Poniros, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Jonjo O'Neill Jr, won the JCB Triumph Hurdle at 100/1 on his hurdling debut at the Cheltenham Festival.
Mullins has had a stranglehold on the juvenile Grade 1, winning the last three renewals and four of the last five, and Poniros made it four in a row on debut for the yard.
Mullins provided 11 of the 17 runners but none were shorter than 12/1 in a market that was dominated by the well-backed favourite East India Dock and Lulamba while there was also notable confidence behind Gavin Cromwell's Hello Neighbour.
It all looked to be going to plan for East India Dock who was settled in behind his stablemate and leader Opec by Sam Twiston-Davies with Lulamba in close attendance on the inside. Opec went out very early, weakening back through the field heading out onto the final circuit but the Mullins trained Lady Vega Allen took over at the head of affairs, taking her rivals deep into the race.
East India Dock took over the running after the second last, a flight where Lulamba was a little scrappy, but the smooth-travelling Hello Neighbour was on his heels. Lady Vega Allen was doing her best to battle on but while Lulamba rallied to claim the stands' side rail alongside East India Dock, the eye was drawn to the blue and white colours of Tony Bloom whose Poniros was making relentless progress just in behind.
East India Dock only gave way to Lulamba deep into the exacting climb to the line but Poniros' never shied and, on the outside of East India Dock, hit the front on the line to win by a neck.
There were three parts of a length back to East India Dock in third with Lady Vega Allen a length and a quarter away in fourth.
Poniros raced eight times on the flat, winning on debut only, but was rated in the low-90s and was sent off the 6/1 favourite in the Cambridegshire Handicap on his final start on the level albeit he finished down the field.
Punters backing Poniros at the SP on the Betfair Exchange were handsomely rewarded with Poniros returned at 225/1.
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Mullins said: "I saw Tony Bloom's colours, he's only one runner, it must be mine! I said if he jumps the last he'll win and he did.
"Our filly Lady Vega Allen must have run away with Paul [Townend]. I haven't seen a re-run but she must have been four or five lengths in front before they went up the hill. Everyone was keeping an eye on her and they got racing down the hill. You're almost waiting for something to come from behind and come through and all his flat race experience helped him do it; he knew what to do provided he could negotiate the hurdles but he knew how to race. He sliced through the field like a handicapper.
"We bought him, we schooled him and then I threw him out into the field and then we gave him six weeks out in the field and we just trained him, schooled him a little bit. He might have had a pop last week but that's all."
Explaining his modus operandi, Mullins added: "They were all bought in the autumn. I like to give them a break and then it's a bit late to start them off and try and win a maiden hurdle so run them in these races and you're getting experience and if they're really good like this fellow you win a Grade 1 like this fellow, so they've lost their novice status for the season and the others they'll all make nice novices for next year."
Anything of Willie’s has a chance
O’Neill Jr added: “It’s crazy. It’s a funny old game. I was supposed to be in Doncaster today. After declarations, Alain Cawley, my agent, said that Willie was looking for a jockey. He actually said I should stay in Doncaster, but I said that the way this week is going, I’d much rather be riding one of Willie’s. Anything of Willie’s has a chance. It’s unbelievable. That’s his first ever appearance over hurdles in public. What a place!
“He was actually very good. I spoke to everyone and they said that he’d been very straightforward, but obviously first time out in the Triumph is not so easy. But he was very good. He was a proper juvenile, to be honest. He was into the boards and had a little bit of scope. I felt coming down the hill I was going to definitely nick a little bit, I just felt coming towards the last that they weren’t getting away from me. Stamina just kicked in.
“I couldn’t have imagined having two winners this week, no. I was really hoping for one, and when we lost Springwell Bay, I thought it isn’t going to be my week. Luckily Jagwar did it, and we were really just here for a good time today. It’s turned into an even better time.
“The fact that he hadn’t run over hurdles didn’t bother me - Willie wouldn’t have had him in the Triumph if he couldn’t jump. He’d been well schooled, and I spoke to Rachael and Danny and Paul, and Patrick and Brian Hayes, and they all said he’d be absolutely fine, he’d had an engine and just might lack experience. It’s some training performance.”
Reaction from beaten connections
Nicky Henderson, trainer of Lulamba, said: “As Nico [de Boinville] said the winner has come so late that he couldn’t see him and therefore couldn’t respond to him.
“We are only a baby, and that is only the third run of his life. He will have learnt an awful lot today. He was just a little untidy on the way around. Off that pace, when you don’t know a lot, it was tough for him, but he has got there. He has won the battle, but lost the war.
“He has had the fight that everyone expected and he fought his way back out of that. He is going to be lovely and you can see by the size of him he is not for this season. He has got a great temperament and a great attitude. He will have learnt more today than in all of his life I would say.
“He is not built like your typical Triumph Hurdle horse. East India Dock and the winner were good flat horses. This one wouldn’t win a flat race with a day’s head start! It is certainly not out of the question to switch him to fences next season. Rather like we did with Sir Gino this season it was let’s see where Constitution Hill is and how everybody is going. He is going to be very special.”
James Owen was keen to take the positives from East India Dock's defeat, saying: “He ran a cracker and he has done nothing wrong. I thought he had won jumping the last.
"He just got out run up the straight by Lulamba, who is going to be a very good horse, and the winner, who is an unknown, but is one that has a huge amount of ability to do that on his debut. I’m proud of our horse.
“He jumped well enough, and although he made one little mistake, he was quick over them. It is not easy to win here as we are finding out, but we will keep coming.
“I think we will mix and match between the jumps and the flat as he has an attractive handicap mark.”
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