Cheltenham Festival to Host Welsh Battle as Sean Bowen Goes Head-to-Head with Ben Jones for Gold Cup

The pair will square up when they ride two of the leading contenders for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the last-day highlight of the four-day festival that starts on Tuesday.

It will be the first time in living memory, two Welsh riders will go into jump racing’s most prestigious race aboard horses widely regarded as genuine contenders.

Champion jockey Bowen will partner the Rebecca Curtis-trained Haiti Couleurs, while Jones takes the ride on the unbeaten The Jukebox Man — a rapidly rising star owned by former football manager Harry Redknapp.

Both jockeys have honed their craft on Welsh racecourses Chepstow and Ffos Las, but now comes a chance for glory on a stage only rivalled by the Aintree Grand National.

With the Gold Cup traditionally dominated by Irish-trained runners and the biggest British yards, the prospect of two Welsh jockeys battling for the sport’s ultimate prize is the talk of racing in Wales.

Both arrive at Cheltenham with realistic hopes in what many pundits believe is one of the most open renewals of the race in recent years.

For Bowen, who looks certain to retain his Champion Jockey title, the Gold Cup represents the ultimate prize.

And the Pembrokeshire ace believes Haiti Couleurs possesses the stamina and temperament required for the demanding Cheltenham test.

“You never know till the day, he'll definitely love the track. He'll definitely stay very, very well. And look, he's a very, very good horse,” said Bowen.

“Hopefully, he's the best on the day. But you never know going into those races, I think it's probably the widest open Gold Cup there's been in a long time. Hopefully we're thereabouts.”

Haiti Couleurs carries the strongest Welsh back story. Trained in Pembrokeshire by Rebecca Curtis, the nine-year-old is attempting to become only the second Welsh-trained horse ever to win the Gold Cup.

The only previous success came in 1990 when the 100-1 outsider Norton’s Coin stunned the racing world with one of the greatest upsets in the history of the race.

Haiti Couleurs, however, would arrive with far stronger credentials, having  won the Welsh Grand National at Chepstow in December.

Already a winner at the Cheltenham Festival in last season’s National Hunt Chase, the powerful staying chaser has continued to progress and heads into the race among the leading contenders following his victory in the Grade Two Denman Chase at Newbury earlier this year.

Curtis believes the horse could hardly have done more in his final preparation for the Festival.

“I was delighted, I don't really think he could have done any more,” she said about the Newbury success.

“He was lonely in front, jumping that horrible ground. It just looked like he was in third gear and then when something has come to him, he's quickened away and jumped nicely up the straight and sort of put the race to bed, which is what we wanted.

“I didn't want him to have an overly hard race with Cheltenham so close, so I was very pleased”.

The trainer believes the horse’s steady improvement over the past two seasons has turned him into a genuine Gold Cup contender.

“He's been amazing, he’s run some real legendary type races, the Irish National and the Welsh National. To be going into the Gold Cup with single figure odds is amazing,” she added.

“We always thought he was a very nice horse as a young horse, but he's just improved, improved with every single run.

“He wouldn’t be one of those you’d work at home and go, ‘wow’, but like Sean said, you put three miles and fences in front of him and he comes alive”.

Haiti Couleurs’ proven stamina in marathon contests — including victories in the Irish Grand National as well as the Welsh — suggests the punishing three miles and two furlongs of the Gold Cup could play directly to his strengths.

While Haiti Couleurs represents a traditional staying powerhouse, Jones heads to Cheltenham with one of the most exciting young chasers currently in training.

Trained by Ben Pauling and owned by Redknapp,  The Jukebox Man has won all four of his chasing starts, including a major breakthrough victory in the King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day.

Jones – who father Dai is clerk of the course at Chepstow - has ridden him in each of those victories and has developed a strong bond with the horse.

“I wouldn’t swap him for any other horse in the race,” he said.

“It’s a bit annoying that it’s on the Friday and I’ll have to wait all week to get my leg up on him, but it’s very, very exciting.

“He’s never let me down, and I’ve won on him every time I’ve sat on him.”

This year’s race promises to be fiercely competitive.

Leading Irish contenders such as Galopin Des Champs have been ruled out but Inothewayurthinkin brings proven Grade One form and strong Festival credentials, ensuring the traditional Irish challenge remains formidable.

Yet there is a growing consensus that the race lacks a dominant favourite, creating opportunities for both Bowen and Jones.

If either rider manages to guide their mount up the famous Cheltenham hill in front on Friday afternoon, it would represent a landmark moment for Welsh racing — and one of the standout stories of the Festival.