WITH less than two lengths covering the first four, and less than 20 covering all 11 finishers, this year’s Magners Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Al Boum Photo probably didn’t put up one of the all-time great performances in the race. But he turned up and delivered, and in the process he joined a rare elite group of horses to have won the great race more than once.

Al Boum Photo may have been helped along the way by the race being tactical, for he is by no means a one-dimensional stayer. In particular, the pace in the early stages was tepid with the leader in this race was 15 lengths or so behind the leader in the later Foxhunter, through the early stages.