Captain Guinness provided Rachael Blackmore with her first Queen Mother Champion Chase victory at the Cheltenham Festival this afternoon (13 March).
The nine-year-old, trained by Henry De Bromhead and owned by Declan Landy capitalised on a bad mistake from the Willie Mullins-trained red-hot favourite El Fabiolo, who was swiftly pulled up when he guessed at the fence away from the stands early on.
Rachael said of the gelding’s first Grade One victory: “He travelled incredibly and he jumped really well, but it felt like a long hill today. I’m so pleased for his owner as he’s been knocking on the door in these big races, but this is the biggest of his division.
“It’s incredible, just incredible and I’m so happy to do it on this horse. He always runs his race and he is a really enjoyable horse to ride – it’s magic.”
Mr De Bromhead was saddling his fourth Champion Chase winner following wins for Sizing Europe, Special Tiara and Put The Kettle On.
“He’s had a tricky season – at Christmas he had his atrial fibrillation. Anyway, all that was fine, he passed all his tests, and it’s great to see him back. We’ve always said he deserved to win a Grade One so much, and to win this is incredible,” said Mr De Bromhead.
Gentleman De Mee, who threatened to become the 100th festival winner for Mr Mullins, finished half a length second under Mark Walsh after serving up a battle to Captain Guinness.
Rank outsider Funambule Sivola, who went off at 100/1, finished third and was the only other finisher under Charlie Deutsch for trainer Venetia Williams.
The Alan King-trained Edwardstone, who was best of the British hopes, blazed a trail throughout the race until falling at the penultimate under Tom Cannon. Both horse and jockey walked away.
The Queen Mother Champion Chase is a Grade One National Hunt steeplechase race, run over two miles with 13 fences to jump and it gets underway at 4pm this afternoon (13 March) at day two of the 2024 Cheltenham Festival. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the big race, from this year’s runners and riders, and how to watch, to what prize money the winner will be taking home.
When was the 2024 Queen Mother Champion Chase?
The race got underway at 4pm on Wednesday 13 March.
Who were the runners in the 2024 race?
Horse: El Fabiolo | Jockey: Paul Townend | Owner: Simon Munir & Isaac Souede
Trainer: Willie Mullins
Edwardstone | Tom Cannon | Owner: Robert Abrey & Ian Thurtle
Alan King
Captain Guinness | Rachael Blackmore | Owner: Declan Landy
Henry de Bromhead
Elixir De Nutz | Freddie Gingell | Owner: Terry Warner
Joe Tizzard
Gentleman De Mee | Mark Walsh | Owner: JP McManus
Willie Mullins
Boothill | Jonathan Burke | Owner: Brian & Sandy Lambert
Harry Fry
Funamble Sivola | Charlie Deutsch| Owner: My Racing Manager Freinds
Venetia Williams
What were the odds for this year’s runners?
The following odds were correct at the time of publishing and may vary between bookmakers.
Runners for the 2024 Queen Mother Champion Chase were as follows:
El Fabiolo: 3/10
Edwardstone: 13/2
Captain Guinness: 11/1
Elixir De Nutz: 25/1
Gentleman De Mee: 25/1
Boothill: 80/1
Funamble Sivola: 125/1
Get £10 in FREE bets
Want to place a bet on the current favourite in this race? Sign up to Betway and receive a £10 welcome bet.
What was the prize money?
The winner of the 2024 Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase took home £225,080.
Recent winners
2023: Energumene – read race report
2022: Energumene – read race report
2021: Put The Kettle On – read the race report
2020: Politologue – read the race report
2019: Altior – read the race report
2018: Altior – read the race report
2017: Special Tiara – read the race report
2016: Sprinter Sacre – read the race report
2015: Dodging Bullets – read the race report
2014: Sire de Grugy– read the race report
2013: Sprinter Sacre – read the race report
2012: Finian’s Rainbow – read the race report
2011: Sizing Europe – read the race report
Winning-most trainer, horse, jockey and owner
There are three all-time leading Queen Mother Champion Chase trainers; Nicky Henderson, Tom Dreaper and Paul Nicholls who each have six wins between them. The winning-most horse in the race is Badworth Boy, who won it three times (1983-85). Two jockeys have won the race five times, which is the current record — these are Pat Taaffe and Barry Geraghty. And there are three leading owners in this race; George Ansley, Doug Armitage and John Hales — they have each won three runnings of the race.
The history of the Queen Mother Champion Chase
This race was established in 1959, and it was originally called the National Hunt Two-Mile Champion Chase. It was given its present title in 1980 — the year of the Queen Mother’s 80th birthday — in recognition of her support to jump racing. The Queen Mother was a successful owner of National Hunt horses, particularly chasers, and among these was Game Spirit — the runner-up in this race in 1976.
You might also be interested in:
‘He deserves this’: Willie Mullins scores big in the Cheltenham Festival Champion Hurdle
Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round
Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.
