Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Townend: He was so brave for me
he just put himself in the superstar category – to do what he did and the way he did it.
“The loose horse was there and Paul was just so positive on him. Hopefully we can come back next year to win a third one – he has the ability to do it and we just have to stay sound, I think.
“He’s doing everything right and is achieving more than I thought he could. It was great to win a Gold Cup last year and we were crossing our fingers this year that if we got him there safe and sound, he’d have every chance of winning and he’s just done that. But you can only dream about these kinds of things.”
He added: “He is class. Paul just jumped out and rode a race on him, he was never afraid to have him up there, just be at the races.
“We were just afraid about his first couple of jumps, as the last two years he’s come here, he’s just ballooned them a little bit, so this year we thought we’d get him out there, get him racing early on and then settle him down.
“Other than the loose horse, there wasn’t that much to worry about after that. You didn’t know which way he was going to go and I could see Paul thinking ‘I’d like to be on his inside in case he runs off the track into the stable yard gate’.
“He took a brave decision going the other side but it worked out in the end, too. Paul was very brave over the last two fences, he sent him down to them and said ‘Go on son, you’d better jump these two’.
“This year, we’ve been all forward with him since we got beat at Punchestown in the John Durkan, so Paul was keen on riding him like a racehorse because we could see the other way wasn’t working.
“Last year, I didn’t want that because he was free and immature, now he can settle better in races and
Paul has full confidence in him. He has more confidence in him than I do, I think. But he gallops, he jumps, he stays – what more do you need!”
On future plans, Mullins said: “Normally, we’d go to Punchestown with him now, so I’ll have a word with the owners and see. Good horses need to run in big races and I like running them and getting them out – if they get beaten, it’s not the end of the world, they are still good horses.
“It’s different with each horse, but he’s not a horse I’m afraid to race.”
Asked if stablemate Fact To File – this week’s winner of the Brown Advisory – could be the biggest danger next year, he added: “It would be fantastic if they both get there, but keeping these big chasers sound isn’t easy.”
A triumphant Townend, with Mullins below left, said: “Unbelievable. We had to draw on our reserves there. I rode him completely different to last year and he was just so brave for me.
“We were a bit in between at the last and I was afraid about going for it, but it was a Gold Cup and you had to – and he’s pulled out all the stops.”
Meanwhile, a proud Elliott said of Gerri Colombe: “My horse ran a great race and I’m very proud of him. He was up against a superstar.
“It’s always disappointing when you lose, but the horse that beat him is exceptional.”
And all roads lead back to the Grand National for Corach Rambler after Lucinda Russell’s pride and joy “ran his socks off” to finish third.
He is now as short of 6-1 to successfully defend his National crown on April 13.
“I’d say on Tuesday we weren’t going to run, but I don’t want to run him ever, ever, ever, I just want to pat him and look after him,” Russell said.
“But he’s a racehorse and he loves his job and yesterday evening I said to Scu (Peter Scudamore, partner) ‘What are we going to do’ and he said ‘Look, it’s going to be safe (ground) and as long as it’s safe it’s fine’, and he ran his socks off.
“Maybe if the ground had been a little bit better, I don’t know, all I know is I’m delighted with him, to be third in the Gold Cup is fantastic.”