Cheltenham Kauto Star Cup fav.

Denman defeated on Kempton comeback

Report: Kempton, Saturday

Levy Board Chase (Grade 2) 3m, 5yo+

MADISON DU BERLAIS is 8-1 for the Totesport Gold Cup with Blue Square after he and Tom Scudamore defeated Denman at Kempton on Saturday in emphatic fashion, shaking up the Festival market in the process.

Ladbrokes responded to Denman's defeat by pushing out the reigning champion to 4-1 for the Gold Cup while Coral and Paddy Power both make his stablemate Kauto Star favourite for the race at 6-4.

Madison Du Berlais, who won the Hennessy Gold Cup this season, pulled hard to lead early but was then settled in behind Joe Lively, alongside Denman and Ruby Walsh.


Denman was soon in his customary position at the head of affairs after a bold leap down the back straight.

However, the Gold Cup winner never looked fully happy going right-handed, lugging slightly to his left as he raced, and he was headed by Madison Du Berlais when going down the back straight for the second time.

The David Pipe-trained runner soon had Denman in trouble and entered the home straight clear of his more illustrious rival, dubbed 'the tank'.

And that's where Madison Du Berlais stayed, coming home 23 lengths clear of 8-11 favourite Denman, who was 25 lengths ahead of third-placed Albertas Run.

Pipe said: "Unbelievable, he's been a great horse for the stable and the owners over the years and is still improving.

"The sheepskin side pieces have just helped him; he's always had the odd flat spot.

"I'm sure we've not seen the best ofDenman today. It was a two-horse race a long way from home. We are probably better on a flatter track and it probably played into our strengths. He'll be a shorter price for the Gold Cup now."

Walsh said of Denman: "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed. I thought it would be a matter of just turning up. It took me a bit to get him involved and to get him on an even keel.

"But I got him interested down the back and he travelled great. But Tom Scu upped it a gear and had me struggling.

"He was fairly tired [at the finish], but we consolidated our position without tiring him into the ground."


A deflated Paul Nicholls said: "We are all disappointed he got beat but we didn't go into this race knowing how he was going to run.

"He's run okay, he's run a solid race and he will improve for the run, although not enormously.

"I considered the writing was on the wall from a long way because he never wins from behind. He's got to improve between now and Cheltenham.

"It's quite possible that last year was a once-in-a-lifetimeperformance when he was at his very best and he'll never produce that again."

Nicholls said that the racecourse vet gave the horse's heart a thorough check after the race and he was found to be absolutely fine.

He continued: "The Gold Cup got to the bottom of him and he took a lot of time to get over it.

"I couldn't have run him anywhere after it and if you watch the replay he got very tired, and then we had the heart problem when he came back in."

Of Kauto Star the trainer added: "He is now the one they've all got to beat in the Gold Cup."

Denman 'definitely' going straight to Cheltenham


TRAINER Paul Nicholls on Sunday confirmed that Denman, who had only his second taste of defeat at Kempton on Saturday, would not run again before Cheltenham.


Denman had been out of action since winning last year's Gold Cup after early workouts found him to be suffering from a fibrillating heart and connections were forced to put his season on hold.

A post-race examination on Saturday turned up no signs of a reoccurence of the condition in the nine-year-old and that, Nicholls says, is an important positive.

"I stayed away last night so have not beenin to see Denman personally but I have been in contact with my head lad and he says he seems fine," he said on Sunday.

"Obviously we were all very disappointed yesterday but there were positives to take out of it and one of them was that the racecourse vet found nothing wrong with his heart.

"Our own vet will check him over completely on Monday just to make sure though. He definitely won't run again before the Gold Cup but we could do what we did before this race and take him for a racecourse gallop."


Last year's Gold Cup winner, who had been as short as 6-4 for a repeat at the festival this year, is now a best-priced 4-1 shot for the race.

Stablemate Kauto Star, Gold Cup winner in 2007, is the new favourite for this year's race at a best price of 7-4. Ladbrokes make him 5-4.

Denman's Kempton conqueror Madison Du Berlais is a general 8-1, although Totesport go 5-1.

Denman may not be seen in action before the festival but Nicholls confirmed that the Grand National is still under serious consideration and that a more conclusive decision would be made once the weights are published on Tuesday.

"I haven't ruled out the National," said the trainer, adding: "It gives us another option should something stop us from going to the Gold Cup.

"That's not to say he wouldn't run in both, but if he had a hard race then it would come too soon.

"It will be interesting to see what the weights are and once we have looked at them Iwill sit down with owners Harry Findlay and Paul Barber and discuss it.