Like the rest of the United Kingdom and Ireland, the Isle of Wight will be glued to Cheltenham Festival when it begins in the second week of March. There will be a number of storylines to emerge over the course of the week, but one that stands out from near our borders comes from the south of England and trainer Gary Moore’s attempt at redemption at the festival.
Goshen fell at the final hurdle to dramatically miss out in the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham.
Jockey Jamie Moore has spoke of his heartache after the incident.
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In 2020, Moore’s charge Goshen was on the precipice of a dominant win in the Triumph Hurdle that could have set the stage of a run at the major crowns in the future. However, at the final hurdle, Goshen unseated his rider Jamie Moore to cost him the race. Goshen’s career has not been the same since, and you will not see his name among the leading contenders in the Cheltenham Gold Cup betting tips, although he will be active in the Champion Hurdle.
Moore will have the chance to reload for another crack at the Gold Cup in the future with another bright star out of his yard. Goshen remains his top horse for now, but the form of Porticello could give the Sussex-based trainer hope for the future. The French thoroughbred transferred into his yard at the start of the National Hunt campaign, and made a strong start from the off in his first run in England at the Wensleydale Juvenile Hurdle at Wetherby by three-and-three quarter lengths. It was a sign of his quality, although he took a step back by placing second in his next outing at Doncaster in the Summit Juvenile Hurdle just behind Knight Salute.
The pressure was on Moore to guide his charge back to relevance and in December he proved that Porticello has the potential to become a challenger at Cheltenham with his second victory of the season at Chepstow in the Juvenile Hurdle. It was a dominant performance from the four-year-old as he surged away from the rest of the field to canter over the line. He saved his best display for last at Haydock Park in the Victor Ludorum Juvenile Hurdle, finishing an astounding 17 lengths ahead of his nearest rival Skycutter to send him into Cheltenham with momentum.
There will be challenges ahead for Porticello as he is scheduled to face a talented group of competitors in the Triumph Hurdle. The Triumph Hurdle is scheduled before the Gold Cup, so there could be a taster for Moore and company on what to expect in the future for a potential run in the signature event. Moore will face off against Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott, who both have quality horses in the race such as Vauban and Pied Piper.
Porticello has odds of 10/1 for the race, which means that he will be a slight outsider for the win. However, he does have raw potential and the ability to beat his rivals over the course of the two miles and one furlong of the contest. It could well set the platform for a future challenge at the Gold Cup and provide Moore with redemption for the failure of Goshen in 2020.
