I'm really looking forward to this year's Cheltenham Festival, although it will be a very different one for me with it being my first since retiring as a jockey.
I'll definitely miss not riding over the four days, but I have huge interest in the Festival through my involvement with Henry de Bromhead, who has plenty of runners, so I still feel there's a competitive side to the week for me as I'll obviously be shouting for all of his horses. I will miss not riding but I'll get a massive kick out of seeing any of Henry's horses win.
I started working with Henry in August after he offered me the role in the middle of the summer and it was the perfect time to take him up on it as I'd a few months to reflect on my career and decide what I wanted to do.
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I was quite keen to take him up on the offer because I didn't retire from race-riding due to losing my competitiveness, I retired because I had to. My body wasn't able for it anymore so when you're looking at races and trying to pick out races for horses, it gives you that competitive edge. It keeps me hugely involved in the game and it's great.
There's fantastic racing all week to look forward to at Cheltenham, but I'm really looking forward to seeing Constitution Hill tomorrow in the Champion Hurdle. He probably looks like the best I've seen since Istabraq, but he has to go and do it on the big stage.
He looks like he'll be very hard to beat, but I wouldn't rule out State Man, who I think can give him a fright. Whether or not he's good enough to beat him, I'm not so sure.
Obviously we're really looking forward to Honeysuckle in the Mares' Hurdle. She's in really good form. She's been a fantastic mare and she owes nobody anything, but it would be great if she could get her head in front one last time in her final swansong.
Teahupoo is deservedly towards the top of the market for the Stayers' Hurdle. He was a classy horse over two miles and I fancied him to run well in the Champion Hurdle last year when I was riding him.
The ground was fairly quick on the first day of the festival last year and providing it is not that quick, if it's on the slow side of good, he should be okay.
Stepping up to three miles really suits Teahupoo. He's all about stamina and he has that bit of class as well so hopefully he can be a horse to be reckoned within the staying hurdling division for a few years to come.
Henry has the last two winners of the Gold Cup in A Plus Tard and Minella Indo going for the race again. Both are in good form, but I think Minella Indo goes there with a better preparation than he's had in any other year. I know he's getting a bit older but his form around Cheltenham is brilliant and he's way over-priced at 20/1 from an each-way perspective. I can't see him being too far away again.
A Plus Tard comes here on the back of a disappointing run at Haydock, but he seems very good at home. Rachael Blackmore has schooled him plenty and she's very happy with him.
If he bounces back to that level of form that he showed last year in the Gold Cup he'll be very hard to beat.
It should be a cracking week.
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