Cheltenham Festival: Michael O'Sullivan remembered as Jazzy Matty strikes

The six-year-old Jazzy Matty is already a two-time Cheltenham Festival winner as the youngest horse in the 20-runner line-up proved too good in the customary hurly-burly of the Debenhams Johnny Henderson Grand Annual, handing trainer Cian Collins a first Cheltenham Festival victory. 

And on a remarkable and poignant afternoon at Cheltenham, the two horses ridden to success by the late Michael O’Sullivan at the meeting two years both triumphed here within the space of an hour after Marine Nationale landed the Bet MGM Queen Mother Champion Chase.

The top-weight JPR One travelled strongly coming down the hill along with My Mate Mozzie, but it was last year’s winner Unexpected Party who led the way turning in and he was more or less there until the final fence when Jazzy Matty genuinely went upsides and moved on to strike by a length and a half, with Midnight It Is three lengths behind the winner in third. My Mate Mozzie took fourth and Jasko De Dames finished fifth as Irish-trained horses filled five of the first six places home.

“I’m sure everyone knows there was someone very special looking down on us today. That’s for Michael,” said the winning rider.

“It went very smooth, never missed a beat the whole way around. He was in such a great rhythm and I didn’t want to disappoint him anywhere. 

“He really loves it around here and loves that hill, he grinds it out.” 

“We’ve actually been talking about it for the last week or so - ‘could it ever happen?’ - and I think it’s absolutely crazy that it did happen.

“I said to Alan O’Sullivan there that things like this don’t happen too often, so someone is definitely looking down on us today."

“He never put a foot wrong anywhere. 

 “It was a very easy race to watch and I thought it would be a very hard race to watch."

Collins was celebrating his first Festival triumph, having previously worked for Gordon Elliott for seven years.

"I've been dreaming about this for a long time. To get it so early is unreal."