Ruby rides Celestial to perfection
His ride on Celestial Halo in the JCB Triumph Hurdle was one of the highlights of the festival — almost mirroring his earlier ride yesterday aboard Fiveforthree in the Ballymore Properties Novices’ Hurdle — and the sheer excitement created by him going head-to-head in the final three furlongs with arch-rival and best friend Tony McCoy was intoxicating.
McCoy was aboard the even money favourite Franchoek and when Walsh struck from home after the third last, he ranged up behind Celestial Halo like the grim reaper himself, but as the two went hammer and tongs at their charges, it was Walsh who prevailed in a breathtaking display of strength, belief and doggedness.
Unsurprisingly he gave the credit to the four-year-old Galileo gelding, lauding his toughness and saying that the track helped him.
“There’s not much jumping in the last part of the race because of the way the track is and that meant he could do it all himself and he’s kept on really well,” he said.
That both Walsh and McCoy were so committed to their finish was amazing in that both had earlier picked up whip bans for their respective rides on Fiveforthree and Refinement. But their commitment to winning is unparalleled in modern racing and for that the full-house crowd showed educated appreciation.
Both men were roundly cheered back into the winners’ enclosure, although it has to be said that McCoy, typically, did not look best pleased, especially as his even money shot was overturned by a 5/1 chance.
Celestial Halo’s trainer, Paul Nicholls —– who would later secure the leading trainer award at the festival —– said that the horse had shown improved form over his most recent outing at Doncaster because he had been ridden wrongly on that occasion.
“We rode him completely wrong that day,” he said, “It was a complete balls-up because Ruby wasn’t positive enough and I wasn’t positive enough with Ruby. Also, the horse hates good ground, but we learned a lot about how he should be ridden and that paid off.”
Other than the Walsh-McCoy face-off, the race was also notable for the performance of Sabrina Harty’s Won In The Dark which came home a fine third, despite the trainer’s fears about the ground.
“We’d been hoping for better ground as we knew today it would be too dead for him and I was really worried. But he ran a very good race, he’s very genuine and I think he may be more of a two-and-a-half mile horse as he stays,” she said.
The place was a second success at the Festival for the extended Harty family after Sabrina’s cousin Eddie won the Anglo Irish Bank Supreme Novices’ Hurdle with Captain Cee Bee on Tuesday.
A little later, Arthur Moore gave the Irish their second success of the day when Tiger Cry won the Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase, with a three-length victory over My Petra.
The 10-year-old, under a fine ride from Davy Russell, was in command from two out and stayed on well to get home by a comfortable margin.
“The horse has a great record around Cheltenham,” Moore related afterwards, adding: “he has been placed here twice before, including when he was second in this race two years ago. “It is great for the horse’s owner Chris Jones, who is 84 and also owned Klairon Davis. He is my wife’s godfather and has been a great supporter of the yard since we started.
“It had been the plan all year to come here with him, but I was a little worried that the ground had gone, but he is a very brave horse.”
Nicky Henderson was left to rue second place in a race named after his father, but he said that his charge needed faster ground to show her best.
