How Kabral Du Mathan became one in 794 at Perth
By Andy Stephens
Last Updated: Tue 20 Oct 2026
This is a special time of the year for fans of Jump racing. The biggest stars of the sport are gradually reemerging and ordinary midweek cards can be transformed by novice chasers and hurdlers putting down markers for the months ahead.
And as early statements of intent go, how about the chasing debut of Kabral Du Mathan at Perth last week? It might just be that, by mid-October, Dan Skelton has already given us a good look at the 2027 Arkle winner in full flow.
Never mind that he was up against three inferior rivals (soon reduced to two) rated between 24lb and 30lb inferior to him over hurdles. This was all about what a horse who flirted with winning last season’s Stayers’ Hurdle would make of negotiating a dozen fences.
What followed was an exhibition, with the six-year-old going about his work with zest from the front and not touching a twig, including the final fence sponsored by Edinburgh Gin. It was Kabral Du Mathan who provided the tonic.
The data confirms we were treated to something special.
RaceiQ has 794 Perth chase performances over all distances in its database. The performances of beginners through to Grade One winners such as The Real Whacker and seasoned course specialists like Statuario (seven Perth wins and counting) all sit under one roof.
Outstanding among them all, in terms of jumping, has been Kabral Du Mathan. He got a Jump Index score of 8.9 out of 10, making him something of a standout at the Scottish course. In 12 impressive leaps, he leapfrogged the other 793.
Watch: how Kabral Du Mathan shone at Perth
RaceiQ provides its overall mark via GPS tracking that captures 18 data points per second. There’s no scope for bias or an extra point here or there for artistic impression. All the number-crunching machine is interested in is speed, speed and more speed.
The formulae considers all aspects of a horse’s ability to get from A to B: entry speed; exit speed; speed lost; speed recovery and time spent in the jumping envelope (30 metres before and after a fence). Click here for full explanations. Naturally, ground conditions are taken into account.
In addition to an overall score, RaceiQ also awards individual marks for every fence negotiated, revealing the full benefit of fluent leaps and the cost of any errors with its lengths gained/lost jumping metric.
Kabral Du Mathan set the pattern for his opening round of jumping in public when, ears pricked, he met the first on a perfect stride for Harry Skelton at more than 30mph and got an instant 8 out of 10.
He went on to get five scores of 8.5 or more and did not score anything lower than a 6.9, which he got when losing 3.68mph at the water jump (fifth fence) in front of the grandstands. That was the most he lost at any obstacle, which is quite something.
Overall, his entry speeds averaged 30.94mph and his exit speeds 30.69mph, while his speed lost averaged just 2.79sec and his average recovery time was 0.59sec. In. Out. No hesitations. No blemishes, even when the loose horse tried to distract him around halfway.
To add some context, the runner-up, Hold The Serve, a 130-rated hurdler representing Olly Murphy and Sean Bowen, jumped adequately overall and got an Index score of 6.8. He entered/exited much slower; lost an average of 4.08mph at each fence (31% inferior) and his average recovery time was 1.16sec (49% inferior).
Kabral Du Mathan unleashed his fastest jumps at the final two fences when seemingly still in first gear. He attacked fence 11 at 33.66mph and exited at 32.68mph, while at the last obstacle he was travelling at 32.44mph and departed going at 31.74mph. He got scores of 9.2 and 8.6 for those late flourishes.
His confidence and brio increased with every leap, emphasised by the fact he got an aggregate score of 31.6 for the first four fences and 34.3 when jumping them again on the second circuit. An 8.54% improvement, when the first attempts were themselves tasty enough.
Kabral Du Mathan ambled over the line 19 lengths clear of Hold The Serve, having gained that much on him with his leaping.
Dan Skelton said afterwards how “light” Kabral Du Mathan is on his feet and suggested Cheltenham’s November Meeting would be next on his agenda before the Henry VIII Novices Chase at Sandown and/or Kempton over Christmas. Daryl Jacob was providing expert summary in the Racing TV studios and said his jumping had reminded him of Master Minded, the two-time Champion Chase winner.
His hurdle rating of 156 is superior to any of the past five Arkle winners, so that's another tick in his box.
It does seem early in the campaign to have seen the winner of that race strutting his stuff, although there have been recent(ish) winners who run even earlier. Sizing Europe, the 2010 winner, made his chasing bow in May, while Put The Kettle On started out in July.
The bookmakers took note, cutting him to 5-1 for the Arkle, with only Old Park Star sitting above him in the ante-post betting.
Kabral Du Mathan’s slick hurdling technique and ability to travel strongly augured well for his switch to chasing (his Jump Index score over hurdles in 7.7) and he was taking a leaf out of the books of the past three Arkle winners - Gaelic Warrior, Jango Baie and Kargese – as they got scores of 8.6, 8.8 and 8.5 on their respective chasing debuts.
Kargese’s first four efforts over fences have all been flawless. Since that initial 8.5, she has reeled off scores of 9.3, 9.1 and 9.1. Her proficiency was crucial in the Arkle, where she gained ground in the air at 12 of the 13 fences, jumping best of the whole field at six of them. Her career Jump Index of 8.9 makes her highest-rated among the chasing ranks.
Kabral Du Mathan has made a good start in challenging her position at the top, but he will not get a career mark until he has had another two completed runs, with RaceiQ taking a similar approach to handicappers in this respect.
He he will face stiffer jumping tests than at Perth, of course, and it’s worth noting his most inefficient display of jumping last season came in the Stayers’ Hurdle, when he surrendered ground at eight of the 12 flights and got a score of 7.
