Sky Really Is The Limit For O'Grady Ace

Sky's The Limit turned a typically competitive Coral Cup into a rout when he romped home under top weight to bring a successful outcome to a plan hatched four months ago by trainer Edward O'Grady.

The five-year-old had not run since winning a conditions hurdle at Fairyhouse in December but he was clearly none the worse for the break as he showed with an impressive victory.

Barry Geraghty cruised up to the leader Inch Pride after the penultimate flight and soon getting the better of his rival, Sky's The Limit (11-1) shot clear to win as he liked by four lengths from Strangely Brown (25-1), with Dom D'Orgeval (20-1) another three-quarters back in third and Phar Bleu (10-1) fourth.

'This has been the plan,' said O'Grady after greeting his 18th Festival winner. 'We wanted to preserve his handicap mark so he hasn't run since December.

'I always felt the only way to preserve his mark was not to run him. It doesn't always work out that way but this time it has.

'Nobody expects a horse to win at Cheltenham like that but he did win it very well.

'I think we might try to step him up to conditions hurdles now and Aintree is a possibility.

'The World Hurdle next year would be a nice way to go. It just depends how much he improves.'

Geraghty, who was completing 179-1 double following his win on Star De Mohaison in the Royal & SunAlliance Chase, added: 'He's had a great run through and he's done it very well and he just jumped out of my hands at the last. He's a very good horse.

'The other horse (Inch Pride) going clear gave him a target but even if Arazi had gone off he'd have got him. He's only five and I'd say he's very good.'

Amateur Richard Harding ? younger brother of top Northern jockey Brian ? gave You're Special (33-1) a very positive ride to take the Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup Handicap Chase in style.

He kicked on at the 15th fence and resisted all challengers to score by three and a half lengths from Mon Mome.

'It's a dream come true,' said Harding, 24.

'I've ridden about 55 winners in point-to-points in Ireland and 25 or 26 under Rules, but this is my first winner at the Festival.'

Trainer Ferdy Murphy was full of praise for Harding.

He said: 'I told him not to hit the horse, but to keep him up there and keep pushing away.

'The only previous time I ran him here we dropped him out and he took the mickey out of Keith (Mercer).

'When he ran at Fakenham he made a bit of a noise and we just sorted out his wind.

'Long term he's a Grand National horse and he could go to Fairyhouse for the Irish National.'

Hairy Molly just held Pressgang to lift the Weatherbys Champion Bumper and give the Irish their seventh winner of the meeting.

Carberry, completing a first and last race double, took the 33-1 shot to the front over two furlongs out.

Joseph Crowley's charge kept on well to deny the Paul Webber-trained Pressgang (20-1) by a head, with Kicks For Free (5-1) third, a length and three-quarters away.

'I didn't know an awful lot about the horse. I was told that he stayed very well so I had him up in the van throughout,' Carberry said.

'I had a great position the whole way and going down the hill I had a good gap and then he just kept finding for me up the hill.

'They came to me but he had enough left and I always thought I would hold them.

'He picked up again and we got there just in time.'

(C) PA Sport