Dan Skelton's fast start a statement of intent with the jumps season soon starting to come to life

I know what you're going to say. Yes, it's too early to talk about jump racing. After all, the Ebor meeting is still a week away, the St Leger festival is hovering on the horizon and British Champions Day is nothing more than a circled date on a calendar.

You can probably blame Champions: Full Gallop for my renewed focus on jumping. Watching the final three episodes of the ITV docuseries was a sharp reminder of how the closing days of the 2023-24 series were dominated by two fascinating title battles, with jockeys Sean Bowen and Harry Cobden taking their fight down to the wire, and Paul Nicholls and Dan Skelton's bid to repel the charge of Willie Mullins failing at the finish line at the season closer at Sandown.

It was on this note that the final episode concluded, with Mullins reflecting on his first British title and Nicholls consoling his former assistant trainer with the promise of "next year". His words may have been spoken in April but next year, in jump racing terms, has already begun and it seems Skelton has taken Nicholls' words to heart.