Best Mate wins Gold Cup

Hat-trick: Best Mate wins at Cheltenham
14 April 2012

Best Mate galloped his way to greatness and sent a 60,000 crowd into raptures at Cheltenham today by winning the Gold Cup for the third year running.

Henrietta Knight's star chaser, the 8-11 favourite ridden by Jim Culloty, won a sensational race seeing off Sir Rembrandt by half a length to become the first horse since Arkle to complete the treble.

In a dramatic race, in which French horse First Gold led for most of the way, Best Mate came from behind to beat Sir Rembrandt who finished second at 33-1. In third was Harbour Pilot, who had earlier cut across Best Mate on the run to the final fence, and was just over taken at the line by Sir Rembrandt.

The 30-year-old Irishman Culloty said: "We said beforehand that the only safe way was down the inside, because down the middle was cut up last year and there was no grass on it.

"We had to take the gamble, and at times I wasn't getting the best of runs. Everybody was saying it was a steering job, but it was a Gold Cup and there is no quarter given."

With the crowd going wild on Best Mate's return, trainer Knight said: "Just listen to them! I thought we were beat coming to the last, but he's tough, too. He was brilliantly ridden."

And owner Jim Lewis admitted: "I really was ready to lose because the dream has to come to an end one day. It was tight in the end, but it's not the greatest ground for him. But what we saw today is that he is an amazing jumper."

The horse's place in the record books is assured. Last year he became the first horse since L'Escargot in 1971 to win back-to-back Gold Cups when he beat Truckers Tavern by 10 lengths. Victory this time around saw him match the great Irish horse Arkle, who was triumphant in 1964, 1965 and 1966.

William Hill now make Best Mate the 7-4 favourite for a fourth Gold Cup win next year.

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