Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup |
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| Grade 1, Cheltenham 15:30 £625,000 guaranteed, 5yo plus, 3m 2f 70y, Class 1  |
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1 Galopin Des Champs 10/11F
2 Gerri Colombe 13/2
3 Corach Rambler 14/1
11 ran NR: Hewick
Distances: 3½l, 9½l, 2¼l Time: 7m 5.14s (slow by 19.14s)
GALOPIN DES CHAMPS DEFENDS HIS CROWN! 🏆
— CheltenhamRacecourse (@CheltenhamRaces) March 15, 2024
Back to back @Boodles Gold Cup wins 💯 pic.twitter.com/lVMiGhiVxm
The Willie Mullins-trained Galopin Des Champs, the brilliant defending champion, etched his name among the Cheltenham Festival greats by securing victory again.
This time, jockey Paul Townend rode him with precision, positioning him closer to the pace. As the race unfolded, the last two Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase winners, The Real Whacker and L’Homme Presse, dictated the tempo. Townend gradually moved into contention, and by the fourth-last hurdle, they were among the front-runners.
Despite a brief scare from the loose horse Fastorslow, Townend maintained control. As they approached the final two hurdles, Galopin Des Champs displayed the leap of a true champion. He surged up the final climb, crossing the finish line three and a half lengths ahead of Gordon Elliott’s runner-up, Gerri Colombe.
Corach Rambler, a hero of the Grand National, valiantly secured third place. However, the spotlight belonged to Galopin Des Champs, who celebrated his third Cheltenham Festival victory. This triumph marked the fourth Gold Cup win for the formidable duo of Mullins and Townend, following Al Boum Photo’s consecutive victories in 2019 and 2020. A fitting conclusion to a stellar week for the Closutton stable and its master.
Mullins said: “I think he just put himself in the superstar category – to do what he did and the way he did it.
“The loose horse was there and Paul was just so positive on him. Hopefully we can come back next year to win a third one – he has the ability to do it and we just have to stay sound, I think.
“He’s doing everything right and is achieving more than I thought he could. It was great to win a Gold Cup last year and we were crossing our fingers this year that if we got him there safe and sound, he’d have every chance of winning and he’s just done that. But you can only dream about these kinds of things.”
Cheltenham Gold Cup Chase
£625,000 guaranteed, 5yo plus, 3m 2f 70y, Class 1
11 ran
Going: Soft, Heavy in places
POS. DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 Galopin Des Champs 8 11-10 W P Mullins Paul Townend 10/11F
2 3½ Gerri Colombe 8 11-10 Gordon Elliott Jack Kennedy 13/2
3 9½ Corach Rambler 10 11-10 Lucinda Russell Derek Fox 14/1
4 2¼ L'Homme Presse 9 11-10 Venetia Williams Charlie Deutsch 16/1
5 3½ Bravemansgame 9 11-10 Paul Nicholls Harry Cobden 14/1
6 1¾ Jungle Boogie 10 11-10 Henry De Bromhead Rachael Blackmore 16/1
PU
Monkfish 10 11-10 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins 18/1
PU
Gentlemansgame 8 11-10 M F Morris Darragh O'Keeffe 25/1
PU
Nassalam 7 11-10 Gary Moore Niall Houlihan 33/1
PU
The Real Whacker 8 11-10 Patrick Neville Sam Twiston-Davies 40/1
UR
Fastorslow 8 11-10 Martin Brassil J J Slevin 8/1
NR 7 Hewick 9 11-10 John Joseph Hanlon NON RUNNER
