Horse racing is full of wild upsets and favourites being ousted by rank outsiders, but when such things occur in the classics, then they tend to be remembered for years to come.
Here are some of the greatest upsets ever seen at the Cheltenham Gold Cup, all of which have had tongues wagging in the racing industry ever since.
L’Escargot – Snail by Name but Not by Nature
All the way back in 1970 a horse named after one of the slowest beasts in the animal kingdom overcame longshot odds of 33/1 to stun spectators to win the Gold Cup.
He then went on to prove that he was no one hit wonder, winning the same race again in 1971, by which time bookies had learned their lesson and trimmed his odds substantially.
Aside from this stunning upset in 1970, the horse is perhaps best known for bringing Red Rum‘s famous winning streak to end, when he bested the all-time-great at the 1975 Aintree Grand National. Game beasts like L’Escargot just go to show that punters who bet on horse racing are always wise to hedge their plays with little punts on promising outsiders.
Another lesson taught to racing fans by L’Escargot is to never judge a horse by its name.
Norton’s Coin – Coining it in For Speculative Punters
The 1990 Gold Cup was the scene of the greatest upset in the race’s history, when the 100/1 and completely unfancied Norton’s Coin decided to run the race of his life, ousting one of the greatest race horses the world has ever seen, Desert Orchid.
Needless to say, a pin could be heard falling around the track that day, as betting slips and form guides were torn up and thrown in the trash.
What made Norton’s Coin’s victory even more incredible was that the horse did not come from one of the sport‘s established stables, but from a tiny Welsh hill farm, where he was trained, ridden, and owned by a small-hold farmer called Sirrel Griffiths.
The horse’s victory was tantamount to a non-league team winning the FA Cup and will never be forgotten.
Lord Windermere – Plucky Irish Outsider with No Quit in Him
In 2014 the only two runners anyone was wagering on were Silviniaco Conti and Bobs Worth, but then from nowhere came an Irish outsider who was roared home by the usual contingent of racing fans from the Emerald Isle who descend on Cheltenham every year.
Having started the race with tasty 20/1 odds, there is no doubt that Lord Windermere helped pay for a few rounds of the black stuff later that night.
Al Boum Photo – Going from Outsider to Favourite
Believe it or not, the favourite to claim the 2021 Gold Cup was in fact a big outsider when he first ran the race in 2019, but quickly established himself as one of the premier steeplechasers in the world, retaining his title in 2020.
Cool Ground – Pouncing on His Rivals’ Squabbles
In the run up to the 1992 Gold Cup most observers and tipsters expected Carvill’s Hill to leave the rest huffing and puffing.
However, the beauty of racing is that animals are not always predictable and that proved to be the case on this occasion, with the favourite seemingly pre-occupied by another runner, leaving the door open for Cool Ground to sweep to victory.
