Joe Tizzard has warned not to rule out The Big Breakaway as he bids for Grade One glory against Monkfish at the 2021 Cheltenham Festival.
Tizzard, son and assistant to his father Colin, was speaking at a Cheltenham Festival press conference hosted by The Jockey Club on Monday and revealed the team's numbers will be down on previous Festival, partly due to owners not being able to attend.
Native River, Lostintranslation and Reserve Tank are set to represent the stable this month, with special mention too for well-regarded novice chaser The Big Breakaway, who is set to run in the Grade One Brown Advisory Novices' Chase, having been second in the Kauto Star Novices' Chase at Kempton Park when last seen.
Tizzard said: "Our team will be smaller than other years. Some of that was due to the novices, some of the novice hurdlers just haven’t got there yet.
"But also, like Paul Nicholls has said, every year we’ve had owners looking to be entertained at Cheltenham and to enjoy a day out so we’ll end up just with horses that have a genuine chance.
"A lot of our owners normally go to Cheltenham and we always have a party and a picnic around the car each day and our owners like to have a runner. But it’s not the case this year so this year we’ll only run horses we think have a genuine chance.
"The novice hurdlers and younger horses have been affected with a slight bug that went through the yard and we’ve had to give the more time. The rest of them, the novice chasers and the older horses have been absolutely fine.
"You have to ride that storm and let the horses come back to health. Most of the horses have turned the corner and we’ve still got plenty of horses to run until the end of the season.
"Dad is up the gallop every morning still, without fail, and is as keen as ever. It’s not been an easy 12 months for him but he’s in good form again."
Colin Tizzard Stable Tour - Cheltenham Festival 2021
Native River
- WellChild Cheltenham Gold Cup
They say the best horses always get you out of a pickle and he was a winner we were waiting for in the Cotswold Chase. He’s been absolutely bombproof for the past two years to be fair to him. He was 2-2 then tweaked a tendon last year.
He ran a good race at Aintree and then Sandown really ticked a lot of boxes for him. He’s the highest rated staying chaser in England I think and he deserves that.
For the two or three days after (Sandown) we were felling his legs but he’s been absolutely fine, he’s bounced out of it and he’s a straightforward horse to train.
He loves his routine and looks particularly well.
That hand (lightly-raced) has been forced on us slightly. He jarred himself up in the National Hunt Chase as a novice before he went on to win the Gold Cup and that’s not how we’d have wanted it to be ideally. But there are horses that have taken him on that haven’t been able to bounce back and that’s testament to Native River, he’s such a tough horse.
Somebody said to me his worst placing over fences was his fourth in the Gold Cup and that’s how good he is.
I think he’d need a bit of soft ground and with that he can maintain that gallop. He’s a bit more ground dependent at this stage but he’s still capable in the right conditions.
Every Gold Cup is a strong Gold Cup and it’s possibly as open as it has been in the past. But a few of them have questions to answer.
The interesting thing about him is that he’s not slow, he’s just a warrior and can maintain that gallop for four miles. If he gets his ground it just helps as it slows the rest of them down. He’s been there and done it, he doesn’t owe us anything.
Lostintranslation
- WellChild Cheltenham Gold Cup
It hasn’t been straightforward to be honest, since the Betfair (Chase) last year. He disappointed in the King George then bounced back in the Gold Cup.
It just hasn’t happened this year for some reason. I think in the Denman it was purely down to fitness as he blew so hard afterwards.
I think the run has sharpened him up a treat and he’s having a hard couple of weeks at home now to make sure he’s fully fit. He wouldn’t mind the ground drying out and he goes well in the spring.
I think he’s going in the right direction. He proved he liked it last year and he proved it the year before when second in what is now the Marsh Novices' Chase.
He’s not a horse with particularly high mileage and in truth it might be that the Gold Cup comes fractionally too soon, but there’s Aintree and Punchestown afterwards too.
Reserve Tank
- Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle
I was very pleased with yesterday’s run (fifth in National Spirit Hurdle). He jarred himself up a little bit last year but he’s a horse that comes very good in the spring.
We haven’t been able to get away for a gallop and we used Fontwell as a stepping stone. I thought he was staying on strongly and the next few days are crucial to see how he comes out of it.
I don’t think we’d have anything to lose in a Stayers’ Hurdle and there’s Aintree too.
He’s got some high-class form.
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The Big Breakaway
- Brown Advisory Novices' Chase
We think he’s a very talented horse. He finished fourth despite not travelling particularly well at Cheltenham last year.
He travelled much better when he won there first time out this season and we wanted to get experience into him going back to the Festival. And looking to next year too he’ll be into the big league.
The Exeter defeat was, initially, very frustrating as we went with an odds-on horse, but we dissected it a bit and we’ve moved on from it.
We had to go back to basics in the Kauto Star Novices' Chase and Dan’s horse (Skelton, Shan Blue) got a march on him. Hopefully it was the making of the horse and hopefully we can ride him in third or fourth at Cheltenham rather than make it.
I don’t think he’s done an awful lot wrong. He’s won around Cheltenham, he’s been second in a Grade One and he’s maturing all the time. I’m sure him time will come.
We think an awful lot of him and I’d be wary of writing him off too soon.
It went down to the wire whether to run in the Reynoldstown but we felt we’d keep him for Cheltenham, hopefully Kempton taught him more than he’s learnt from the rest of his career. It tucked him up a bit and made him a bit light so we didn’t want to run again close to the Festival.
Fiddlerontheroof
- Brown Advisory Novices' Chase
He was a Grade One two mile novice hurdle winner (last season) when he probably outstayed everything on the day.
He’s been second a lot in good company this season and stepping him up to three miles last time was fine, we think the further he goes the better he’ll be.
He’s got some high-class form. Monkfish has looked amazingly impressive but it’s Cheltenham and it’s not going to be easy.
I don’t think the ground is an issue for him whatever it might be, which is the case with The Big Breakaway too.
Eldorado Allen
- Grand Annual Handicap Chase
He’s got four entries. He’s a Grade two winner around Cheltenham this year but I think we may end up going handicapping with him.
Shishkin beat him quite well last time at Doncaster and we’re leaning towards the Grand Annual. A fast-run two miles around there should play to his strengths.
Sizing At Midnight
- Kim Muir Handicap Chase
I think he’ll run in the Kim Muir. He disappointed on horrible ground at Wincanton but he’s a good ground horse. Hopefully it was just fitness last time on the ground.
Striking A Pose
- Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle
He won very well at Exeter and he’s a three mile point to point winner. He might got for the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle or the EBF Final the week before.
It’s an ongoing conversation between us and the owners and we’ve kept the option open. We won the Albert Bartlett with Kilbricken Storm and this horse has been just as impressive.
Copperhead
- Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle
He’s got the Pertemps option but it will probably come too quickly for him I suspect so he might not go and in general we’ll have a select team this year.