Ruby & Kauto V Tony & Denman

It is generally accepted by all and sundry, and most especially National Hunt jockeys that while a rider might be talented, he can only win certain races if he is on the right horse. A prime example of this is AP McCoy – an outstanding jockey, but one that is yet to win the Grand National and has but once won the Gold Cup, on Mr Mulligan in 1997. In fact just recently Champion Trainer Paul Nicholls was apparently surprised when someone pointed out to him how the human and equine stories correspond when it comes to the upcoming Gold Cup and his two main contenders – Kauto Star and Denman.

While McCoy is set to ride Denman in the Cheltenham Cup, it will be his archrival (but good friend) Ruby Walsh who will be riding Denman’s archrival (but stablemate and ‘pal’ according to Nicholls) Kauto Star. Some feel that McCoy’s iron constitution and ruthless temperament are not enough to suit the needs of such a characteristic chaser as Denman, who needs less coercion and more horsemanship.

Others who have more knowledge of McCoy are embarrassed by the slating that McCoy has received – he is after all officially the best jockey of all time, a status he achieved on 27th of August 2002 when victory on Mighty Montefalco in a three mile hurdle at Uttoxeter gave him his 1,700th winner, passing the three year old record total of Richard Dunwoody. Nicholls, when told how the equine and human stories of the Gold Cup correspond responded that Kauto Star and Denman are ‘the mirror image of the jockeys – but when they are out there, they’re out there to win’. Never has a truer word been spoken, while Walsh and McCoy are friends, that goes completely out the window once the tapes go up.

Whilst the two jockeys have completely differing styles, there has never been any doubt in their trainer’s mind that each of his horses has the perfectly suited accomplice when it comes to the Gold Cup. Walsh has a friendly but artistic laidback style which perfectly reflects Kauto Star’s attitude, while McCoy’s enforcing style totally suits Denman’s different and aggressive character – as Nicholls stated ‘I always thought someone like McCoy was going to suite Denman’.

As Nicholls has said of the riders of his top horses’ ‘Two champion jockeys, two great horses’ and having the champion jockeys of Great Britain and Ireland in the saddles of the two main contenders for one of the biggest events of the racing calendar is somewhat of a beautiful and intriguing juxtaposition – one which is looked forward to by bookies and punters alike.

Nicholls on the other hand, it is imagined, will be looking forward to the event with some trepidation – it is almost unheard of for one yard to house two such celebrities, and he admits that he has quite mixed emotions, stating ‘the saddest thing for me is that one of them is going to get beat’.

Which one are you going to put a bet on? The friendly or the aggressive? The horse who has won the race once or the horse who has already won it twice? The one being ridden by Ruby or Tony?? The one with the best odds? Exciting stuff!

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