Cheltenham Day Two: Tiger Roll denied fairytale ending, Mullins and Elliott on flying form

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Cheltenham Day Two: Tiger Roll Denied Fairytale Ending, Mullins And Elliott On Flying Form
Delta Work ridden by Jack Kennedy (right) goes on to win The Glenfarclas Chase ahead of Tiger Roll ridden by Davy Russell. Photo: PA Images
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Day two of the 2022 Cheltenham Festival has got underway, with seven races on the card:

Weatherbys Champion Bumper (5.30pm - delayed to 5.45pm)

Winner: Facile Vega (Willie Mullins) - 15/8

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After a delay due to water on the track, Facile Vega won the Weatherbys Champion Bumper for Patrick and Willie Mullins.

Cheltenham officials sought to find a route through the pooling water, pushing the start back 15 minutes, but conditions were no hindrance to the favourite.

Out of Cheltenham legend Quevega, Facile Vega defeated Gordon Elliott’s well-regarded American Mike on his debut at the track his mother was unbeaten around.

Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Handicap Chase (4.50pm)

Winner: Global Citizen (Ben Pauling) - 28/1

Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase (4.10pm)

Winner: Delta Work (Gordon Elliott) - 5/2

The fairytale ending was not to be. Tiger Roll could not sign off his fabulous career with victory in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase at Cheltenham, yet he went out on his shield in typically, utterly valiant fashion, with a gallant second-place finish behind stablemate Delta Work.

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The Gordon Elliott-trained Tiger Roll, a dual Grand National winner, was attempting to win the three-and-three-quarter-mile race for a fourth time and was sent off the 3-1 second-favourite.

Yet with the ground officially changed to heavy after the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase, the chances of emulating Quevega’s record six Cheltenham Festival victories diminished with every drop of rain.

The Aintree and Cheltenham great, who was having the 45th and final run of a career which started in 2014 and earned owner Michael O’Leary over £1.4 million in prize-money, failed to read the script, however.

Davy Russell’s mount was travelling so well when taking it up at the 24th of the 32 fences and the 12-year-old former Triumph Hurdle winner looked to briefly have the 5-2 market leader in trouble jumping the second-last.

But Delta Work, on his first try over the cross-country fences, was always close enough under Jack Kennedy, and slowly, with every stride, inched closer and eventually put his head in front 200 yards from the line to go score by three-quarters of a length. Plan Of Attack was a further 21 lengths further back in third.

Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase (3.30pm)

Winner: Energumene (Willie Mullins) - 5/2

Energumene won a dramatic running of the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase for Paul Townend and Willie Mullins.

The much-anticipated rematch between the Irish star (5-2) and Nicky Henderson’s Shishkin did not materialise as the latter never looked happy and was pulled up.

Mullins’ other contender, Chacun Pour Soi, parted company with his rider and it was Venetia Williams’ Funambule Sivola who came home in second.

Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle (2.50pm)

Winner: Commander of Fleet (Gordon Elliott) - 50/1

Commander Of Fleet got up on the line in a thrilling, head-bobbing finish to the Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle under a well-judged ride from 5lb claimer Shane Fitzgerald.

The Gordon Elliott-trained winner, sent off at 50-1, was one of the few guaranteed to enjoy the testing ground and big field, having won a 23-runner handicap at Navan in early December.

The Jessica Harrington-trained Ashdale Bob set sensible fractions in front for the conditions and was still going well in front turning for home, jumping the last three lengths clear of his 22 rivals.

However, the stamina-sapping ground proved his undoing. Jack Foley’s mount tired soon after, as Fastorslow and Commander Of Fleet bore down on the seven-year-old, who faded quickly, eventually finishing third, a further five and a half lengths behind the front two in the two-miles-five-furlong contest.

Darragh O’Keefe’s mount looked to have got the better of the scrap to the line and in a titanic battle, briefly got his head in front, only for Commander Of Fleet to get his head down when it mattered to score by a short head.

Camprond who was always stalking the pace, did not find much from the second-last and finished fourth.

The victory was the first for Elliott at the Festival after missing last year’s meeting due to the suspension he was given when an image emerged on social media of him sitting on a dead horse on his gallops.

Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase (2.10pm)

Winner: L’homme Presse (Venetia Williams) - 9/4

L’Homme Presse completed a five-timer over fences to remain unbeaten when cruising to success in the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase at Cheltenham.

There was drama 20 minutes before the race as ante-post favourite Bravemansgame was pulled out by Paul Nicholls, owing to the increasingly soft ground, along with Irish challenger Fury Road.

That left the Venetia Williams-trained L’Homme Presse, who had won the Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase by 21 lengths at Sandown, facing eight rivals under Charlie Deutsch and he duly put them to the sword.

Ahoy Senor made the running in the early stages, tracked by L’Homme Presse, who took it up at the seventh of the 19th fences and jumped his rivals into submission.

Though Farouk D’alene threw down a challenge turning in, he came down after jumping the penultimate fence, but it never looked like the winner would be beaten.

To his credit, Ahoy Senor, whose jumping at times was still a little novicey, continued to stay on but in the end was still three and a half lengths adrift, with Gaillard Du Mesnil sticking on for third, a further length and three-quarters back.

Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle (1.30pm)

Winner: Sir Gerhard (Willie Mullins) - 8/11

Sir Gerhard powered through the soft ground to justify favouritism in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham.

The 8-11 favourite, trained by Willie Mullins, followed up his Grade One success over two miles at Leopardstown with another – handling the step up to two miles and five furlongs with aplomb under Paul Townend.

Ahead of racing, conditions changed to soft after heavy rain fell on watered ground, making conditions gruelling, and the early pace did not help the keen Stage Star, who emptied quickly after the third-last.

Rachael Blackmore increased the tempo on Journey With Me approaching the stands for the first time, but was always tracked by Sir Gerhard, who was also very keen in the early stages, and the writing was on the wall turning in.

Townend swept to the front and held off the staying-on Three Stripe Life (8-1) to score by three and a half lengths. A tired Journey With Me fell at the last, leaving Whatdeawant (18-1) to fill the minor honours.

Townend said: “He showed his class, as keen as he was, to stay going. I was afraid going around that we were in the wrong race, but he showed his true ability to stay going.

“He jumped the best he has ever jumped on the course. His jumping the last day wasn’t great, but he jumped well there.”

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