Stumptown justified his 4/1 favouritism in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Handicap Chase at Cheltenham on Friday, adding a second Irish winner to the ranks of Crystal Cup horses in this year’s challenge.

Keith Donoghue rode a patient race in mid-division , coming between horses at the last to land the odds rather cheekily from Mister Coffey, the Henderson novice filling the runner-up berth a second time in this genre of race. Latenightpass, briefly in the lead on the run-in, was swallowed up by the other two to finish 1 4 1/4l third.

Iceo Madrik, one of two runners David Cottin had sent to Cheltenham’s December fixture, was an early casualty, unseating Thomas Jouniac at the third fence. Cottin didn’t return home empty-handed however, as Jet Blue set up a tilt at the Albert Bartlett Novices Hurdle at the Festival the following day with a 6l win in the 3m hurdle of the same name.

The early pace was set by Vanillier and Escaria Ten, with top weights Delta Work and Mister Coffey in close attendance, Stumptown, Three By Two, Coko Beach and Arizona Cardinal not far behind. This leading group cut out the pace until the third last, when Escaria Ten bid to make the race his own, Latenightpass and Stumptown in pursuit.

Donoughue has a mind to March, and it showed. As he guided Stumptown through the leading pair on a tight rein, his was a finish with the handicap mark in mind for 3 months hence. The winning distance of a length could have been considerably more were this a conditions chase. Trainer Gavin Cromwell has campaigned very successfully at Cheltenham, and departed Cheltenham on Friday to fly to Bahrain for flat runners in the week to come.

Iceo Madrik’s fall leaves the leaderboard largely unchanged. Josef Vana retains a commanding lead with 39, Patrice Quinton and David Cottin on 28 and 22. Unsurprisingly, the leading owner remains Scuderia Aichner with a 10pt lead over Iceo Madrik’s owner Caroline Tisdall. The leading horse, however is Patrick Griffin’s Roi Mage, winner at Craon back in September.

The Crystal Cup takes a break now until February, when the Grand Cross de Pau sets the scene for a return to France for 3 of the remaining 5 legs.

Sixteen stand their ground in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase at Cheltenham, leg 7 of the Crystal Cup, in what promises to be a fascinating contest on good to soft ground.

The French tricolor was raised over Cheltenham a month ago when Sweet David won the first of Cheltenham’s 3 cross country contests. This time around, progressive 6 year old Iceo Madrik bids to put trainer David Cottin back among the winners at Cheltenham 4 years on from winning over the same course and distance with Easysland in March 2020.

The handily-weighted Iceo Madrik comes here on the back of a solid win of leg 6 of the Crystal Cup at Compiegne in early November, a race avoided by Gariel Leenders with Sweet David, who took the Cheltenham route. That win enhances the form. Thomas Journiac takes the ride.

A win for Iceo Madrik would allow Cottin to wrest the initiative in pursuit of the Crystal Cup. Currently in third place on 21 pts, 18 behind leader Josef Vana, a win would bring him within 6pts of the leader with the remaining races in the Series taking place in western Europe, 3 in France. Vana is unlikely to run in England, although Punchestown may be an option to protect his lead.

The Frenchman is unlikely to have it all his own way on Friday however, with plenty of candidates looking to burnish their credentials for a Festival entry en route to the Grand National. Stumptown, Latenightpass, Mister Coffey, Arizona Cardinal, Coko Beach and Vanillier are six whose intentions have been plain from the outset.

Stumptown comes here fresh from success in a banks race at Punchestown; Latenightpass won this race last year before acquitting himself well in the National; Mister Coffey finished second to Sweet David a month ago; Arizona Cardinal will strip fitter for his seasonal bow at Chepstow in October but is yet to sample the unique obstacles of the cross country genre; Coko Beach would have finished close in the Velka Pardubicka but for unseating 4 out, whilst Vanillier was well behind Stumptown at Punchestown.

