The Jane Mangan column: I'm an Apple's Jade fan and she can deliver at Cheltenham

She’s been sublime all season, improving with each start with her no-nonsense attitude and jaw-dropping cruising speed. I have the utmost respect for Laurina and Buveur d’Air, but I don’t think either horse has reached the level of Gordon Elliott’s mare this season and I’m quietly confident she can make it 11 Grade 1s by becoming only the fifth mare in history to win the Champion Hurdle.

Ruby Walsh is the Festival’s top jockey with a staggering 58 winners to his name and 2019 marks the 21st anniversary of his first ride at the meeting when he partnered his father’s Papillion to finish eighth in the Kim Muir.
