Robbie McNamara again rode to the rescue when preventing an Irish blank on the third day of Cheltenham by guiding Spring Heeled to success in the concluding Kim Muir Chase.
Just 24 hours after breaking his festival duck on Silver Concorde in the Champion Bumper, the 6ft 3in amateur doubled up on the Jim Culloty-trained horse who gave the visitors a first Kim Muir victory since Greasepaint 31 years previously.
The amateur rider’s contest has not been a happy hunting ground for the visitors but it took on a much darker context in 2013 when John Thomas McNamara was paralysed in a fall in the race, something his cousin was all too aware of.
“John Thomas is in great spirits and I’m sure he’s watching in,” the winning rider said after again squeezing the most out of his giant frame to make 11.6, just as he got the maximum out of his willing partner who dominated the race from the front.
Earlier in the day, McNamara's older brother Andrew had had to settle for second in the Grade One Ryanair aboard Hidden Cyclone. But there was no mistaking the style with which Spring Heeled held off Cause Of Causes who endured a less than clear passage through the race in behind and who also clouted the last.
Festival victory
Ten years after riding Best Mate to his Gold Cup hat-trick, Jim Culloty revelled in his own second festival victory as a trainer, last year's RSA winner Lord Windermere, who lines up in today's Gold Cup, having also carried the colours of Dr Ronan Lambe.
“Jim was very confident and believed better ground would be the key to him. So I wanted to be positive on him and get him jumping,” McNamara said. “I’ll never forget winning the bumper. I’d been trying to win here for so long and with my weight I’m not going to be riding forever so today is just the icing on the cake. I went out to enjoy myself and there’s never any pressure riding for Dr Lambe.”
“I’ve hardly had a winner for six months but this is a good omen. Lord Windermere has travelled over great and everything seems to be coming right,” esaid the Cork-based trainer Culloty. “When Spring Heeled got a lovely soft lead, and he had the right jockey on his back, you could call him the winner. He might be an Aintree National horse next season.”
Spring Heeled brought the Irish tally for the week so far to six although earlier it had been a disappointing day for the raiders with Hidden Cyclone doing best in the Grade Ones by matching Annie Power’s runner-up placing in the World Hurdle.
Hidden Cyclone couldn't cope with the favourite Dynaste in the closing stages however as the David Pipe-Tom Scudamore team set up a double completed in the Byrne Group Plate by the runaway winner Ballynagour.
Crept back
"I thought Hidden Cyclone had nicked a couple of lengths on us but Tom crept back and rode the race exactly as we planned. Everything played in our favour and you always need the fates to work for you," said Pipe. "The way we ride him now he will probably get three miles plus. The more we switch him off the further he'll get."
Felix Yonger did best of the Irish in the JLT Novice Chase but he was well back in fourth behind Taquin Du Seiul who gave Tony McCoy a 30th career festival victory and set up Jonjo O’Neill for his own double.
“AP is in pain today after his fall yesterday but he’s a magic man who is in total control. I love watching him ride,” said O’Neill. “AP makes all the difference to this horse. Once he rode him I was full of confidence. There’s no reason he won’t be a Gold Cup horse after that.”
Richard Johnson had his own festival landmark yesterday, riding his 20th winner at the meeting as Fingal Bay edged fellow top-weight t Southfield Theatre by a nose in a desperate finish to the Pertemps Final. The latter's jockey Daryl Jacob could hardly believe the result and there was a sting in the tail for Johnson who got a three day ban for his use of the whip. .
“Fingal Bay is an amazing horse and we’ve always thought the world of him. He is such a trier,” Johnson said.
