JP McManus is renowned in the world of sport. A former shareholder of Manchester United before the Glazers era, the Irish billionaire is perhaps best known in the National Hunt racing circuit—where he’s the most successful owner of all time, and his horses are often favoured in the horse betting markets.
He’s won it all in the jumps racing sphere, including three Grand Nationals—the most recent of which came back in April, as I Am Maximus romped home to justify favouritism at Aintree.
Prestbury Park has also been a happy hunting ground for McManus, as he has over 70 Cheltenham Festival winners to his name.
While two of his three Grand National triumphs have come in the last four years, with Rachael Blackmore historically steering home Minella Times in 2021, it’s been more than a decade since McManus’ sole Gold Cup success with Synchronised in 2012.
Galopin Des Champs is gunning for a hat-trick in the showpiece this season, but McManus could have a very big chance of dethroning the Audley Turley-owned star chaser—with several of his horses currently featuring prominently in the Gold Cup ante-post market.
That said, let’s take a look at some of McManus’ more favoured runners currently poised to give the Gold Cup a crack.
Fact To File
Mullins is potentially stuck between a rock and a hard place ahead of this year’s Gold Cup. On one hand, he’s prepping Galopin Des Champs for a historic three-peat in the feature race, but on the other, Fact To File is his own biggest danger.
The seven-year-old bypassed a season over hurdles and went straight over fences last season, excelling over the larger obstacles with three wins from four starts—two of which were at Grade 1 level, including in the Broadway Novices’ Chase at Cheltenham.
Fact To File has plenty of scope for improvement outside of novice company this season, and he could certainly be a thorn in the side of his stablemate in the Gold Cup come March.
Inothewayurthinkin
Inothewayurthinkin is currently fifth in the ante-post market for the Gold Cup after showing promise at the end of last season with two high-profile victories at the Cheltenham Festival and Aintree for the Grand National meeting.
Runner-up in two beginners chases at the start of last season, the six-year-old was third behind Gaelic Warrior and Il Etait Temps in a Grade 1 at Limerick before finishing a disappointing ninth in the Grade 3 Leopardstown Handicap Chase.
He bounced back immediately with a convincing victory in the Kim Muir Challenge Cup Amateur Jockeys’ Handicap Chase at the Festival and produced a career-best for trainer Gavin Cromwell when winning the top-level Mildmay Novices’ Chase at Aintree.
I Am Maximus
The Grand National is an infamously difficult race to predict, or at least it tends to be. It certainly wasn’t this year, as I Am Maximus was the most glaringly obvious winner in recent memory—ultimately prevailing as the favourite by over seven lengths from Delta Work.
A 14-length victory over Vanillier in the Group 3 Bobbyjo Chase at Fairyhouse set him up nicely for the Grand National, and there’s no doubt that he has the staying power for this gruelling test around Cheltenham.
Mullins is already inundated with potential Gold Cup runners, but he will seriously consider running I Am Maximus in the contest. He could have what it takes to become just the third horse to win the Gold Cup and the Grand National.
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Spillanes Tower, Corbetts Cross, Jonbon, Impervious are all currently 33/1 or shorter, while Iroko and Capodanno are 66/1. Meetingofthewaters is a 100/1 outsider.
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