Kempton Report:Kauto Star once again showed his class as he ripped apart a top-class field to take the Stan James King George VI Chase at Kempton yesterday by a staggering 11 lengths.
The Gold Cup hero thrilled the biggest St Stephen's Day crowd for over six years as more than 25,000 people packed into the Sunbury venue to see Ruby Walsh steer the 4 to 6 favourite to a thumping victory.
With stablemate Denman having hogged the headlines since the Hennessy, the Paul Nicholls-trained seven-year-old needed to reaffirm his position at the top of the tree and did so in tremendous style.
As My Way de Solzen and Taranis were pulled up, Kauto Star took closer order in his bid to repeat his victory of 12 months ago. Walsh - having just his fifth mount since returning from a broken collarbone - allowed the market leader to stride on five fences from the finish and Kauto Star always had the Christmas highlight at his mercy.
He put in an exuberant leap at the final obstacle to put to bed any talk of his old jumping mistakes and left Our Vic to grab second, with Exotic Dancer third and Racing Demon fourth.
Nicholls said: "I did think he would win. He looked great and has shown we can ride him any way we like - he is going to take some beating. I said to Ruby not to be afraid and to use his jumping as he stays and gets a Gold Cup trip - I don't mind our horses being in front as they keep going.
"He jumps really well now. The horse has more confidence these days and so does Ruby - he knows he can boot him into a fence and ask for a big one and if he ends up in front it doesn't matter as he stays. Hopefully the talk of his jumping will be a thing of the past and to me that is as good as a performance as anything he has done in the past."
Denman had joined Kauto Star at the head of the Gold Cup betting following the Hennessy but the pendulum has swung back in favour of last season's winner, totesport cutting him to 5 to 4 with Denman at 2 to 1.
Nicholls added: "Denman is still stepping up the ladder and on today's performance Kauto is still the one to beat. There are plenty of options for Kauto before then, but favourite at the moment is the Grade One race at Ascot (the First Commercial Ascot Chase on February 16th)."
Walsh added: "It was a bit special. He's a fabulous horse. There wouldn't be a better horse of my generation. He stays so well, but I had such a good feeling when I had the others stone cold at the fourth-last in the King George. That speaks for itself.
"He got revved up dropping back to two miles in the Tingle Creek last year, but he now switches off and relaxes. I had full faith him and I wouldn't swap him in the Gold Cup - but let's just see what turns up on the day. It is a long way off."
There was also good news for Nicholls as Taranis, who had left in a horse ambulance, was later reported to have had treatment on his off-fore tendon and been taken home in a comfortable condition.
Straw Bear deprived Harchibald of a shot at a £1 million bonus in the final strides of the Stan James Christmas Hurdle. Noel Meade's gelding very nearly added the Grade One event to his "Fighting Fifth" Hurdle victory, and should he have completed a hat-trick in the Champion Hurdle, betting exchange WBX would have made his connections six-figures richer.
Rattling down to the second-last, the race looked at Harchibald's mercy but Straw Bear's team had their tactics just right. Tony McCoy got to work on Straw Bear while Paul Carberry remained motionless and as so often happens with Harchibald, there was no further response when he was taken off the bridle on the run-in.
Harchibald's trainer Noel Meade was absent, but his partner Gillian O'Brien explained: "Paul said he was in trouble down the back and it is pretty testing ground, which he didn't travel on.
"He got to the front okay, but it was just too soft for him. He'll probably go straight to the Champion Hurdle now, although we might run him on the all-weather at Dundalk first."
Nicholls and Walsh went on to land the handicap hurdle with Nycteos (4 to 1).
