Coole Cody made all under Tom O'Brien and survived several jumping errors to land a brave victory in the Paddy Power Gold Cup for Evan Williams.
Backed into 10-1 from 20s overnight - and tipped at that price by Matt Brocklebank in Value Bet - Coole Cody had to dig deep to see off Spiritofthegames up the Cheltenham hill.
A shuddering mistake down the back, where he slipped on landing and almost unseated O'Brien, reduced his lead in the mid-part of the race but it mattered not as he soon got back into his groove.
He was low at other fences, too, but the novice proved the best-handicapped horse in the race as he just kept on galloping to land the prestigious handicap.
Spiritofthegames finished second, with Al Dancer third and Kauto Riko fourth.
There was early drama when Siruh Du Lac, who was sharing the lead with Coole Cody and Simply The Betts, unseated Tom Scudamore at the first fence.
That gave Coole Cody the opportunity to open up a 10-length lead as the field set out for the final circuit under O’Brien, who was replacing the injured Adam Wedge.
Despite making the odd mistake, Coole Cody maintained his momentum as rivals such as Happy Diva and Saint Sonnet came down.
Spiritofthegames (14-1) tried to put in a late bid but Coole Cody would not be denied and went on to score by three and a quarter lengths. Al Dancer (5-1 favourite) was another length away third, with Kauto Riko (50-1) a staying-on fourth.
Williams said: “They are very hard races to win and we are usually second, third and fourth in all these big races – we have been second, third and fourth in them all! But if you keep trying, you’ll get there in the end.
“Wedgy is out injured and it’s a disappointment for him, but Tom has ridden me loads of winners over the years. We have had some bad luck stories here with Tom in the past, so it’s great he’s got a good one on the board.”
