AS ANY good mechanic will tell you, if it’s not broken, don’t try to fix it.
The wheels might not have come off Altior when he lost his incredible unbeaten record to Cyrname at Ascot last month but there was a wobble.
That blip in an otherwise faultless road came over 2m5f in the Christy 1965 Chase in what was meant to be a prep-race for another step up in trip for the King George on Boxing Day.
Stretching his stamina to three miles for Kempton’s Christmas cracker now seems to have been all but shelved with his trainer, Unibet ambassador Nicky Henderson, declaring he’s “unlikely” to make a Boxing Day rematch with Cyrname.
BREAKING NEWS FROM NICKY HENDERSON @SevenBarrows
️ "It is extremely unlikely that Altior will run in the King George"
After working this morning, Nico and Nicky weren't fully satisfied with Altior and he looks set to swerve the Boxing Day showpiece
Full video pic.twitter.com/18wlqzMXAH
— Unibet Racing (@UnibetRacing) December 14, 2019
It solves one problem but creates another.
His absence puts to bed the crackpot suggestion he could be a Gold Cup horse once Cheltenham comes around but Henderson now has the puzzler of what to do next.
To me, it’s obvious.
For the last four seasons Altior has been jump racing’s machine – the machinist’s machine.
Having stepped out of bumpers he won all five starts in novice hurdles culminating with a Supreme defeat of subsequent five-time Grade One winner Min and dual Champion Hurdler Buveur D’Air.
It’s hard to imagine he wouldn’t have beaten his stablemate to hurdling’s greatest prize had he not switched to fences.
An incredible 14 straight wins proved that was his true calling. His chase debut came over 2m2f but, since then, he hasn’t been asked to race beyond two mile and 167 yards.
He has galloped and jumped his way to becoming one of the truly great two-mile chasers. His two Champion Chase wins matched the likes of Fortria, Drinny’s Double, Skymas, Hilly Way, Pearlyman, Viking Flagship, Moscow Flyer, Master Minded and Sprinter Sacre.
Only three-times winner Badsworth Boy has lifted the great Cheltenham prize more often.
So why tinker with what works?
Of course, Altior has always looked like he might stay more than a smidgen further and his first chase defeat in a three-runner race when Cyrname was allowed the softest of leads did not conclusively prove he didn’t stay. It was probably more down to the ghastly ground that seems to have dominated the first half of this soggy jumps season.
That said, there’s no doubt stepping up in distance didn’t exactly help him and I can’t understand the clamour for him to persist with longer distances.
He has the chance to emulate Badsworth Boy’s Champion Chase feats of the early 1980s. He stands on the edge of greatness, of becoming an elite group of horses to have won a championship Cheltenham contest three times.
Quite why anyone wouldn’t want Altior to have a crack at that baffles me.
It seems these days we crave champions – then when we’ve got one we do everything we can to prove he’s not.
As soon as Frankel showed he was something extra special there were campaigns to run him in everything from the July Cup to the Arc de Triomphe. Ironically, it was mostly from those quick to point out when other, not-so-good, horses were running over the wrong trip.
They’ve now come out of the woodwork to reveal it’s Altior’s jumping that is letting him down.
The fencing that didn’t stop him winning his first 14 chases, including nine Grade Ones, has now been highlighted as some blunderbuss scattering mistakes across his races.
Apparently, his jumping isn’t quick enough for the top level despite proving time and time again it is.
Perhaps, it’s because he lacks the brilliance of his former stablemate Sprinter Sacre that some find him hard to love. His races are won with a relentless, powerful burst at the end of his races.
That style might promise enough stamina to last three miles but sport is surely about seeing top-class performers doing what they do best.
After all, Usain Bolt isn’t asked to take in the London Marathon, Lionel Messi doesn’t get the gloves thrown at him to go in goal and Altior should do what he does best – stick to two miles and win the Champion Chase.
