Trainer Alan King says Smad Place‘s performance in his Hennessy Gold Cup victory took his “breath away”.
Smad Place pulled well clear of fellow pacesetter Fingal Bay to secure a comfortable victory by 12 lengths, beating the likes of Theatre Guide, Saphir Du Rheu and First Lieutenant.
King insists he was confident going into the race but never expected such a dominant performance from the eight-year-old.
He told the Racing Post: “We hoped for a good run but that took my breath away. Full credit to Wayne (Hutchinson, jockey) – I’m not sure those were the tactics we discussed!
“We learnt from last year and giving him a prep he’s a different horse. He deserved a big one and we learnt from Kempton that he likes being up there. It was a ballsy ride.”
