Golden Ace was the surprise winner of the Hurdle champion this afternoon after Constitution Hill, then State Man, crashed.
Constitution Hill, the winner of 2023, became the 1/2 favorite and was well placed in halfway to fall to the last fourth, which puts haffling from the packaged stands.
The statesman took the race and seemed to go towards a second victory in just two years to strike the final obstacle and dismantle the pilot Paul Townend.
The statesman falls last!
Golden Ace wins a ridiculous Hurdle Challenge champion trophy 😳#Itvracing | #Cheltenhamfestival | @williams_lorcan pic.twitter.com/oqeggdugsm
– ITV Racing (@itvracing) March 11, 2025
This allowed Golden Ace to emerge from the small pack of horses remaining to facilitate the finish line.
“I am lost for words, you dream of these moments when I was a child,” said Jockey Lorcan Williams.
Kopek des Bordes wins the opening race
The late decline of the state will be a hard blow for Townend and coach Willie Mullins, but they should find a certain consolation to win the festival’s opening race, the obstacle of the supreme novices of Michael O’Sullivan.
Kopek des Bordes was the winner after Townend managed to overcome the last time, despite a tripper, and to offer an emotional victory for the owner Charlie McCarthy, who underwent surgery for kidney cancer last month.
It was also a moving opportunity for Townend in a race dedicated to the young Jockey O’Sullivan who tragically died at the age of 24 last month after a fall.
Joy for Henderson
Nicky Henderson finally won a first victory of the festival in two years after a bug at his stable decimated his chances in 2024 while Jango Baie won the pursuit of the Arkle Novices. The favorite, the favorite, Majborough could not manage the third.
The Townend-Mullins combination has also joined forces to win the obstacle of the ponds.
