Tiger Roll has returned home to Gordon Elliott's yard after his gallant second in the Cross Country Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.
The 12-year-old was just beaten by stablemate Delta Work, who is also owned by Michael O'Leary, to be denied his sixth Festival win in Wednesday's contest.
Elliott shared a video of the horse rolling around in a field at his Cullentra stables on Twitter, commenting: "TIGER having a roll in Cullentra this morning.Happy retirement Tiger. A legend of the sport, a horse of a lifetime. Thanks for the memories."
Read more: Michael O'Leary fights back tears as Delta Work denies Tiger Roll at Cheltenham
Punters were gutted that Tiger Roll didn't come home in front, but Elliott was delighted to see the two-time Grand National winner run so well.
He said: “Of course, I wanted the Tiger to win but once I’d won the race I didn’t mind as it was for Gigginstown who are massive supporters of us – and the reception he got when he came into the ring is what it’s all about.
"He’s been the horse of a lifetime and I’m very lucky to have had him – he goes back to Michael O’Leary’s now.
"He’s been with us for nine years now and to be honest I had a tear in my eye there, it’s unbelievable. If he’d have won it would have been special but he ran his heart out and we’re absolutely delighted.
“We’ve always had faith in him and it’s brilliant, he’s really enjoyed the game and it’s a great result.
"The reaction from the crowd didn’t really surprise me to be honest and if he’d have won the cheer would have been unbelievable.
"He got the reaction he deserved and we’re very proud of him. He will be a big loss for the yard but he’ll only be at Gigginstown which is down the road, so they can go and see him whenever they want."
“The ground really suited Delta Work and it was a great performance from the winner – he can enjoy this race for a few years now.”
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