King George VI Chase: Tornado Flyer springs a festive surprise to win in Kempton

The biggest priced winner in the history of the marquee race, Mullins was riding at Kempton for the very first time and showed his liking to the track by landing an earlier race on Jacamar.

Tornado Flyer is trained by the jockey’s all-conquering uncle Willie Mullins who was winning the King George for the first time since Florida Pearl prevailed 20 years ago under Adrian Maguire.

Mullins was also responsible for Asterion Forlonge who fell heavily at the last, allowing 2018 and 2019 winner Clan Des Obeaux to finish second ahead of Saint Calvados.

This now means that Cheltenham’s four signature races, the Grand National, Betfair Chase and now the King George have all been won by Irish-trained horses in 2021.

The only disappointment was Gold Cup hero Minella Indo who was ultimately pulled up in the King George by Rachael Blackmore.

With last year’s winner Frodon adopting his customary pacesetting role from flag-fall, Mullins played a waiting game for much of the three-mile contest after surviving a bad mistake at the first.

“I knew we weren’t coming over here for a day out. I’d been lucky enough to have ridden this lad quite a bit and on his best form he was going to be in with a shout in a race like this. To win the way he did opens up a lot of new avenues. It is fantastic,” said the winning jockey.

“Willie is a master for getting them ready for these big days. This is the King George and it is a day I’ll never forget. I thought I would be placed. He is a tricky little horse. He often misses a fence early.

“I said to Willie I wanted to jump off a few lengths closer today which would leave me in the position I wanted to be. Turning down the back for the second time, I just had loads of horse and I had to keep biding my time.

“I wouldn’t have minded if someone would have come with me a little longer to the last but he is a class horse and he put down his head and ran out a very impressive winner of a competitive race.

“That is as competitive a staying chase you are going to get bar the Gold Cup and he has gone and done it. We will enjoy today and have a dream about the future and Willie will decide what we do there.

“This year has been fantastic for me. I’ve had a lot of Grade One winners and a winner at Cheltenham - the King George has capped it off. These big days are what it is all about for riders, trainers and owners. You can’t do that without the horses underneath you.”

Willie Mullins, speaking from Ireland, said: “I was totally surprised. John Turner, who has a share in the horse, was on to me to bring him over as he would like a runner on Boxing Day at Kempton.

“But I didn’t think we were going for a win. I thought we would be lucky if we got a place and those were the instructions I gave Danny – ride from the back and get all the prize money you can.”

Earlier Bravemansgame confirmed his burgeoning potential with a classy win in the Grade One Kauto Star Novices’ Chase to provide jockey Harry Cobden with some compensation for Clan Des Obeaux’s second place finish in the King George.

Now unbeaten from three starts over larger obstacles, he jumped more fluently than the Lucinda Russell-trained Ahoy Senor, the great hope of the North, to the delight of champion trainer Paul Nicholls as well as co-owners Bryan Drew and John Dance.

“Derek (Fox, rider of Ahoy Senor) went a good gallop down to the first and stole 10 lengths on us at the start. He travelled and jumped really well and he did everything right,” explained Cobden.

“The one thing I would say is maybe Derek’s horse might have underperformed as the third horse was quite close to him. Our horse gave me an unbelievable feel and for one to pick up like from the back of two out doesn’t happen very often and he is obviously very special.

“I’d rate it (jumping) 10 out 10. It is unbelievable to ride these sort of animals. He is a funny horse our lad as when he is in front he is so alert he takes you down to every fence.

“He was economical, quick and he lost no energy whatsoever on the whole way round. He is so responsive to have a horse with that sort of mentality you can ride him anywhere.”

Meanwhile Nicky Henderson’s Epatante became the eighth horse to win the Christmas Hurdle for a second time when she repeated her success of 2019 under a confident Nico de Boinville who had replaced the suspended Aidan Coleman in the saddle for owneer JP McManus.