Top Five Biggest Shocks in Gold Cup History
Favourite Galopin des Champs took the victory in today’s Gold Cup with relative ease as he held off rival Bravemansgame.
Coming in at odds of 7/5, it was a happy win for several punters.
Despite this, it isn’t unheard of that rank outsiders can go all the way in Cheltenham’s blue-ribbon event.
Here are the top five longest-odds winners in Gold Cup history.
5. Cool Dawn 1998 25/1
Rank outsider Cool Dawn led from start to finish in the 1998 Gold Cup, producing a surprising win for trainer Robert Alner.
Following drama at the seventh fence, Cyborgo pulled up lame, taking out both See More Business and Indian Tracker.
The early chaos didn’t faze Cool Dawn, and he rode to victory ahead of Strong Promise and favourite Dorans Pride.
4. Cool Ground 1992 25/1
Cool Ground was at odds as long as 40/1 early in the day of the 1992 Gold Cup.
Starting at 25/1, the Tony Balding-trained horse won by a short head ahead of The Fellow, with Docklands Express back in a close third.
Irish jockey Adrian Maguire rode the Irish-bred horse to the most substantial victory of his career.
3. Gay Donald 1955 33/1
Torrential rain in Cheltenham before the 1955 Gold Cup provided a boost for our first 33/1 winner.
As the only surviving race of the day, heavy rainfall hampered the favourite and reigning champion Four Ten, allowing outsider Gay Donald to win.
Ridden home by jockey Tony Graham, Gay Donald made mistakes over the last two hurdles but held on for a ten-length win.
2. L’Escargot 1970 33/1:
Another 33/1 winner came again in 1970 as Irish-trained L’Escargot won the first of two Gold Cups.
The outsider was steered to victory by regular jockey Tommy Carberry.
Helped by the favourite Kinloch Brae falling at the third last fence, L’Escargot stayed strong to beat French Tan into second by a length and a half.
1. Norton’s Coin 1990 100/1:
Providing the longest odds on the list, go to 1990 Gold Cup winner Norton’s Coin.
Ridden by Graham McCourt, it was a massive shock win for owner Sirrell Griffiths.
Desert Orchid went into the race as the favourite at 10/11 but could only finish third.
Major bookmakers took few substantial bets on the horse, but many minor betting shops in Wales sustained heavy losses thanks to strong support from locals.
The win kicked off a trend of several long-odds wins in the Gold Cup throughout the 1990s.
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