Beef Or Salmon underlined his status as Ireland’s champion staying chaser when landing his eighth Grade One success in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Leopardstown.
The three-times Lexus Chase winner, sent off at 2-5, was roared home by the appreciative crowd as he again claimed the scalp of John Smith’s Grand National hero Hedgehunter to give trainer Michael Hourigan his third win in the race.
Having taken the Irish blue riband in 1998 with Dorans Pride and again with Beef Or Salmon in 2003, Hourigan is fast catching up Hedgehunter’s trainer Willie Mullins, who has taken every other running of the Hennessy since 1999.
But despite his 12-length call over Hedgehunter, it seems bookmakers are still unsure Beef Or Salmon will do it in the totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup, with Coral and Ladbrokes leaving him unchanged at 5-1, although Cashmans go 4-1 from 11-2.
And Hourigan is hoping his pride and joy can finally end his Prestbury Park hoodoo and land the coveted race at the fourth time of asking.
He said: “I would like to think it could be his year at Cheltenham and if he gets there as fit and healthy as he did today, then he has to have every chance.
“He doesn’t have an ache or a pain at the moment, which is wonderful because for the last two years we have been trying to get him right.”
However, his success was not without drama as despite pinging many of his fences, Beef Or Salmon made a terrible mistake at the fifth-last and Paul Carberry was lucky to maintain the partnership.
“That’s eight Grade Ones now with five of them here so I will allow him one mistake. Anything can go wrong and it nearly did,” Hourigan continued.
“He just took a chance at the fence and he won’t do that again. Paul didn’t get a chance to think about how bad it was, but it looked bad enough when I saw it back on television.
“The man on his back said it didn’t feel too much, but perhaps another man would have felt it.”
Carberry added: “He changed his mind mid-air and we were lucky to get away with it.
“He was soon back on the bridle though and gave the last four plenty of height.”
Earlier Arthur Moore sprung a surprise in the Dr.PJ Moriarty Novice Chase as The Railway Man claimed victory in the Grade One contest.
However, the impressive 16-1 winner looks unlikely to take his place in the Royal & SunAlliance Chase at the Cheltenham Festival and bookmakers reacted with caution, cutting the seven-year-old into a general 20-1 from 33s.
Southern Vic was sent off the 9-4 favourite to land a hat-trick but he was taken on for the lead early in the two-mile-five-furlong race and faded when the taps were turned on.
Father Matt, who had hassled him for the lead, appeared to have slipped the field but he started to tire at the second-last, at which point Davy Russell on The Railway Man loomed large.
Although having to battle hard up the run-in, he stayed on dourly to see off Father Matt by a length and half, with leading SunAlliance candidate Our Ben flashing home for third and finishing just a neck away.
Noel Meade is also set to be double-handed in one of the feature races at the Festival after Mr Nosie maintained his unbeaten record in the Grade One Deloitte Novice Hurdle.
Despite making several mistakes on the way round, the 11-10 market leader overcame a howler at the second-last to stay on round the outside of the field and score by three lengths from the JP McManus-owned Royaldou.
McManus’ other runner, the Tony McCoy-ridden Glenfinn Captain, crashed out down the back before falling again when running loose, hampering the winner and Paul Carberry in the process.
Studmaster booked his place in the Sunderlands Imperial Cup as he defied a 10lb rise in the weights to take the T.C Matthews Carpets Handicap Hurdle.
Jessica Harrington’s charge was sent off the 5-2 favourite after his win in the Pierse Hurdle last time and he was firmly in control from the last flight in the two-mile event.
Tom Treacy just had to keep Studmaster up to his work on the run-in to secure a facile five-length win from Freddie Foster, with Moore’s Law back in third and Don’t Be Bitin.
Harrington is now looking towards the two-mile event at Sandown on March 11th for the six-year-old.