Kargese delivered a notable upset at Cheltenham, leading from start to finish to claim victory in the Singer Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase.
Sent off at 7-1, the mare defied expectations, with much of the pre-race attention focused on her stablemate Kopek Des Bordes, trained by Willie Mullins, and Nicky Henderson’s Lulamba.
Under a perfectly executed front-running ride from Danny Mullins, Kargese maintained her strong pace into the final turn.
Despite challenges from both market leaders, particularly Kopek Des Bordes, she dug deep up the hill, finding more to win by two and a quarter lengths. Kopek Des Bordes finished second, while Lulamba took third, with both horses’ jumping proving less assured in the closing stages.
Willie Mullins, trainer of both the winner and runner-up, praised Kargese’s performance.
"Kargese jumped superbly and had far more experience than Kopek which has stood to her at the finish," he stated.
Reflecting on the thrilling finish, he added: "It’s a nice feeling watching two of your own fight out the finish and you think of Annie Power but surely two of them wouldn’t fall at the last, at least one of them would get over you hope."
Mullins lauded Danny Mullins’ ride, saying: "I thought Danny gave her a tremendous ride and he used all the attributes that she has – when he wanted a jump at the last, he got it."
He highlighted Kargese’s resilience, noting: "She’s tough and she gives herself a hard race, even over hurdles as a juvenile and everything since. We couldn’t believe how well she finished off her season as a juvenile. She’s a really tough nut."
Looking ahead, Mullins suggested: "She looks like a Champion Chase horse, but we’ll have to decide."
The Closutton handler also expressed satisfaction with Kopek Des Bordes’ run, believing a mistake at the final fence cost him the race.
"I thought Kopek ran brilliant and I thought Paul (Townend) gave him a fantastic ride in the circumstances. If it wasn’t for the mistake at the last I think he would have won without coming off the bridle," Mullins commented.
He confirmed future targets for the runner-up: "We’ll be looking at Aintree. We’ll be looking at Punchestown, there’s plenty of options for him."
Kopek Des Bordes’ owner, Charles McCarthy, echoed his trainer’s sentiments, displaying sportsmanship in defeat.
"As far as I’m concerned you must be gracious in defeat and victory," he said. "He’s a wonderful horse, he’s still in one piece and you’re going to see an awful lot more of him, I promise you that."
McCarthy, who celebrated Supreme Novices’ Hurdle glory with the horse a year prior, added: "He’s only a six-year-old, we expect a lot from him, but that run will bring him on I’m sure and we can look at Aintree and Punchestown."
For much of the race, Lulamba appeared poised to maintain his unbeaten fencing record with impressive early jumping. However, as the pace intensified, his jumping faltered. Trainer Nicky Henderson indicated a potential change in strategy for the horse.
"If there been a two-and-a-half-mile race we’d have run in it, definitely," Henderson stated.
He concluded: "I don’t think you’ll see him over two miles again and he is that (King George) sort of horse – he’s going down the Jango Baie route isn’t he really?" Henderson plans to target Aintree over a longer distance.
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