L’Eau Du Sud ticks experience box for Skelton ahead of Arkle bid

L’Eau Du Sud and Majborough are unbeaten over fences and bid to prove a big field is not needed for a great race when they clash in the My Pension Expert Arkle Challenge Trophy at Cheltenham on Tuesday.

Only five are due to face the starter in the two-mile novice championship, but with perfect chasing records that already include Grade One wins and course experience, the first big British-Irish clash is in the offing.

Dan Skelton’s flashy grey L’Eau Du Sud has won all four of his fencing outings, including at Cheltenham in November. He was given a minor scare at odds of 1-5 at Warwick last time out, but still did enough to see off Rubaud, who has gone on to win a Grade Two since.

“At Warwick last time I didn’t use fitness as an excuse because I thought we had him fairly fit, but he will improve for it. It wasn’t a good excuse, he was fit enough to go and win,” said Skelton.

“What was impressive was the way he jumped and the distance he put between himself and a good horse between the third-last and the last, Rubaud was rated 150 over hurdles don’t forget. Rubaud jumped really well at Warwick, too, and stayed on.

“After jumping the last Harry (Skelton) just shook him up, a little bit of company wouldn’t have done any harm. The way he jumps, the most taking part of the race was between three out and the last.

“At Sandown the ground was against him, but he was very good in the Henry VIII despite not being at his best on that ground. He will arrive on the crest of a wave so there’s not much I don’t like.

“The fact he’s got the experience is a box ticked, it’s helpful to have it than not. He’s had almost as many runs over fences as Majborough has had in his life, but the one thing you can’t make up is talent and Majborough has an unbelievable amount. I think it will be a great race, but I have a lot of faith in my horse.

“Majborough to me looks like a big, galloping horse that will keep going. They’ve been positive on him over fences as they know he stays well, which is a great asset to have.”

L’Eau Du Sud – who numbers Sir Alex Ferguson among his ownership group – was a beaten favourite in last year’s County Hurdle on Gold Cup day, the same afternoon the Willie Mullins-trained Majborough won the Triumph Hurdle.

His chasing bow was eagerly awaited and he lived up to the billing in victory at Fairyhouse in December, before making light of a few sketchy jumps to win at the Dublin Racing Festival.

He is unlikely to get away with any mistakes here, but Mullins is relaxed on that front.

“I thought he got a bit close to some fences the last day, but he did everything right. I didn’t mind his jumping, I thought he was learning on the job,” he said.

“I don’t think he ever had a real scare, so I thought his jumping was fine. When he wanted one at the third-last, which is what you want to see at the end of the day, he flew it and then got over the last two, so I was happy with his jumping and I was happy that he learned a huge amount.”

With seven Arkle successes to his name, Nicky Henderson is one ahead of Mullins and could reasonably have been expected to be saddling the favourite in Sir Gino, before a setback intervened.

Instead he is represented by Jango Baie, a Grade One-winning juvenile hurdler but not in the class of Sir Gino, albeit he has won one of his two starts over fences and only beaten by Handstands in Sandown Grade One action.

“I think if we go back a year and the Turners was still around we’d definitely be going down that road and I do think he is a two-and-a-half-mile horse, but you are going to have to stay well and they are going to go a good gallop,” said the master of Seven Barrows.

“Majborough is very good, but we’ve got to try to test him because I think that might be our only way of catching him out.”

Touch Me Not was second to Majborough at Leopardstown, but his trainer Gordon Elliott is realistic about his chance.

He said: “Would he be good enough to win an Arkle? Probably not on his form, but if we get good ground and a quick gallop and something runs below par, he could definitely be placed because he’s got experience.

“He’s been to Sandown and I think he would have been a better second that day if he hadn’t made that bad mistake on ground that he didn’t really like either.”

The line-up is completed by Gavin Cromwell’s mare Only By Night, another with an unblemished chasing record.