War of the Wolds to climax Cheltenham Festival (From York Press)

War of the Wolds to climax Cheltenham Festival

10:08am Friday 19th March 2010 in

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IT is hard to find fault with Kauto Star as he aims to become only the fourth horse in history to land the Cheltenham Gold Cup three times.

The highlight of the final day of the Cheltenham Festival sees the much awaited rematch between champion trainer Paul Nicholls' stablemates, Kauto Star and Denman.

It is one-all in the battle between the two mighty thoroughbreds with today's renewal of the Grade 1, three-and-a-quarter mile contest dubbed the 'War of the Wolds'.

Ten-year-old Kauto Star looked as good as ever when taking his fourth King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day and his trainer thinks the rest of the field, including Denman, have a mountain to climb to stop him in Cheltenham's Blue Riband event.

While Kauto Star arrives in the Cotswolds at the top of his game, the same cannot be said of Denman.

The Tank looked brilliant when giving What A Friend a stone and a half in the Hennessy Gold Cup and winning but he came to grief when unseating champion jockey Tony McCoy in the Aon Chase at Newbury last month.

That has seen the punters turn against the 2008 Gold Cup winner in a big way but Nicholls believes it is dangerous to write him off.

Cerium provides local interest in the 11-runner field, trained by Paul Murphy at Leyburn.

Not disgraced in the contest last season he went on to finish fifth in the Grand National three weeks later – despite suffering a fractured skull during the marathon contest.

But, on official figures, he has more than four stone to find on Kauto Star and it will be the biggest shock in Gold Cup history if Cerium claims victory.

Murphy also runs stable companion Mr Pointment, who hasn't run since finishing unplaced in a Grade 3 contest at Newbury in February 2009.

He was a Becher Chase winner at Aintree, three years ago, but this race looks utterly beyond him.

Amicelli looks like North Yorkshire's best hope of finishing the four-day Festival on a high.

Trained by Mick Easterby's daughter Cherry Coward at Scackleton, the 11-year-old is aiming to regain his crown in the Christie's Foxhunter Chase Challenge Cup.

Winner of the race in 2008, and fourth last year, the point-to-point star clearly loves the Cheltenham track and Coward is hopeful of another decent display.

Who rides Amicelli was still in doubt early this morning however.

Oliver Greenall, under Easterby's tutelage in North Yorkshire, is set to ride but may swap to leading fancy Trust Fund.

That's because his brother, Tom, suffered knee damage when Heathcliff fell in yesterday's Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Chase.

His teenage brother, Jake, could now get a Festival ride.

Their father Lord Daresbury, whose colours are carried by both Trust Fund and Amicelli, said last night: “We just don't know how bad Tom's injury is, but I doubt he'll be fit to ride.”

Trust Fund won last year's John Smith's Fox Hunters' Chase at Aintree with Tom in the saddle.

In an ironic twist, 12 months ago Oliver unseated from Heathcliff in the Pertemps Final, suffered an internal injury, and was forced to give up the ride on Amicelli, with Tom acting as substitute and finishing fourth.

Elsewhere, Norton trainer John Quinn runs Blue Nymph in the opening JCB Triumph Hurdle while the county is dually represented in the final race of the festival, the Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase Challenge Cup.

Calatagan, third in the contest two years ago and making his fifth appearance at the Festival, is saddled by Norton's Malcolm Jefferson and West Witton's Ferdy Murphy, a Festival winner earlier this week with Poker de Sivola, has Beggars Cap.