Gordon Elliott has solid claims on this race through his five runners. Delta Work is a winner of the March equivalent and his top weight is eased by the booking of amateur rider Rob James, who claims 7lb. Coko Beach’s credentials are also solid, and Carl Millar’s 5lb allowance reduces his burden to 11st 5lb.

The stable pick appears to be Chemical Energy, whom Sam Ewing has selected to ride. Ewing has the pick of the Elliott runners in the absence of stable jockey Jack Kennedy. James Bowen and Danny Gilligan pick up the rides on the two remaining Elliott runners Gevrey and The Goffer.

Joseph Patrick O’Brien has left both his entries in. Fakir d’Oudairies is no slouch, running in graded company recently, and this drop in class may support his claim, whilst stablemate Bussleton was well beaten in the corresponding race a month ago.

Denis Murphy sends over Three By Two, who was second to Stumptown at Punchestown, and can reverse that form on more favourable terms this time around. Sam Twiston-Davies takes the ride.

The field is completed by outsiders Statuario and Escaria Ten for the Bowen and Keighley stables, both of whom have ground to make up.

The seventh leg of the Crystal Cup is set to enjoy an international field again as battle is joined between British, Irish and 2 French challengers.

A month ago, Gabriel Leenders flew the tricolor for France when winning an identical cross country race at Cheltenham, albeit not part of the Crystal Cup, with Sweet David. This time around, it is David Cottin who is trying his hand with progressive 6yo Iceo Madrik, who put 10 others to the sword by 5l in leg 6 of the series, the Grand Cross Country Steeplechase at Compiegne a month ago, a race avoided by Sweet David for the easier contest at Cheltenham at the end of the same week. Iceo Madrik is on a hattrick, and it must be hoped the weather doesn’t play a part in preventing him attending, as on a light weight, he has been given a big chance to shine and put Cottin right in the frame for the Crystal Cup as the series oscillates back toward France.

Iceo Madrik may well be joined by the Guillaume Fabre – trained Izino d’Airy, who despite his maiden status, has been running valiantly in heavy conditions at Auteuil and Compiegne this autumn, albeit he is untried over this distance. He may find the faster pace of races in Britain a more testing affair.

A clutch of Grand National pretenders are entered, seeking to burnish their credentials before the world’s most valuable steeplechase in April.

Mister Coffey will be aiming to go one better than his second to Sweet David a month ago. His 6 1/2l beating that day finds him still seeking a first win over fences at this, his 15th attempt.

Latenightpass found his return to Aintree for the Becher Chase a tough ask, but he is 2 from 2 over these obstacles, and should be respected. With a rating of 144, weight may tell as he’s carrying 5lb more than the 10st 8 of this time last year.

A case can be made for fellow hunter chase graduate Gabiorot, under the direction of Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero.  Winner of hunter chases at Cheltenham and Cartmel in May, the 8yo opened his season with a 4 1/4l third to King Turgeon in Aintree’s Becher Chase. He looks on the upgrade still, and would be a handsome replacement for Gesskille, fatally injured in this race 12 months ago.

A third hunter chase graduate, Deise Aba, has something to find against these higher rated horses on the basis of his win in a hunters contest at Stratford in the Spring.

Vanillier is one of two entries for Gavin Cromwell, and one of the 14 contenders from across the Irish Sea. Cromwell has an outstanding record from a sparing but highly targeted team of runners at Cheltenham. Fourteen winners from 63 runners these past 5 seasons tell their own story, and the tallywag reads just one in this term to date, so success is well overdue. Vanillier is yet to show anythinbg like the dizzy form that saw him finish a 2 1/4l second to Corach Rambler in the 2023 Grand National, and it may be argued his best days are behind him.

Stumptown from the same stable comes here on a hattrick after banks success at Punchestown in May and November, where he beat fellow entry Three By Two from Denis Paul Murphy’s Enniscorthy yard.