However, his previous fluent win in the Relkeel Hurdle shows he can handle the demands of Cheltenham. He gained ground at all bar one of the nine flights that day and was especially fluent in the heat of battle over the final four, getting scores of 8.2, 8.2, 8.1 and 9.6. His overall score was 8.1.
Despite his average round of jumping in the Stayers’, Kabral Du Mathan still looked all over the winner between the final two flights only to be betrayed by a lack of stamina on the final climb to the line. His final three furlongs were 13.04sec (quickest); 14.64 sec (second quickest) and then 17.05 sec (only sixth quickest). He ended up finishing fourth.
With the Grade One option for novice chasers over two-and-a-half miles at the Festival having gone, there is little option for connections to head down the Arkle path.
A quick flick back through recent winners suggests his extra reserves of stamina will be no bad thing.
Travelling back to 2010, all the winners (bar Kargese) had proven themselves over further than 2m beforehand or did so subsequently. Gaelic Warrior, the 2024 winner, was a brilliant winner of the Gold Cup last season with Jango Baie, the 2025 Arkle winner, chasing him home.
Other leading Arkle contenders
The only other trio quoted at shorter than 20-1 for the Arkle are Old Park Star, Sober Glory and Narciso Has.
Old Park Star (3-1) was unbeaten in four starts as a novice hurdler, capping his campaign with a game success in the Supreme. It was a strong-run racewith the winning time being 2.88sec quicker than the Champion Hurdle later in the afternoon.
His Jump Index over hurdles is a very healthy 8.1 and, every inch a steeplechaser in appearance, he looks sure to be a formidable player in the division. Nicky Henderson has history in switching his Supreme winners to fences and Old Park Star, whose rating over hurdles is 155, has a similar profile to Altior and Shishkin.
Sober Glory (8-1) chased home Old Park Star in the Supreme and, but for a rare error at the final flight, would have got even more to think about. He is an excellent jumper, with his Index score in this sphere being 8.6.
He subsequently disappointed at Aintree but is clearly an exciting prospect for the months ahead. He won a point-to-point in Ireland in May 2024, plus was unbeaten in three bumpers before starting out over hurdles.
And then there is Narciso Has (also 8-1), a leading juvenile hurdler last season but absent since winning a Grade One contest at Leopardstown in February.
Willie Mullins observed after that success that “he's mature for a four-year-old and he'll make into a nice chaser. He's a fine, big specimen of a horse”.
His hurdling technique has been slick – his Jump Index score is 8.1 – and his Leopardstown form has been franked, plus his sire, Doctor Dino, has been responsible for such as State Man, Sharjah and Dinoblue, all trained by Mullins.
On the downside, the last five-year-old to win an Arkle was 20 years ago, with their one-time dominance ended when losing a weight allowance.
In the meantime, Kabral Du Mathan has got his eye in. He’s the early clubhouse leader.
ARKLE WINNERS 2010 to 2026
2026: KARGESE
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 152. Hurdle runs: 11. Chasing debut: November 25. Runs over fences before Arkle: 3.
2025: JANGO BAIE
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 146 Hurdle runs: 5. Chasing debut: December 13 (plus a point). Runs over fences before Arkle: 2.
2024: GAELIC WARRIOR
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 153. Hurdle runs: 9. Chasing debut: November 25. Runs over fences before Arkle: 3.
2023: EL FABIOLO
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 152. Hurdle runs: 8. Chasing debut: December 22. Runs over fences before Arkle: 2.
2022: EDWARDSTONE
Age sent chasing: 6* Top hurdle rating: 150. Hurdle runs: 9. Chasing debut: December 29**. . Runs over fences before Arkle: 6.
*Ran once over fences 2020/21 having had five runs over hurdles but unseated his rider and reverted to hurdling. Resumed over fences on November 5 in the 2021/22 campaign.
2021: SHISHKIN, above
Age sent chasing: 6 Top hurdle rating: 163. Hurdle runs: 4. Chasing debut: November 23. . Runs over fences before Arkle: 3.
2020: PUT THE KETTLE ON
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 123. Hurdle runs: 7. Chasing debut: July 21. Runs over fences before Arkle: 4.
2019: DUC DES GENIEVRES
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 146. Hurdle runs: 8. Chasing debut: December 18. Runs over fences before Arkle: 3
2018: FOOTPAD
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 157. Hurdle runs: 15. Chasing debut: November 12. Runs over fences before Arkle: 3.
2017: ALTIOR
Age sent chasing: 6 Top hurdle rating: 160. Hurdle runs: 5. Chasing debut: November 21. Runs over fences before Arkle: 4.
2016: DOUVAN, above
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 161. Hurdle runs: 6. Chasing debut: November 22. Runs over fences before Arkle: 3.
2015: UN DE SCEAUX
Age sent chasing: 6 Top hurdle rating: 161. Hurdle runs: 7. Chasing debut: November 27. Runs over fences before Arkle: 3.
2014: WESTERN WARHORSE
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 129. Hurdle runs: 4. Chasing debut: January 8. Runs over fences before Arkle: 1
2013: SIMONSIG
Age sent chasing: 6 Top hurdle rating: 158. Hurdle runs: 7. Chasing debut: December 21 Runs over fences before Arkle: 2.
2012: SPRINTER SACRE
Age sent chasing: 5 Top hurdle rating: 149. Hurdle runs: 4. Chasing debut: December 9. Runs over fences before Arkle: 3.
2011: CAPTAIN CHRIS
Age sent chasing: 6 Top hurdle rating: 146. Hurdle runs: 4. Chasing debut: November 14. Runs over fences before Arkle: 4.
2010: SIZING EUROPE
Age sent chasing: 7 Top hurdle rating: 160. Hurdle runs: 11. Chasing debut: May 19. Runs over fences before Arkle: 4
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