Barry Geraghty and Jessica Harrington enjoyed a couple of memorable Champion Chase afternoons at the Cheltenham festival with Moscow Flyer and the duo came to the rescue again yesterday when Cork All Star's hugely impressive victory in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper provided the sole Irish success of the day.
Cork All Star led home an Irish clean sweep of the first five positions but in spite of the frantic action in behind that resulted in a stewards inquiry, there was no denying the winner's superiority who was maintaining a four-from-four bumper record.
Geraghty didn't have to go for absolutely everything in the closing stages to run out a length and a quarter winner from the 40 to 1 outsider Sophocles with Aranleigh in third.
The former champion jockey had earlier bruised a leg after a fall from Finger Onthe Pulse in the Coral Cup but he was feeling no pain after a 12th festival victory. "I rode him the previous morning for the first time and he gave me no feel because he was looking around him all the time. But on the way to start, I said to Ruby (Walsh), who rode him here in November, this is a machine. Put it like this, I had a fair idea I was on a racehorse!" he grinned.
Walsh was on the well-backed favourite Mad Fish who managed only eighth and it was left to Sophocles, ridden by the amateur Pauline Ryan, who was unable to claim her 7lb allowance in a Grade One, to chase home the Cathal Ryan-owned winner who could now be finished for the season.
"To win two bumpers around here is amazing. He really is a horse," said an exultant Harrington who added: "And he is well schooled for hurdles!"
Afterwards Pauline Ryan picked up a five-day ban for her use of the whip and another four days for causing interference. Katie Walsh on the fifth Fiveforthree got three days for her use of the whip while Fran Berry on the sixth Crocodile Rock was suspended for two days.
The area where horses that have finished out of the first four are unsaddled at Cheltenham is known as the "long-faced parade ring" but Noel Meade managed a commendably stiff upper-lip after Aran Concerto's eclipse in the Ballymore Properties Novice Hurdle.
Labouring under the "Irish banker" tag, the 5 to 2 favourite struggled home in fifth behind Massini's Maguire, leaving his old rival Catch Me to do best of the Irish in third. It was all a terrible anti-climax for the horse Ireland's champion trainer regards as potentially the best he has ever had but Meade was still determined to look ahead.
"When you get beat, you get beat. You have to get used to it in this game or else you'll go mad. It's not the end of the world and if we can keep him right, he will be back," he insisted.
Tony McCoy brought Aran Concerto from last early on to stalk the leaders coming down the hill but a stumble after the second last finished his chance and instead it was the 20 to 1 shot Massini's Maguire who ended up making most of the running.
With both Aran Concerto and Well Chief getting beaten, it was left to Denman to maintain some faith in the concept of a "banker" and he did so in style with a 10-length success in the SunAlliance Chase. Denman's part owner, gambler Harry Findley, estimated he won just under £1 million in bets on the Paul Nicholls-trained horse who is now as low as 5 to 1 for next year's Gold Cup.
Denman's only danger from a long way out was Aces Four but when he made a bad mistake at the third last, the game was up for the bookies. Runner-up was Snowy Morning who might have been unlucky after being interfered with by Cailin Alainn's fall at the ninth.
"He lost his place a bit but the winner looks a terrific horse," said Willie Mullins who could aim Snowy Morning at the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse.
Powerstation did best of the Irish in the Coral Cup, running on to be second to Burntoakboy with the flamboyant Monaghan trainer Oliver Brady enjoying third place with Baron De Feypo.
Favourite backers got another breather in the Kim Muir as Cloudy Lane provided Donald McCain with something his father, Ginger, never achieved; a first festival triumph.
