Henrietta Knight marked a triumphant return to Cheltenham with a New Year’s Day success, as Precious Metal stormed to victory in the Listed bumper.
Despite not being at Prestbury Park for the win, Knight was elated to secure her first Cheltenham triumph since resuming her training career in January 2024.
The 78-year-old trainer is synonymous with Cheltenham glory, having guided Best Mate to an iconic Gold Cup hat-trick from 2002 to 2004 and securing seven Festival wins in her first training spell.
After stepping away in 2012, Knight’s return last year, with Grand National-winning jockey and former trainer Brendan Powell assisting at her West Lockinge yard, has seen her focus on developing young talent.
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Significant milestone
Precious Metal’s victory was a significant milestone in Knight’s comeback, marking her first Cheltenham win since Calgary Bay on the same New Year’s Day card in 2012.
However, Knight watched the action unfold from Southwell, where she cheered on another of her horses, Motazzen, to a quickfire hat-trick.
“I ended up at Southwell as I part-own the horse that won there, and I wanted to support the other owners,” Knight explained.
“Of course, I would have loved to be at Cheltenham, but Brendan does so much of the training here, and I was delighted he was there to enjoy it.
“Cheltenham is a special place for me because of the Best Mate memories, and I’ve been very lucky there over the years.”
Challenging return
Knight admitted that her return to training has been a challenge, with a stable full of young, unproven horses.
“It’s been quite difficult getting the horses going, as they’re all novices, and we didn’t have any handicapped horses in the yard. But I enjoy training young horses, and we have some very exciting prospects,” she said.
Precious Metal, expertly ridden by Lilly Pinchin, showed impressive improvement from his Wincanton debut, comfortably defeating his rivals and earning a 40-1 quote for the Champion Bumper at the Festival.
Cautious target
However, Knight is cautious about targeting the race, favouring a patient approach for the promising four-year-old.
“He’ll have a break now while we decide what to do next,” Knight revealed. “I think he might be too young for the Festival. Four-year-olds can run, but they often struggle against older horses.
“Aintree or another Listed bumper might be more suitable, and he’ll have one more run before going over hurdles next season.”
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