Category: Cheltenham Festival

The short answer is yes, he did. The Champion Bumper, or Weatherbys Champion Bumper, as it has been known, for sponsorship purposes, since 1997, is the most prestigious race of its kind in the British National Hunt calendar. Run over 2 miles and 87 yards on the Old Course at Cheltenham, the Champion Bumper is officially a ‘National Hunt Flat Race’ and, as such, is contested from time to time by jockeys better known in the sphere of Flat racing.

One such jockey is Tipperary-born Jamie Spencer, who has won the Flat Jockeys’ Championship on both sides of the Irish Sea and ridden well over 2,000 winners. However, in 2002, Spencer was recruited by Irish trainer Edward O’Grady to ride his unbeaten five-year-old Pizarro in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper.

Sent off at 14/1, Pizarro responded well to Spencer’s patient riding style, making headway from the rear of the field to lead inside the final furlong. However, he immediately hung sharply right inside the final furlong and was ultimately all out to hold the favourite, Rhinestone Cowboy, by a neck. Pizarro made three further appearances at the Cheltenham Festival, finishing promoted second in the Royal & Sun Alliance Novices’ Hurdle in 2003, being brought down in the Royal & Sun Alliance Chase in 2004 and falling in the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 2005.

The short answer is not particularly. In its current configuration, the New Course was first used in 1967 – the year Woodland Venture, trained by Fred Rimell and ridden by Terry Biddlecombe, won the Cheltenham Gold Cup – so is really only ‘new’ in relation to the original Old Course.

Every March, when the Cheltenham Festival rolls around, plenty of column inches are devoted to the differences between the Old Course and the New Course at Prestbury Park. The New Course, which is in use on the final two days of the Festival, is a left-handed, undulating oval which, like the Old Course, is galloping and testing in character.

The New Course runs parallel to the Old Course for much of the way but, at its highest point, furthest from the grandstands, takes a wider loop back towards the winning post. Thus, runners enter the home straight slightly further from the winning post than on the Old Course, which places even more emphasis on stamina. It should come as no surprise that the longer feature races on the third and fourth days of the Festival, the Stayers’ Hurdle and the Cheltenham Gold Cup, are run on the New Course. Retired jockey Barry Geraghty, who rode 43 winners at the Cheltenham Festival, said, ‘It is as simple as this really; the Old Course is all speed, the New Course is all stamina.’

Notwithstanding a fractured ankle and hip injury sustained when Merry Poppins fell heavily at Killarney in July, it would be fair to say that 2021 turned into an annus mirabilis for Rachael Blackmore. At the Cheltenham Festival in March, Tipperary-born Blackmore rode six winners, thereby becoming the first woman to win the Ruby Walsh Trophy, which is presented to the leading jockey during the week. Of course, less than a month later, she won the Grand National on Minella Times, thereby becoming the first woman to do so.

Back to the Cheltenham Festival, though; Blackmore opened her account for the week, and made a little more history, when partnering the unbeaten Honeysuckle to an impressive, 6½-length victory in the Champion Hurdle. Two more winners followed on both Wednesday and Thursday, courtesy of Bob Olinger in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle, Sir Gerhard in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper, Allaho in the Ryanair Chase and Telmesomethinggirl in the Parnell Properties Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle. Last, but by no means least, Blackmore brought up her sixth win of the week on Quilixios in the opening JCB Triumph Hurdle.

Later on the Friday afternoon, Blackmore narrowly missed out on a memorable Champion Hurdle – Cheltenham Gold Cup double when A Plus Tard was beaten 1¼ lengths by lesser fancied stable companion Minella Indo. Nevertheless, she described winning the Ruby Walsh Trophy as ‘crazy stuff’, adding, ‘I was hoping I would get one [winner]…’