Betting Irish-trained horses in Festival handicaps has been a profitable strategy for a while now, not that you’d know it listening to some Irish connections. Every Cheltenham has its milestones en route from the initial release of the championship race entries to the announcement of non-runner, no-bet concessions to the handicap weights being released, the last-named invariably followed by moans of ‘too much weight’ from this side of the Irish Sea.

Now the Irish lamenting about handicap weights for Cheltenham has never quite reached the peak of Christy Roche’s infamous ‘why go where you’re not welcome’ comment about No Where To Hyde’s inflated mark in the 2006 then-Totesport Gold Trophy or Michael O’Leary’s ‘utter drivel’ rant when describing the 2017 Grand National weights, but this sort of thing smacks of the trainer/owner protesting too much. Instead of complaining about the marks, maybe they should be puffing their chests out like that pumped-up bodybuilder in the gym and roaring: “Bring more weights!”