JCB Triumph Hurdle fancy, Cliffs Of Dover, is doubtful for Cheltenham, trainer Paul Nicholls revealed on Tuesday.
Formerly trained by Charlie Hills on the Flat, this son of Canford Cliffs has been a revelation since joining Nicholls, winning six of his last seven outings over hurdles.
This four-year-old is fancied for the Triumph Hurdle but his participation could be in doubt after taking a knock while schooling.
Nicholls, who trains the 140 rated gelding for John Cotton and his wife Barbara, said: "I schooled him just before he was going to go to Musselburgh last week and he knocked himself. It might just be a race against time to get him there. If he doesn't come right he might have to go to Aintree."
Better next season
Nicholls' added: "He's won six - I suppose we've placed him well - but he's a good horse.
"If we'd known more about him he wouldn't have been beaten at Market Rasen - we rode him wrong that day. He's a good horse and if we can't quite get him right this season for whatever reason he'll be better next season when he'll be a really good hurdler.
"He wants looking
after and we could do with a few more like him."
Cheltenham Festival is stepping up security for next month's meeting. The local council is introducing new measures to stamp out boozy drinkers, tickets touts, street sellers and girls who take a fancy to getting their boobs out.
Traders selling scarves and hats in familiar racing silks [JP McManus, Jean Bishop or Brocade Racing] will be prohibited.
In addition, people handing out promotional material - including flyers, newspapers, stickers, scarves and hats - during the course of the festival week must apply for a permit.
Cheltenham council and the police will also be cracking down on ticket touts operating on public land and the sale of counterfeit tickets.
Alongside police, Council officers will issue on-the-spot fines to anybody who refuses to cease heavy boozing if refusing to stop.
Ian Renton, managing director of Cheltenham, said: "We're very pleased to have a strong relationship with the police and council that has enabled us to work together on the areas around touts, excessive drinking, illegal taxi activity and commercial flyering.
"We recognise the importance of all parties working together to minimise the disruption to local residents during the festival, while at the same time providing a safe and enjoyable week for our 260,000 customers."
Taxi activity will be monitored carefully to ensure the safety of the public and that taxi drivers are not unlawfully plying for trade.
Inspector Roddy Gosden of Gloucestershire Constabulary said: "We'll be running increased patrols in the town, particularly during the night-time economy, to help keep people safe and for the first time we'll have a base at the former tourist information centre in the promenade. Members of the public can come and see us there if they have any problems or concerns."
The Cheltenham Gold Cup is one of the biggest and most popular events in the horse racing calendar. This famous steeplechase is held at Prestbury Park run over 3 miles 2 1/2 furlongs with 22 fences to jump. The Cheltenham Festival is a race meeting that excites horse racing fans across the globe and brings with it thousands of Irish supporters who look forward to their annual pilgrimage to challenging the best National Hunt horses. Come the 13th March, 2015 riders, trainers, punters and horses will be chomping at the bit. This could be a good time to bet on the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
So what are we to make of this year's betting at Paddy Power? Well, looking at the prices it is a pretty open race as far as the betting is concerned. Silviniaco Conti heads the field at 3/1 favourite. Bar Paul Nicholls hope all other horses are priced at double-figure odds with the exception of the Irish-trained Road To Riches.
This Irish bred son of Gamut - a talented Group 1 winning sire who raced over the Flat for Sir Michael Stoute - has crept under the radar for this year's Gold Cup.
There's one thing you can guarantee, the talent of this bay gelding, owned by Gigginstown House Stud, is no surprise to Noel Meade. With fifteen races under rules he has won eight times. This bay may have fell on his debut but his performances since have been pretty much unblemished. The last six races saw four wins and two narrow defeats by less than one length. In less than a year this eight-year-old has risen 22lbs in the official handicap and although needing to improve to win at the highest grade this rapid rise to fame could see a bold show when competing at Cheltenham for the first time. A horse who could hold each-way claims and keep those Irish eyes smiling.
