Stablemates A Plus Tard, Minella Indo run one-two in Cheltenham Gold Cup
The order of appearance changed, but there were familiar names among the successful horses, jockeys and trainer involved with the first two finishers of Friday’s Grade 1 Cheltenham Gold Cup at Cheltenham Racecourse in England.
A Plus Tard ran past stablemate Minella Indo after the final fence to win by 15 lengths. Last year, Minella Indo and A Plus Tard were first and second, separated by 1 1/4 lengths. Both are trained by Henry de Bromhead of Ireland.
Friday, A Plus Tard helped jockey Rachael Blackmore become the first woman to win the $818,750 Gold Cup at 3 5/16 miles, the leading weight-for-age steeplechase in England.
Blackmore was the leading rider at the four-day Cheltenham Festival in 2021, the year she rode A Plus Tard in the Gold Cup. Prior to Friday, Blackmore was already having a successful week, having won Tuesday’s Grade 1 Champion Hurdle on the de Bromhead-trained Honeysuckle.
Blackmore returned to the winner’s circle aboard A Plus Tard to a rousing reception from a crowd of more than 70,000 compared to last year when the event was held without spectators because of the pandemic.
“To have that roar back and to get to walk back in when you can’t see space and you can just see bodies is just incredible,” Blackmore said. “It’s the closest thing to feeling like a rock star you will ever feel without being able to sing.”
Jack Kennedy rode Minella Indo to a win in the 2021 Gold Cup, but Robbie Power had the mount this year. Kennedy did not have a Gold Cup mount.
In the Gold Cup, Blackmore had A Plus Tard at the back of the field for the first two miles. A Plus Tard moved closer to the front in the final half-mile and emerged between contenders Protektorat and Al Boum Photo before the second-to-last fence to challenge 9-1 Minella Indo.
After the final fence, A Plus Tard was quickly clear. He paid $7.60 as the second choice. Protektorat (9-1) finished third for trainer Dan Skelton, the best result for a horse from an English stable.
Galvin, the 2-1 favorite in American pools, finished fourth. A Plus Tard was the 3-1 favorite with oncourse bookmakers.
A Plus Tard, an 8-year-old French-bred gelding by Kapgarde, has won 8 of 19 starts. The Cheltenham Gold Cup was his first win since a 22-length victory in the Grade 1 Betfair Chase at Haydock Park in northern England in November, the leading race for older chasers in the autumn. A Plus Tard was second to Galvin in the Grade 1 Savills Chase at Leopardstown Racecourse in Ireland in December in his only subsequent start.
Irish-trained runners have won seven of the last 10 runnings of the Gold Cup, and swept all seven races on Friday at Cheltenham. Trainer Willie Mullins had five wins on Friday. His best result in the Gold Cup was a sixth by Al Boum Photo, who won the race in 2019 and 2020 and was third last year.
For the four-day week, Irish runners won 18 races compared to 10 for British-trained runners. Last year, Irish-trained runners won 23 of the 28 races.