Cheltenham Memories – Inglis Drever & The 2008 Stayers’ Hurdle

My name is Craig Kemp and I’m a PPC Sportsbook Manager at William Hill. I’m a huge horse racing fan so I’m writing about my Cheltenham memories.

My love affair with Inglis Drever started at Sandown on a Friday just before Christmas in 2003. It was the day before The Tingle Creek.

Me and some mates took the day off college to go to the racing and watch what felt like a fairly uneventful card. All the chat was about the head-to-head between Moscow Flyer and Azertyuiop the following day.

However, in the Friday feature, a horse called Inglis Drever was an eye-catching and thoroughly dominant winner. I was immediately impressed. I backed him that day to win the Royal & Sun Alliance Novices’ Hurdle at the 2004 Cheltenham Festival and he quickly became the horse at the top of my notebook.

He ended up second at Cheltenham to Fundamentalist over 2m5f, but a wide passage throughout the race was far from ideal and then he just fell short in what was soon to become his trademark surge up the Cheltenham hill after the final hurdle.

Even though it appeared that Inglis Drever would improve for going up in trip, his next campaign was all over 2m – until trying 3m for the first time in the 2005 Stayers’ Hurdle, lowering the colours of the hat-trick seeking Baracouda in the process.

The University Challenge

Inglis Drever missed the 2006 renewal with a tendon injury but was back in 2007 to take on the much-hyped and much-fancied Black Jack Ketchum.

All of my university friends and my horse racing-loving lecturers were on the side of Tony McCoy’s mount and he was duly sent off the 2/1 favourite.

It promised to be a cracker. The favourite was a strong-travelling horse, who looked like everything came easy to him. But we had yet to really see him in a battle. Inglis Drever had previously been described by trainer Howard Johnson as a “proper little Jack Russell” because of his heart and tenacity.

The shame was Black Jack Ketchum fell early on, so the main showdown was over early, but Inglis Drever himself appeared to be struggling at the midway point.

Jockey Paddy Brennan was fairly animated as the horse hit what became a customary flat spot, but he soon began to make his way through the field and was ahead by the last hurdle. He cleared it well and then charged up the run in to victory.

The 2007 Stayers’ Hurdle victory could easily have been my favourite from a personal perspective, but the 2008 success gave me a new level of appreciation for the horse that made me grow even fonder.

Netting the hat-trick

We got a bit more of a backstory about the horse in 2008, as he went in pursuit of Cheltenham history by becoming the first three-time winner of the Stayers’ Hurdle.

There were interviews with his groom Ginni Wright, who clearly held the horse in high admiration and referred to him as her best friend. There were throwback videos of his previous victory and discussions around his return from injury.

Punters clearly immersed themselves in the hype too, as Inglis Drever was sent off 11/8 favourite in search of his three-peat. He had been 5/1 for both of his previous victories.

I’d booked the day off work and it wasn’t long before the roar went up several notches following the starter sending them on their way. Inglis Drever, now nine and ridden by Denis O’Regan, took his custom position nearer to the back of the field than the front.

From there it was a typical Inglis Drever race. He was one of the first to look under pressure, but you always felt like this is what sparked him into life.

Soon he came charging through the field full of momentum. It was what was so likable about him. He was honest. He was willing. He was courageous and he wore his heart on his sleeve.

By the time they swung off the final bend, Inglis Drever was ready to pounce, moving out to lay down his final challenge to leading pair Kazol and Kasbah Bliss.

The Cheltenham grandstands were rocking and it was certainly the loudest cheer I’d heard for an Inglis Drever race.

He soon got his nose in front of Kasbah Bliss and the pair fought out the finish up the run-in, with the favourite gallantly finding extra reserves to win by a length.

“What’s That Coming Over The Hill?”

The post-race celebrations were also a sight to behold. Wright was again full of zest, singing her own rendition of The Automatic song “Monster”. She satisfyingly said: “I have a song for him, and it goes, ‘What’s that coming over the hill? Is it a monster? It’s Inglis Drever!”

She had become a mini-celebrity in her own right, having also led Tidal Bay into the winners’ enclosure following victory earlier in the week at Cheltenham.

The crowds continued to erupt as Inglis Drever reached the enclosure himself and the horse appeared to love the recognition.

The previous Inglis Drever victories had been memorable for me personally, but in 2008 it felt like he got the wider acknowledgment from the live crowds that his running style and effort warranted.

For an all-in 30-minute experience, from the race build-up, to the buzz on the start line, to the euphoria as he made his challenge jumping the last, to the appreciation once the race was done, I doubt this will ever be topped for me personally.

Inglis Drever was my favourite ever racehorse and it was fitting that he showcased all there was to love about him on the grandest stage of them all, in front of a packed crowd that were largely willing him all the way.

This article was written by an employee of William Hill but doesn’t necessarily reflect the opinions of William Hill LTD