most modest of investments and given his long-time trainer Shark Hanlon some of the biggest days of his career. As that old racing adage goes, he owes nothing to anyone. He still carries a BHA rating of 161 over fences and therein lies his problem. The major handicaps are probably out of reach and his hopes in Grade 1 company are surely forlorn. It is likely that Hewick's Dublin Racing Festival effort is representative of where he is at, for now, honour and dignity in defeat but little hopes of glory. Get €50 in FREE bets with the Betfred sign up offer:
