Sigh of relief for bookies after commanding performance

IT wasn’t Ruby or Tony, Kauto Star or Denman — but it was an Irish jockey from Co Galway who crossed the finish line to take the Gold Cup and win the most anticipated race of the Cheltenham festival.

Breaking the punters’ hearts and saving the bookies an estimated €33 million, Paddy Brennan kept the flag flying by riding Imperial Commander home for a fantastic win over Denman.

David Williams of Ladbrokes said last night the result was beyond the bookies’ wildest dreams. “The cheers for Imperial Commander came from the bookies and we roared him up the Cheltenham hill,” he said.

“The gamble on Kauto Star was colossal. Had he won we’d have handed back all the cash we made earlier in the week. Getting the big two beaten was nothing short of superb.”

A staggering £150m (€166m) a day was wagered industry-wide, on each of the four days of the festival, with another £1m (€1.10m) per race staked on-course in cash — leading to a £600m (€665m) turnover on the four-day festival.

But whatever about the bookies, there was no fairytale ending for either of Paul Nicholls’s stable mates.

There was an early warning sign everything was not going to plan for two-time winner Kauto Star when he demolished the eighth fence and did well to stay on his feet, with Ruby Walsh performing miracles in the saddle.

Denman had been travelling sweetly for Tony McCoy, putting in some prodigious leaps, and along with Carruthers helped force the pace.With a mile to run, Walsh was sending out a few distress signals on the odds-on favourite and his race came to an abrupt end with a crashing fall at the fourth-last. He returned unscathed.

Paddy Brennan, who claims to be a lifelong fan of Tony McCoy, gushed that it was “by far the best day” of his life. “I’m speechless. It was a dream the whole way,” he said.

Indeed, though the race was always billed as a two-horse race, as the winner passed the post Brennan made a point of turning to the stands and putting his finger to his lips. Though it was a bad day for Ruby, he did end up the leading jockey at the meeting for the fifth time.

Out of luck in the Gold Cup and the Champion Chase with Master Minded, three other winners had already enabled him to overtake Pat Taaffe as the most successful festival rider in history. It was also a good week for Walsh’s younger sister Katie, following handsomely in the family tradition.

Ms Walsh landed her second success of the Cheltenham Festival when steering home Thousand Stars to victory in the Vincent O’Brien county hurdle.