Iconic Festival Moments: Dawn Run makes history in the Gold Cup
In the final instalment of his series of iconic Cheltenham Festival moments, John Ingles looks back to the Irish mare's memorable win in 1986.
Most of the iconic moments covered earlier in this series have been provided by either Champion Hurdle or Gold Cup winners. This time we remember the horse who achieved what remains the unique feat of winning both races. To reach the top in the two disciplines calls for a rare combination of speed for the Champion Hurdle and stamina for the Gold Cup, and, of course, what made Dawn Run all the more remarkable in a code of the sport dominated by geldings, was the fact that she was a mare.
The dual Champion Hurdle winners of the 1970s, Bula and Night Nurse, had gone closest to becoming the first to complete the Champion Hurdle-Gold Cup double; Bula was third to Ten Up in the 1975 Gold Cup and Night Nurse was beaten a length and a half by his stablemate Little Owl in 1981. Just how rare Dawn Run’s achievement was can be gauged from the fact that only two other Champion Hurdle winners since her have contested a Gold Cup and neither of those went close to landing the double. 1988 Champion Hurdle winner Celtic Shot was certainly expected to, sent off favourite for the Gold Cup three years later, but that was in contrast to Beech Road, 50/1 winner of the 1989 Champion Hurdle, who was twice those odds when running in the Gold Cup as a 13-year-old six years later.
Next year marks the centenary of the first running of the Cheltenham Gold Cup and Dawn Run is one of only four mares on the race’s roll of honour. She is the most recent mare to win it, with Dubacilla, beaten 15 lengths into second behind Master Oats in 1995, the only one to have been placed since. In fact, the only mare to have contested the Gold Cup at all so far this century was Shattered Love who was the last of nine finishers behind Al Boum Photo in 2019.
Few will need reminding that mares have a much better recent record in the Champion Hurdle but the likes of Annie Power, Epatante and even Honeysuckle who was unbeaten for so long, haven’t managed to rival Dawn Run’s hurdle rating of 173 which makes her Timeform’s highest rated mare over jumps. She enjoyed a brilliant season in 1983/84, showing toughness and versatility too in winning eight of her nine starts in a campaign that won her the Champion Hurdle equivalents in Ireland and France, as well as at Cheltenham, winning over distances from two miles to beyond three and on going ranging from firm to heavy.
For all her brilliance as a hurdler, the big, rangy Dawn Run always had more the look of a chaser so it wasn’t a surprise that she took to the larger obstacles. But what made her Gold Cup victory all the more remarkable was her lack of chasing experience beforehand; it was only her fifth start over fences. Injury restricted her to just one run – an impressive chasing debut at Navan – in the 1984/85 season but when she returned a year later she put up high-class performances to win the Durkan Brothers International Punchestown Chase and the Sean P. Graham Chase at Leopardstown.
Dawn Run was then sent to Cheltenham for some experience over the Gold Cup course in the Holsten Distributors Chase (nowadays the Cotswold) but made a mistake at the final ditch and unseated her rider Tony Mullins, son of her trainer Paddy, who remounted for a distant last of four. The outcome of that incident was that Jonjo O’Neill was recalled to partner Dawn Run for the first time since their Champion Hurdle victory. They should have first teamed up again for a prep race at Punchestown before the Gold Cup but that was lost to the weather.
In the absence of the long-time ante-post favourite Burrough Hill Lad, the 1984 Gold Cup winner, Dawn Run was sent off favourite to take her place in jumping history at 15/8 against ten rivals. They included the first three from the year before – Forgive N’ Forget, Righthand Man and Earls Brig – the last-named had more recently finished third in the King George behind Wayward Lad and Combs Ditch who were also in the field. The principals also included the much improved front runner Run And Skip whose wins that season included the Welsh Grand National.
For the reasons already given, a victory for Dawn Run was always going to be special in a variety of ways, but on top of that, the 1986 Gold Cup and the scenes which followed immediately afterwards, were memorable in themselves. The going was good to firm, and with a searching gallop being set from the off, it resulted in Dawn Run breaking the track record set by The Dikler 13 years earlier. It was Dawn Run herself and Run And Skip who forced the pace, duelling for the lead clear of the rest from an early stage.
Her jumping was more measured than it had been on her previous visit to Cheltenham but mistakes began to creep in on the second circuit; she lost momentum with a mistake at the water, fell back again when hitting the fifth from home and was none too fluent at the next, either. Run And Skip was still just in front three out where Dawn Run was still in touch, albeit under strong pressure, but she regained the lead with a very bold jump two out, only to appear to get outpaced when the patiently ridden Forgive ‘N Forget and Wayward Lad were brought with their well-timed challenges.
Dawn Run looked held in third jumping the last where Forgive ‘N Forget rather misjudged his jump, but from at least two lengths down halfway up the run-in, and with bedlam breaking out in the packed stands, O’Neill conjured a renewed effort from his partner after the leader had hung across to the far side. ‘The mare’s beginning to get up!’ said Peter O’Sullevan in commentary as Dawn Run dug deep to pass the tiring Wayward Lad in the shadow of the post. She had a length to spare, with the keeping-on Forgive ‘N Forget another two and a half lengths back in third and the gallant Run And Skip completing the frame and clear of the only other two finishers.
Chasers & Hurdlers’ description of Dawn Run as ‘possibly the most popular Irish-trained jumper since Arkle’ probably still holds true today, and was something that was very evident from the reception Dawn Run and her jockey returned to among a sea of well-wishers on their return to the unsaddling enclosure. ‘Her supporters erupted in a frenzy of celebration rarely seen on a racecourse and both Dawn Run’s owner and rider were lifted shoulder high after being presented with their trophies by the Queen Mother.’
O’Neill himself sportingly hoisted Tony Mullins onto his shoulders to share in the rather chaotic celebrations that followed, scenes that wouldn’t be possible in today’s much more health and safety conscious Cheltenham winner’s enclosure! Dawn Run’s owner, Mrs Charmian Hill, dressed on Gold Cup day in a red coat with a black belt in imitation of her racing colours, had also ridden Dawn Run in her first three starts in bumpers including a win at Tralee – the first of Dawn Run’s career and the final one for Mrs Hill as a rider at the age of 62.
Jonjo O’Neill retired from the saddle not long afterwards, though was back in the winner’s enclosure after the Gold Cup with his trainer’s hat on after Synchronised’s victory in 2012. As for Dawn Run, who was to win one more race – a specially-arranged match at Punchestown against the Champion Chase winner Buck House – after the euphoria of her Gold Cup victory came the tragedy of her ill-fated attempt to win a second Grande Course de Haies at Auteuil.
But Dawn Run has left a couple of important legacies. Her success in France paved the way for Willie Mullins, son of Dawn Run’s trainer, to launch a number of successful raids of his own on some of the big prizes at Auteuil, while Emmet Mullins is a third generation of the family now doing so too.
It’s probably no coincidence, either, that mares have played a bigger part in Willie Mullins’ success as a trainer than they have with any other handler of jumpers. There were no races specifically for mares at the Cheltenham Festival in Dawn Run’s day but Mullins has now won the majority of the renewals of the three that exist today, including the novice hurdle which bears Dawn Run’s name.
Also read:
The Thinker's Gold Cup in the snow
Sprinter Sacre regains his Champion Chase crown
Annie Power's final-flight fall
Best Mate wins his third Gold Cup
Norton's Coin's 100/1 Gold Cup win
Monksfield and Sea Pigeon in a Champion Hurdle to remember
Istabraq's third Champion Hurdle
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