2025 Champion Chase Result - Marine Nationale claims emotional victory for Barry Connell
- Full result and replay for the 2025 Champion Chase
- Marine Nationale wins an incident-packed renewal
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Marine Nationale wins the Champion Chase. (Getty)
Jonbon carried a short price into the Champion Chase this afternoon, as Nicky Henderson's star chaser looked to win at the Cheltenham Festival for the first time.
Nicky Henderson's star added a second Tingle Creek and a first Clarence House Chase to his collection earlier in the season, but Jonbon was looking to reverse a losing record at this famous track, having finished second on his two previous Festival appearances.
Former Supreme Novices' Hurdle winner, Marine Nationale sat second in the betting, ahead of former two-time Champion Chaser, Energumene. Danny Gilligan took the ride on Found A Fifty after Jack Kennedy was stood down for the day. Captain Guinness returned to defend the title he won in dramatic circumstances last year. Solness, Libberty Hunter and Quilixios completed the Champion Chase line-up.
Nicky Henderson's star added a second Tingle Creek and a first Clarence House Chase to his collection earlier in the season, but Jonbon was looking to reverse a losing record at this famous track, having finished second on his two previous Festival appearances.
Former Supreme Novices' Hurdle winner, Marine Nationale sat second in the betting, ahead of former two-time Champion Chaser, Energumene. Danny Gilligan took the ride on Found A Fifty after Jack Kennedy was stood down for the day. Captain Guinness returned to defend the title he won in dramatic circumstances last year. Solness, Libberty Hunter and Quilixios completed the Champion Chase line-up.
2025 Champion Chase Result
| Position | Name | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Marine Nationale | 5/1 |
| 2nd | Jonbon | 5/6f |
| 3rd | Captain Guinness | 25/1 |
Another false start seemed to throw the cat amongst the pigeons early in. Solness and Jonbon were expected to make the running, but it was Quilixios and Energumene who toed them along in the early stages.
Rounding the first bend, Solness finally managed to get to the front, but JJ Slevin's mount was working hard to stay there. Quilixios made an early error and dropped back to third, as Energumene moved back to the front on the inside.
Coming down the back-straight, Nico De Boinville took Jonbon a little wide to get a good look at his fences. The favourite then made a terrible blunder at the fifth fences from home, and dropped out to the back of the field.
Solness was being ridden along to stay at the front as Libberty Hunter fell at the third last. Energumene cried enough at the bottom of the hill, as Quilixios and Marine Nationale set off for home.
Quilixios was still in there pitching jumping the second-last, with Marine Nationale travelling the better. Darragh O'Keeffe's mount then took a crashing fall at the final flight, allowing Marine Nationale to fly up the hill and Sean Flanagan saluted a shell-shocked crowd.
To his credit, Jonbon kept on up the hill to finish a distant second. Captain Guinness, who barely featured in the contest, finishes third, but the win went to Marine Nationale, who entered the winner's enclosure under the late Michael O'Sullivan at the 2023 Cheltenham Festival.
2025 Champion Chase Result
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