SO we have a new Gold Cup favourite after last weekend’s Betfair Chase, as Lostintranslation continued the promise of his seasonal debut in Carlisle when beating Haydock specialist Bristol De Mai.

Of course, what happens in November may not hold strong in March, and if you look at the last three Gold Cup winners – Sizing John, Native River and Al Boum Photo – none of them had even run at this early stage in their Gold Cup-winning season.