The gold winner Richard Johnson is surprised in the big race today – but he does not think he comes from the winning horse.
Johnson is completely expected that Galopin des Champs will win again, but it is optimistic that a large horse can be placed.
“For me, Galopin des Champs will win the Challenham Cup for gold again, if he ran the same race he did on Christmas, he would win. I thought he was really impressive,” he told Genting Casino.
“In fact, I thought it was almost impressive as I saw in any of his races before in the accumulation of the Gold Cup. On Christmas this year, he jumped in the past and it seemed that he had left a lot. He remained strong.
“If he appears decent and in good health, I will be surprised if he is beaten. Willie Molins really knows the horse really, really well. He always gets it completely ripe for this day.
“It is a little boring, but I think it will be very difficult to overcome it. I think there is a very good chance this year that one of the places placed can be a 66/1 shot. Horses like Royale Pagaille remain well.
“I think there will be a lot of horses with large prices in the race, and yes, I think we can easily get a large horse in finishing second or third place, but for me, Galopin Des Champs is definitely the horse that all Goki wants to get.”