Kauto Star, winner of the King George VI Chase four times previous, created history on Boxing Day to record a fifth victory in the infamous race at Kempton.
The 11-year-old, ridden by Ruby Walsh, overturned last year’s defeat to young rival, Long Run, to triumph in the race for the fifth time in six years, winning by just over a length.
Kauto Star becomes now the only horse in history to win the King George VI Chase five times, moving ahead of Desert Orchid’s tally of four successes.
Kauto Star had starting odds of 3/1 and was amongst the front runners throughout the race, with Long Run, starting as the favourite at even money, consistently behind the veteran horse.
The Paul Nicholls trained horse has silenced many critics with this success, after the two-time Cheltenham Gold Cup champion had tasted defeat twice to the Nicky Henderson trained Long Run, at the start of the season.
Nicholls stated post-race, "He's just awesome and I knew we had him in serious order. I don't know why he wasn't quite right last year.
"If he gets to
Jockey, Walsh, had ridden a near perfect race on Kauto Star, with fences and ditches providing no trouble for the experienced duo of man and horse.
And with Kauto Star leading, and quickening, the pace coming into the final straight, the fate of the race were in their shoes, as, despite Long Run finishing the stronger, the ever popular Kauto Star held his place at the front of the pack.
Walsh stated of Kauto Star after the race: "He's an amazing horse. He looked a million dollars and he felt great. He jumped super and travelled great. This is a fairytale. He's a wonderful horse and it's a credit to the people who work with him every day.
"He's beaten a six-year-old [Long Run] and he's 12 next week. To keep a horse going as long as that is amazing.
"You can say what you want about the best steeplechasers of all time, but he's outlasted them all. He's lasted longer than any other horse and that's what makes him so brilliant.
"This horse is as tough as nails and he's exceptional."
Kauto Star now possesses a record of having raced 40 times in his career, winning 23 times, and has only been unplaced in just six outings.
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