Pied Piper avenges Aintree reverse with Cheltenham victory

Old rival Knight Salute settles for second at Prestbury Park.

Pied Piper gained revenge on old rival Knight Salute as he emerged victorious in the Masterson Holdings Hurdle at Cheltenham.

The two horses met in the Anniversary 4-y-o Juvenile Hurdle at Aintree in April and could not be separated as the race was declared a dead heat.

However, Knight Salute, trained by Milton Harris, was subsequently awarded the race in the stewards’ room as his opponent was deemed to have caused interference on the run to the line.

On this occasion there were no such fine margins as the Gordon Elliott-trained Pied Piper strode to a two-and-three-quarter-length triumph under Jack Kennedy as the 5-6 favourite.

Knight Salute was the runner-up at 9-2, just outperforming Joseph O’Brien’s Bella Scintilla by a head.

Knight Salute and Pied Piper dead-heating at Aintree
Knight Salute and Pied Piper dead-heating at Aintree (David Davies/PA)

Elliott said: “We were looking forward to a bit of improvement coming over here and we thought it was a nice race to start him off in. Jack gave him a lovely ride and it worked out well.

“He won well and has got a lot stronger since last year. I loved the way he put his head down and galloped to the line. I’m very happy.

“He is a nice horse. We are going to dream for a while (of the Champion Hurdle), but it is a hot division and he is going to have to keep improving.

“We will go to Down Royal for the WKD in two weeks and on to Christmas, all being well, from there.

“He’ll be trained like a Champion Hurdle horse, but it is a very, very hot division and he’s going to have to improve, but if you’re not in, you can’t win.”

Betfair clipped Pied Piper from 20-1 to 14s for the Champion Hurdle back at Cheltenham in March.

Elliott continued: “If you look at the way he jumps his hurdles, he is going to be a chaser down the road – he’s one to look forward to.

“We bought him at the Horses In Training Sale last year and he’s getting stronger every day. There’s a big Flat handicap in him as well, you know?

“I would imagine we will keep him over timber this season.

“He is way stronger than he was last season. With those juveniles, that is what you want – a bit of scope. If he keeps going the way he is going, we’ll be happy.”

Knight Salute and Pied Piper initially shared the honours at Aintree
Knight Salute and Pied Piper initially shared the honours at Aintree (Steven Paston/PA)

Harris offered no excuses in defeat for Knight Salute.

He said: “Nature of the beast, isn’t it?

“It is sport. There’ll be another day. I wouldn’t shy away from him again. He ran a good race. I’d love to offer an excuse, but I don’t have one. He hasn’t let us down.”

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