HARRY Redknapp enjoyed a first Cheltenham Festival winner as Shakem Up’Arry found the scoresheet on a football-orientated day three of the Cheltenham Festival.
Having watched his former managerial rival Sir Alex Ferguson notch a double earlier on the card, it was soon the turn of the former West Ham, Portsmouth and Tottenham boss to return to the Prestbury Park winner’s enclosure with his course specialist - who supplemented his New Year’s Day triumph here in great style.
Sent off at 8-1 for the TrustATrader Plate Handicap Chase, the Ben Pauling-trained 10-year-old travelled supremely in the hands of Ben Jones and having jumped the last already looking the winner, he stuck his head down and galloped all the way to the line.
The victory continued Pauling’s fine run of recent form, with the Naunton Downs handler registering a fourth Festival success. However, it was a first victory for 24-year-old Jones at the meeting having only once previously enjoyed success at the Cotswolds track - aboard Shakem Up’Arry on the duo’s previous start.
Redknapp said: “Oh my god, get in there. How good was that? He jumped for fun, what a performance. I’m so happy, it’s unbelievable. My nan got me into racing, she was a bookie’s runner when she was young and every week she’d get locked up in the police station in the east end of London because betting was illegal in those days. She got me into it and I love every minute, I love the people, I love the racing. To have a winner at the Festival, my god, I can’t tell you.
“Me and Alex (Ferguson) both love it, it’s great to see him have two winners today and I’ve had mine now, it’s been a great day.
“To have a winner at Cheltenham, I’ve watched it all my life and always dreamed of having a winner here, I can’t tell you how great it feels.”
Pauling said of his winner: “He deserved his big day. It’s so important to have winners here and the last two days have been really tough. There’s a lot of talk about the Irish and English and to say we don’t have the hunger for this game is daft.
“We’ve got as much hunger as anyone, Dan Skelton has proved that. I was delighted for him, but it doesn’t mean that we didn’t want one.
“I turned up with three horses yesterday that I thought would be in the first three and I think we beat three horses home. You have doubts and think you’ve done too much with them or whatever. This is where it matters and once you get one get their head in front, you can breathe.
“We’ve come here with a good team and the old stalwart has chucked his head in front.”
He added: “I know this meant a lot to Harry who has been a supporter of mine for a long time. We speak quite a lot and he’s an easy man to talk to. We’ve had good and bad times.
“It was a long run-in and I was shouting ‘pull him left Benny’. I’m Just delighted for Harry who is a competitive man.”
