Final Orders Defends Cross-Country Title as 66-1 Martator Stuns in Photo Finish
Martator stunned at 66-1 in a photo finish to win the Grand Annual as Final Orders defended his cross-country crown at Cheltenham's Day Two.
Martator produced one of the shocks of the Cheltenham Festival, returning at 66-1 to snatch the Debenhams Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Handicap Steeple Chase Challenge Cup in a photo finish, capping a remarkable Day Two that also saw Final Orders (7/1) retain his Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase title and Il Etait Temps storm to victory in the BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase.
The Grand Annual, run over 20 runners at 16:40, had been billed as "very much an open race" before the off, and it delivered on that billing in spectacular fashion. Early in the contest, Be Aware and Personal Ambition moved into the top pack while Release The Beast made a costly mistake. When the judge called for a photo, it was Martator who emerged the winner, delivering a result that will be among the most talked-about of the entire Festival.
Final Orders had earlier given his connections back-to-back cross-country titles, prevailing in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase at 15:20. Starting at 7/1, the horse justified his position as a well-fancied runner and underlined his mastery of Cheltenham's unique cross-country course.
The day's Grade 1 highlight belonged to Il Etait Temps in the Queen Mother Champion Chase, with trainer Willie Mullins providing a vivid account of jockey Paul Townend's decisive move. "Out of the corner of my eye I could see Paul Townend thinking 'now we have a horse race'," Mullins told BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra. "He started to get confident and he planned his move around the last bend."
Willie Mullins had plenty more to celebrate across the card. His King Rasko Grey, sent off at 11-1, took the opening Novices' Hurdle at 13:20, and Kitzbuhel, another 11-1 shot from the Mullins yard, gave Cobden a winner in the Novices' Chase at 14:00. The trainer's stranglehold on the day's races was notable even by his own high standards at the Festival.
Jingko Blue, sent off as the 9/2 favourite, triumphed in the Handicap Hurdle at 14:40 for Henderson, providing a more straightforward result for punters in a day otherwise full of surprises. The Mourne Rambler, returned at 15-2, rounded off the card by winning the final race of the day.
Seven races, seven winners, and a 66-1 bombshell in the penultimate contest: Day Two at Cheltenham delivered the drama the Festival demands.
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