Gordon Elliott has entered 7 of the 14 Irish contenders, which include Chemical Energy, a 5 1/2l third to Real Steel in October’s Munster National; Coko Beach, who has proven form over cross country obstacles, and despite finishing behind Stumptown at Punchestown last month, would have gone very close in the Velka Pardubicka in early October but for unseating his rider 4 out; Irish Gold Cup winner Delta Work is a second Gigginstown entry, and won the March equivalent race here in both 2022 and 2023. Form this season is unremarkable, but a look back to April serves to remind you this is no back number. His 7 1/2l second to I Am Maximus in the Grand National gives him the highest rating in the field.

Fakir d’Alene,  Gevrey, The Goffer and Wine An Dine, the remaining Elliott entries, both have some way to make up to be in the reckoning here.

Tommie Beau seized his chance in the corresponding race a month ago before dramatically running out with 3f to run. He owes owner Peter Prout no favours, having won handicaps around the smaller tracks for several years. Whilst the November race was a weaker contest than usual, Seamus Mullins’ flagbearer deserves better than that, and is certainly a candidate for the places.

Cheltenham has long been a destination racecourse for the Keighleys, since both Belinda and Martin worked for the course. In Back On The Lash, they have a former winner of the cross country, third in the most recent running a month ago. Escaria Ten’s form figures are unreassuring, and he is unproven over this genre of obstacle or the trip, but the variety may be a tonic, as it has been for many reaching their veteran years.

Arizona Cardinal, winner of the Topham Chase at Aintree in the Spring, is a fascinating addition to the cross country ranks, and a first runner in this type of race for trainer Stuart Edmunds. He was pulled up in the Becher Chase, but if returning to his form of the Spring, is a live candidate under Charlie Hammond. Fellow also-ran Percussion at Aintree looks an improbable winner.

Both John McConnochie and Joseph Patrick O’Brien have entered two each. Bodhisattva has been well beaten in two banks races at Punchestown, whilst Streets of Doyen’s jumping has been found wanting in two cross country races this autumn. Fakir d’Oudairies put in a career best in the Melling Chase at Aintree 20 months ago, and might appreciate this drop in class whilst stablemate Busselton has something to find on his sixth to Sweet David a month ago.

Final declarations are made on Wednesday.

Sweet David, runner up to Roi Mage at Craon back in September, went one better in an eventful race at Cheltenham on Friday to set himself up as a player in the later stages of the Crystal Cup.

Tracking long time leader and favourite Tommie Beau, who took the wrong course two out as they re-joined the racecourse, Felix de Giles eased through to the lead and won going away, despite being well out of the handicap.

Mister Coffey and twice winner of this race, Back On The Lash, ran on to fill the places, with top weight Conflated weakening dramatically to finish well down the field.

Of Cheltenham’s three cross country races, this first is not a leg of the Crystal Cup, so the leaderboard remains unchanged, despite a race in which several candidates may well be players in the Series’ remaining 6 races.

SWEET DAVID and Felix de Giles are led over the water by Back On The Lash 15/11/24 PHOTO © Grossick Racing Photography 0771 046 1723

In truth, this was a substandard renewal of this usually popular race, brought about by unseasonably dry conditions that rendered the ground no slower than good, which thinned out the entry considerably. this had doubtless coloured trainer Gabriel Leenders’ decision to run at Cheltenham rather than taking in the altogether more competitive cross country at Compiegne four days earlier, where he’s also held an entry.

But it also showed that the typical calibre of horses running in races of this nature is not among horses rated 150+, but those rated 140 or less, and for many, usually running off top weight in 0-140 handicaps, or pushed into open handicap company, the cross country genre can prove a viable alternative, especially if including the very few races beyond Britain & Ireland.

Tommie Beau’s trainer, Seamus Mullins, is certainly one to have recognized the appeal of running of level weights in cross country races, and Pau’s calendar, including the Grand Cross in February, may be on the agenda for the unlucky 9 year old.

Winning trainer Gabriel Leenders, successful here in the Cleeve Hurdle with Gold Tweet in January, is likely to try his hand again in the Festival Cross Country, but may swerve Pau’s winter season in favour of a run on the flat instead with Sweet David, who needs to come into his races fresh.

Either way, we are likely to see more of him in the Crystal Cup in the later stages.