Imperial Commander wins Gold Cup as Kauto Star falls
Imperial Commander wins Cheltenham Gold Cup ahead of Denman as favourite Kauto Star (pictured) falls
Friday, 19, Mar 2010 05:45
By Sam Ross.
Imperial Commander overshadowed the battle between Denman and Kauto Star in the Cheltenham Gold Cup with a terrific win.
While all the focus at the beginning of the race was on Kauto Star, 8-11 favourite, and Denman at 9-2, it was Imperial Commander who stole the headlines priced at 7-1.
Commander, ridden beautifully by Paddy Brennan, was involved in a battle with Denman as the finish neared after Kauto Star had fallen at the fourth-to-last fence.
The favourite had an initial scare when he nearly fell early on but recovered well to stay on his feet after misjudging the jump. He never seemed to recover, however, and looked to be struggling throughout the race until he fell while down in sixth.
This time Kauto was unable to recover the misjudged jump after getting in too close to the fence but thankfully got back on his feet safely.
The second favourite, Denman, looked set for the win as he headed for home but Commander went with him.
He then caught Denman who was jumping well throughout, ridden by Tony McCoy, and managed to clear two fences as he took the lead before stretching it before the line to record a famous victory.
After the race, victorious jockey Paddy Brennan described the occasion as 'the best day of his life'.
He said: "I'll never ever forget this. Whatever I talk now could be absolute rubbish. I'm speechless. It was a dream the whole way. I've just got to take time to thank my boss [Nigel Twiston-Davies].
"He's the best boss ever - he's produced two horses this week [Imperial Commander and Champion Hurdle runner-up Khyber Kim] and I just had had to steer them."
Picture courtesy of