|
Nothing else matters
By Tony Tighe
 When
it comes to jump racing Cheltenham is the be-all and end-all.
F orget about the other 11 months, three weeks and three days. Success
or failure for jockeys, trainers, owners and punters is measured over
the course of four spring days in Gloucestershire at the Cheltenham Festival.
The best of the best gather at Prestbury Park for the annual duel between
the British and Irish fleets, engaging in what has become an unmissable
week.
The thousands of visitors who cross the Irish Sea every year have taken
on a life of their own during the four-day bonanza and local businesses
as well as the racing industry have come to realise this.
“It’s probably not going too far to say that without the Irish
(runners and racegoers) there would be no festival,” suggests racing
journalist Chris Cook.
“I was lucky enough to be there for the first day of the 2002 festival
which felt particularly special because the previous year’s festival
had been abandoned because of foot and mouth.
“The Irish seemed to be there in unprecedented numbers and the noise
the crowd made during the finish of the first race (Irish trained Like-A-Butterfly
won by a neck) was astonishing.”
The Irish are key to the creation of an uninhibited, celebratory mood
over the course of the festival.
Such an atmosphere is not simply due to the horses.
A vast number of the visitors will often have the week off entirely so
the vibrant atmosphere can transcend the days and spill over well into
the night.
The festival usually falls on St. Patrick’s week, as if further
encouragement were needed. Poker and Guinness, to be specific, are the
weapons of choice.
Local B&Bs become the venues for some monstrous card schools. Most
have had the gambler in them stoked up during the day’s festivities
so the nighttime pursuits become inevitable.
Back on track, men like Tony McCoy and J P McManus are enjoying immense
success at the festival through their association with some legendary
horses. None more legendary in recent times than the McManus-owned Istabraq.
Trained by the flat specialist Aidan O’Brien Istabraq’s success
will always hold an added significance because of what it sparked.
The Champion Hurdle is a unique test for the best two-mile hurdlers around.
The eight obstacles must be negotiated at a frenetic pace against the
toughest field around.
Istabraq won the race on three consecutive occasions between 1998 and
2000. Over the last nine years Ireland has trained the winner of the race
seven times. Stars such as Hardy Eustace and Sublimity having continued
on a trail blazed by Istabraq.
One of Istabraq’s main rivals for the affection of the Irish public
in modern times is the double Champion Chase winner Moscow Flyer.
An Arkle Challenge Trophy in 2002 was followed by two Champion Chase crowns
in 2003 and 2005.
The Champion Chase is the supreme examination of jumping, negotiating
the huge fences at often breakneck speed over two miles. Moscow Flyer’s
career record is actually quite mixed registering 27 wins from 45 starts.
The real achievement was in trainer Jessica Harrington’s ability
to prime the horse for Cheltenham so consistently. The Irish public loved
him for it and they saved what is probably their loudest reception for
him after his 2005 comeback in the Queen Mother Champion Chase.
It is possible to trace the Irish love affair with Cheltenham back a long
way, right back to the famous exploits of the three-time Gold Cup winner
Arkle.
Dominating the jumps racing scene in the mid-1960s Arkle claimed his Gold
Cups between 1964 and 1966.
He was the first horse to exert himself on the most important prize of
the entire festival with such style even in going off at 1/10 for his
final victory in the race in 1966.
Many observers still feel that he is the greatest jumps horse ever to
set foot on a course and with such a formidable record it is difficult
to disagree. The Arkle Challenge Trophy, the second race on the first
day of the festival, stands as a legacy to his talents.
Arkle also represents a fascinating link between Irish success in the
past and the modern day through his regular jockey Pat Taaffe. Tom Taaffe,
son of Pat, was the trainer of one of the most impressive Gold Cup winners
of recent times, Kicking King.
Such a story highlights how a great deal of the Irish success enjoyed
at the festival sees both horses and their connections inextricably linked.
It is impossible to think about Kicking King or indeed Moscow Flyer without
thinking about Barry Geraghty, the regular jockey for both.
It is also difficult to refer to horses such as Istabraq without touching
on legendary owner J P McManus.
It is no coincidence that such links emerge so frequently when measuring
Irish success at the mid-March showpiece.
McManus himself is a notorious gambler, his presence in the betting ring
often sparking frenzied punts on the horse bearing his colours —
the famous green-and-gold of the South Liberties GAA Club in Limerick.
Although when it comes to the gambling side of things there is often the
potential for patriotism to be unnecessarily associated with triumph over
the four days. Chris Cook thinks that the Irish can get “patronised
a lot during Cheltenham week. Many pundits talk as though every Irish
person present must have been backed by every Irish person present. Clearly,
that would be nonsense”.
Then there is the painful talk about the craic.
“I bet to Irish ears, an Englishman talking about the craic sounds
the same as a school teacher talking about the Arctic Monkeys does to
teenagers — it’s an embarrassing attempt to ingratiate oneself,”
Cook suggests.
Cringesome and all as the talk of craic is, a winner or two is more
than enough to take away the pain. Have a bad week here and it’s
51 of the same until the chance for redemption comes around again.
This week’s horses to watch…
Thursday: 2.10pm Lingfield
Tip: Silver Hotspur
Possibly raced too keenly over this distance at Southwell last time out.
A willing performer, he may be worth another chance.
Thursday: 4.30pm Taunton
Tip: Lupanar
Second last time out to the potentially useful Pasco. Gary Moore will
feel that his charge can rise to the challenge of a slight step-up in
trip and land this average contest.
Friday: 3.15pm Newbury
Tip: Boomshakalaka
Nicky Henderson and Mick Fitzgerald teamed up to win this race three years
ago. They will be hopeful that this eight-year-old can bounce back to
winning ways after disappointing last time out at Cheltenham.
Friday: 4pm Wolverhampton
Tip: Mineral Rights
A former winner over course and distance, Philip Makin’s ride looks
weighted to be competitive in this distinctly mediocre contest.
Friday: 7.20pm Kempton
Tip: Royal Fantasy
A touch unlucky last time out here, the step-up in trip may improve the
fortunes of Champion Jockey Jamie Spencer’s mount.
Friday: 7.50pm Kempton
Tip: Too Risky
Missed the break completely last time out. Given the standard of trainer/jockey
expect a big effort having learned from the experience. |
