Cheltenham Gold Cup 1997

The 1997 Cheltenham Gold Cup once again featured Imperial Call, Barton Bank and One Man, first, fourth and sixth in the 1996 renewal, plus Dublin Flyer, who failed to finish on that occasion. Defending champion Imperial Call had fallen in the Punchestown Chase, with the race at his mercy, on his reappearance in December and finished a distant third, when favourite, in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Leopardstown in February. He was again sent off favourite for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, but ran a lifeless race and was tailed off when pulled up five fences from home. One Man, who had weakened so dramatically in the closing stages in 1996, did so again and, once again, finished a tired sixth.

Mr. Mulligan, trained by Noel Chance, had fallen at the final fence, when beaten, in the King George VI Chase at Kempton when ridden for the first time by Tony McCoy, but the partnership proved a different proposition at Cheltenham. Belying odds of 20/1, the nine-year-old led heading down the back straight for the final time, went clear at the third-last fence and, despite edging right on the run-in, was driven out to win by 9 lengths. Barton Bank stayed on for second, with Dorans Pride a further half a length back in third place.

Mr. Mulligan became a first Cheltenham Gold Cup winner for McCoy and, in so doing, completed a notable double for the Northern Irishman, who had won the Champion Hurdle on Take A Stand, trained by Martin Pipe, two days earlier. McCoy later said of Mr. Mulligan, “When I gave him a little smack, he warmed up and I knew when I let him stride on that he was warming to his task.”