With Cheltenham 2025 on the horizon, PPTVs Rob Catterson sat down with Ruby to reflect on some of his Cheltenham Festival mounts and horse racing legends that helped Ruby become the best national hunt jockey ever.
From Annie Powers’ day of redemption to Kauto Stars’ crowing moment in the 2008 Cheltenham Gold Cup, Ruby relives some of his greatest Cheltenham Festival victories.
I would say he was the first superstar Willie Mullins trained but he was unlucky in the beginning.
I won a maiden hurdle in him at Punchestown. Then he went to France, where he beat Grivette. Davy Condon rode him the next day in France because I was suspended. I forgot about that.
He came back after that and ran in the Royal Bond, Paul Townend’s first Grade 1 winner. He was brilliant at Christmas. He was supposed to run at the Dublin Racing Festival (DRF). Well, it wasn’t the DRF at the time, but he got injured after Christmas.
He missed the Supreme but came back at Punchestown, where I rode him to win.
Then, he came back into training the following season. Solwhit beat him in the Morgiana, but surprise, surprise, I was injured again, and Paul Townend won the Hatton’s Grace on him over 2m 4f. Paul also won on him at Christmas and the Irish Champion Hurdle.
He missed the Champion Hurdle but came back for Punchestown.
He was free, free as the wind. Dunguib was beside me all the way. He was quite warm, and he was only back from an injury. Al Ferof won the first, Quevega won later in the card, and this fella won.
Free as the wind, sweat was running off him, and it wasn’t a warm day.
He tanked the whole way through the race. I had a great run down the hill, got between Thousand Stars, and just got out before Oscar Whiskey kept Thousand Stars in.
Off the bend, I followed Peddlers Cross and went inside him, but I probably got there 100 or 150 yards sooner than I wanted to. Jumped the last well and dug in, and in fairness to Peddlers Cross, he came back at me all the way to the line.
But this fella just ground it out, and they both left it out there on the day.
I was too far back. He missed most of that year, came back, won the Irish Champion Hurdle, and went to Cheltenham on the back of just one run.
Yeah, I lined up too far back. Rock On Ruby bucked out, but I would say that we didn’t jump a hurdle and I was already thinking I’m not going well enough to be as far off the pace as I am.
I was always squeezing him from then on. I ended up finishing 3rd, Binoclour was in behind me, couldn’t get Rock On Ruby back.
That was disappointing. I don’t know if he would have won, but if you told me you could ride him again, I would ride him a hell of a lot closer than I did. But to go from a horse that was really keen the year before to a horse that wasn’t going at all, something wasn’t right.
But still, I should have ridden him differently.
Everything was against him the next year. They were blaming everything.
His record in Ireland was incredible, but he went back to the Champion Hurdle with Rock On Ruby, Zarkandar, Countrywide Flame, and I ended up in front an ‘hour’ too soon.
I took it off them at the back of the second last, but he was just that good then; he’d become a really tough horse. I’d say he was very good at Cheltenham, but some of his best battles were with Jetzki and Our Conor at Leopardstown.
You know, people didn’t give him the credit that he deserved. He forced Solwhit into a Stayers Hurdle and Thousand Stars to go 3m hurdling. He forced Oscar Whiskey to be a 2m 4f hurdler.
People go on about a vintage era of Brave Inca, Hardy Eustace, and Harchibald. They wouldn’t beat him.
But because there were three of them on one level, you call it a vintage era. There should be a standout to have a vintage horse.
I wouldn’t agree that he didn’t perform as well at Cheltenham. Maybe Irish racing suited him better, but no, you don’t get a ‘wow’ performance from Irish horses in the UK, as races are run differently.
The pace is truer; they go faster, so you don’t get that ‘wow’ finish that you get in Ireland. At Leopardstown, they rarely go the speed they go in the Champion Hurdle They tend to quicken off the bend with a ‘wow’ finish, hitting the line quickly.
Whereas in English racing, they tend to go harder and the finish is a good bit slower.
He was a superstar, full stop.
Paddy Power is now Non Runner Money Back for the 2025 Cheltenham Festival. That means that if your selection does not line up in the race you back it in for any reason – you will now get your stake back. TC’s apply.
*Paddy also has the more traditional ante-post market where you will lose your stake if your selection doesn’t run in the race for whatever reason.
The latest racing odds are on PaddyPower.com now
