Jonjo O’Neill Jr was aboard the 100/1 shock winner of the Triumph Hurdle on Friday and joined Matt Chapman and Paddy Brennan on episode 20 of Unbridled to speak by way of his Competition heroics and supplied some perception into his Grand Nationwide aspirations.
O’Neill Jr returned to the winners’ enclosure on the Cheltenham Competition for the primary time since touchdown the Martin Pipe aboard Early Doorways in 2019, with a powerful show aboard the ultra-progressive Jagwar for Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero within the TrustATrader Plate on Thursday.
O’Neill Jr has change into one thing of a daily in JP McManus’ inexperienced and gold silks on the large events, frequently partnering the likes of Champ in direction of the latter levels of his profession and extra not too long ago has developed a partnership with Grand Nationwide hopeful Iroko.
Talking with Matt and Paddy, O’Neill Jr mentioned Jagwar’s fast enchancment and the way he wasn’t certain if the son of Karaktar would deal with the steep rise in addition to his place available in the market had advised.
“From when he won the first day at Wetherby, I really wasn’t sure to what extent he was going to progress, but he has with each run. [First at] Bangor-On-Dee and then he ran well when he was wrong at Uttoxeter and obviously he was good at Cheltenham, but I still felt he needed to improve a stone to win on Thursday, and thankfully he did.”
Brennan was eager to heap the reward onto O’Neill Jr saying the training he gave the horse helped him be taught sufficient to deal with the character of a race on the Cheltenham Competition.
He stated: “If you want to watch where that race, for me, was won was at Wetherby and Bangor. What he learned on those days made him [ready] for Cheltenham.”
O’Neill Jr responded: “He was a slow-burner, he was not a good jumper of a hurdle, I wouldn’t say he was a natural over a fence either but he was very keen over hurdles and he did just take a little bit of minding.
“Josh and Ollie have executed a very good job as a result of I can not think about he is an easy journey at dwelling for Ben Smith who rides him every single day. He was identical to an enormous uncooked teenager and fortunately he is mentally copped on with every run, however I’m stunned by how a lot he has progressed.”
Jagwar was despatched off the three/1 favorite for the competition and for all he wasn’t probably the most fluent on the final, it did not cease the pair from working out prepared winners with practically three lengths again to the Gavin Cromwell-trained Thecompanysergeant on the line.
With simply 5 rides at this yr’s Competition, you would not discover many jockeys with a a lot better strike-rate than O’Neill Jr, as he doubled his tally for the week aboard Poniros – the shock 100/1 winner of the Triumph Hurdle on Gold Cup day.
With every little thing going a bit bit higher than was anticipated, Chapman requested what was going by way of his head all through the competition.
O’Neill Jr stated: “We trapped along to the first and I thought, ‘I just hope this thing can operate’ and he jumped the first literally like an old handicapper and I said, ‘oh, we’re going to be okay’.
“He was a bit bit novicey over the subsequent few however very protected.
“I wasn’t really paying attention to the ones in front, I could see all the leading fancies were up ahead and just as we started going down the hill, I was looking at a couple of others for Willie and they were squeezing along, trying to keep their position and I was still cantering.
“I assumed, if we leap the second final, they will in all probability quicken away from us, however I used to be delighted that he’d run a very nice race first time.
“They just didn’t quicken away from us as much as I thought they would, and I just felt like I was rolling. I thought that going to the last I had a sniff, and I think his flat experience made a big difference. When he got over the last, he knew how to race which I think counted for a lot.”
Chapman alluded to the truth that any journey for Willie Mullins have to be a privilege however to get the decision up for a journey within the Triumph felt rather more particular to the rider.
“I was very fortunate really with the way it worked out, obviously Willie had 11 in the race, and he was going to use up all of his Irish jockeys and then there were two spares for [Harry] Cobden and myself.
“I’ve ridden a few instances for Willie prior to now however nothing in a race just like the Triumph and it is simply a suggestion you may’t flip down.”
Poniros turned the joint-highest priced winner of a race on the Cheltenham Competition, matching the Gold Cup success of Norton’s Coin in 1990 and Hipparchus’ victory within the 1954 Grand Annual.
With the 2025 Cheltenham Competition turning into a distant reminiscence, attentions now flip to Aintree the place O’Neill Jr is ready to associate Iroko within the Grand Nationwide for Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero.
“He’s progressed nicely with each run, I thought his run at Kelso was really good as the ground was a bit lively for him and Grey Dawning, on his day, is a proper Grade One horse, as a prep for the National, we’re very happy and he’s got a nice weight.
“It is a actually aggressive renewal; I do know a pair got here out nevertheless it’s nonetheless a really sturdy race. Saying that, I nonetheless would not wish to swap him.”
