Five memorable winners of the bet365 Charlie Hall Chase

The 1996 renewal of the Charlie Hall Chase was very much a One Man show as the popular grey jumped and travelled all over rivals that included two-time Charlie Hall winner Barton Bank.

The winner, making his first appearance since disappointing in the previous year’s Gold Cup at Cheltenham, was always going best under Richard Dunwoody and a good jump at the fourth-last fence propelled him to the front as long-time leader Barton Bank began to feel the heat.

The John Hales-owned star eased his way to a seven-length success, a springboard to him winning that season’s King George VI Chase at Kempton by an even more emphatic margin.

See More Business won 18 races throughout his stellar career but none by more than the 30-length margin he registered in the 2000 edition of the Charlie Hall Chase.

The Paul Nicholls-trained star had won the previous year’s renewal by five lengths and, sent off a red-hot 1-3 favourite against just three rivals, hacked his way to the wide margin success having been sent on by Mick Fitzgerald from an early stage.

Short-priced favourite backers were given a scare when the former Cheltenham Gold Cup hero jumped markedly to his left at the third-last but he was so superior to his rivals that it didn’t matter.

The unpredictable but often brilliant Our Vic posted one of the biggest performances of his illustrious career when he went to Wetherby for their feature event in 2006.

Sent off a well-supported 2-1 favourite in the famous blue-and-green David Johnson silks, Our Vic jumped and travelled smoothly under Timmy Murphy, and the pair jumped to the front four out.

His many backers didn’t have a moment’s worry from that point as Our Vic sauntered clear, with his rider only really having to resort to pushing him out to score by an emphatic seven lengths from runner-up Neptune Collonges, who stuck to his task in dour fashion.

It was David Pipe’s first big success since taking over the licence at Pond House from father, Martin.

Seven-time Grade One winner Silviniaco Conte earned more than £1million during his 36-race career, £57,000 of which was earned with a quite brilliant 11-length victory in the 2012 edition of the Charlie Hall.

Silviniaco Conti was produced to perfection by trainer Paul Nicholls on the day, his first start since a runaway success in the Mildmay Novices’ Chase at Aintree the previous season, and the son of Dom Alco could hardly have announced himself among the big boys in any more comprehensive fashion.

Ruby Walsh always looked confident on the then six-year-old, who jumped and travelled like an old hand before leading two out and forging clear. It was an ideal stepping stone to a remarkable career at the top table.

Cyrname was a special talent but his performance in the 2020 Charlie Hall Chase was scintillating on several levels plus rubbished doubts that he could produce his best form going left-handed.

Once the highest-rated chaser in training based on his form at Ascot – a venue where he even took down the previously unbeaten chaser Altior - Cyrname put together a hugely impressive round of jumping despite having raced a touch free through the early stages and was conceding weight all-round.

There was more than enough in Cyrname’s tank to readily hold off the staying-on Vinndication and he ultimately proved a class apart, just as his official rating had suggested.