Tony McFadden highlights how the leading bumper performers this season stack up on Timeform ratings.
Best of British
There hasn't been a British-trained winner of the Weatherbys Champion Bumper since Ballyandy scored in 2016 and only four runners from the home team have been placed in that time. However, the clear standard-setter in the division this time around is Windbeneathmywings who was a wide-margin winner of a listed bumper at Ascot on his first start in Britain after joining David Pipe from Pat Flynn.
Windbeneathmywings had looked promising in winning two of his three starts in Ireland but raised his game markedly at Ascot where he stormed 14 lengths clear to earn a Timeform rating of 121 (replay below).
That is only 1 lb lower than the rating Jasmin de Vaux earned when winning the Champion Bumper last season, while Kilcruit and Facile Vega (both 124) are the only two horses in the last decade to arrive at that championship event at Cheltenham with a rating higher than 121.
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Top in Ireland
The listed bumper at Navan in December is often used as a stepping stone for one of Gordon Elliott's top prospects as he's won eight of the last ten renewals, including with Envoi Allen and Sir Gerhard who both went on to win the Champion Bumper.
This time around Elliott won it with Kalypso'chance who backed up the positive impression he had created when a wide-margin winner on his bumper debut at Punchestown the previous month.
Kalypso'chance still showed some inexperience at Navan but ultimately opened up well to pull four and a half lengths clear and earn a rating of 113p. That's higher than illustrious stablemates Death Duty (110+), Samcro (106p) and Envoi Allen (110p) were rated, if not quite at the level of Sir Gerhard (118p) or American Mike (121p).
Mullins' key performers
Jasmin de Vaux's victory at the Cheltenham Festival last season gave Willie Mullins his 100th winner at the meeting and it also extended his record as the leading trainer in the Champion Bumper, taking his tally to 13.
Mullins has been responsible for four of the last five winners of the Champion Bumper and there's still time for another leading contender to emerge, but he's been a bit quieter than most would have expected in the division this season.
Mullins has had 20 bumper winners so far, which is more than any other trainer, and they have come at a good strike rate of 29%. However, at this stage last season he had 42 bumper wins on the board (at a 47.7% strike rate), while in the campaign before that he had 30 winners (30.6%).
Two of Mullins' highest achievers so far this season have been the mares Ellen Kelly (108) and Future Prospect (105p). As both would receive a sex allowance against the geldings they can effectively have 7 lb added to their ratings.
Ellen Kelly was given a rather low-key summer campaign but she won easily at Sligo on her second start and made it back-to-back wide-margin wins at Killarney when last seen in July. That display looked to have more style than substance but the runner-up, Amboyna, went on to win a bumper and show fairly useful form.
Irish point winner Future Prospect looked a good prospect when winning by nine lengths at Fairyhouse on her debut under Rules last month and the Grade 2 bumper at the Dublin Racing Festival was subsequently nominated as a potential target by jockey Patrick Mullins.
Mullins' highest-rated gelding so far is Sortudo (107) who won easily on his bumper debut at Tramore and improved on that form when beaten by the mare Carrigmoornaspruce at Leopardstown over Christmas.
Others of note
Only Willie Mullins has had more bumper winners than Dan Skelton this season (16 winners at 32%) and in Fortune de Mer (108p) and Dalston Lad (106) Skelton has a couple who figure prominently on ratings.
Fortune de Mer was beaten by Block Rockin Beats on his bumper debut at Cheltenham in October but he clearly learned plenty from the experience as he turned the tables without needing to come off the bridle back at the same venue a few weeks later.
Dalston Lad has won both starts and the form of his nine-length win on his bumper debut at Ayr was given a boost when the runner-up won comfortably on his next outing.
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