Connections have revealed that the 2015 Gold Cup winner has not recovered sufficiently from the injuries that kept him out over Christmas.
2015 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Coneygree has been ruled out of this year’s Cheltenham Festival showpiece.
Coneygree, who returned from injury to finish second behind Cue Card in the Betfair Chase at Haydock in November, was then forced to missed the 32Red King George VI Stakes at Kempton after being found to be jarred up after an unsatisfactory piece of work on the gallops.
Trainer Mark Bradstock had reported in recent days that it was ‘touch and go’ whether their stable star would make the blue riband event in March but connections have now confirmed that he is not improving sufficiently given the timescales involved.
Sara Bradstock said on Monday: "We're not going to enter him in the Gold Cup. If everything changed and suddenly everything looked perfect, his x-rays and him, we could supplement him, but I'm not going to enter him because I'm 90 per cent certain he will not run.
"It's all too quick. It's only two months from now and he's still only walking and we're not going to be there in top form."
Coneygree was a general 14/1 third favourite for the race behind Thistlacrack who remains no bigger than 11/10 to follow in Coneygree’s hoofprints and win the Timico-sponsored event as a novice.
