Advance talk was of four champions winning again but more of the same is not Cheltenham’s style. Instead, the Festival played fast and loose with our expectations through four days of high-octane drama that left any number of debates hanging in the empty air of the morning after.
Will Kauto Star run again after pulling up in Synchronised’s Gold Cup? Did Hurricane Fly simply have an off day to lose his champion hurdler crown? Is Sprinter Sacre too good to be true? And where will Hunt Ball’s astonishing rise end?
With record crowds and huge betting spend indicating a defiant public infatuation sure to reignite calls for a weekend extension, it might be thought the annual debrief by the course management will be conducted in