Frodon and Jockey Bryony Frost Earn a Tilt at the Cheltenham Gold Cup

Frost is Ready to Make History

It’s no secret that the Cheltenham Festival is the crowning
glory of the National Hunt season. Offering four days of extraordinary on-track
action, it draws audiences from around the globe and provides an atmosphere of
absolute exhilaration, not just for those lucky enough to witness it in the
flesh, but for millions of television viewers across the world too.

The horses who attend are the jump racing elite: equine
athletes par excellence. With a power and beauty to rival any other creature or
creation on earth, the sight of these Thoroughbred megastars pounding down the
home stretch in full flight is enough to set our hearts aflutter, and there’s
one horse, in particular, we’re getting excited about – the inimitable Frodon.

Having already secured victory at Aintree last October, the
seven-year-old gelding by Nickname and his jockey Bryony Frost have now earned
their first tilt at the Gold Cup, following their fourth victory at Cheltenham
on Saturday.   

Frodon
wins his fourth Cheltenham victory 

Source: Facebook via Cheltenham
Racecourse

In a performance that was nothing short of magnificent,
Bryony Frost and her erstwhile partner Frodon used their performance in
Saturday’s Cotswold Chase to remind us all of exactly what makes this duo so
special. 

Competing on Festival Trials Day in the hopes of earning a
place in the Cheltenham Festival Gold Cup, the pair scored their fourth victory
at the racetrack.

Frodon delivered a noteworthy performance, repelling the
charge of talented Welsh Grand National victor Elegant Escape to seize the win
for himself. Cutting it slightly fine towards the end, he won by three-quarters
of a length – an admirable feat considering the calibre of his closest
rival. 

Trainer Paul Nicholls announced that the victory was enough
to earn the pair a tilt at the Gold Cup in six weeks’ time, with sites
like Oddschecker, which offer handy comparisons between various bookmakers,
showing his odds have been cut to as little as 14-1 in some
instances.  

Bringing
female jockeys into the spotlight 

Whilst Frodon is undeniably a force of nature, much of the
credit for his incredible run of performances must go to his jockey,
Bryony Frost. Although Frost has always gone to pains to credit the horse with
their combined successes, there are many who say that this is simply a symptom
of her humble and self-effacing personality. 

Indeed, Frost is a real talent in her own right, one who is
doing much to propel female jockeys out of the Gold Cup cold and into the
warmth of a string of high-profile wins. 

This is a phenomenon that is long overdue, for though it
has been 35 years since Jenny Pitman entered the history books as the first
female to train a Gold Cup winner - the brilliant Burrough Hill Lad – jockeys
from the fairer sex have rarely taken part.    

In fact, unlike the Grand National, which has had many
women aboard its mounts, the Gold Cup has had only two female competitors in
the entirety of its long history: Welsh
housewife Linda Sheedy on outsider Foxbury in 1984, and Lizzie Kelly
on Tea for Two in 2017.         

A shot
at history 

Source: Facebook via Bryony
Frost Fans

What’s different about Frost and Frodon is that the two are
in with a legitimate shot of making history: not as the third jockey and horse
partnership to run in the Gold Cup, but potentially, as winners. 

Saturday’s Betbright Trial Costwold Chase is arguably a
dress rehearsal for National Hunt’s blue riband - the Gold Cup itself – and
with victory in one already in their possession, it seems eminently possible
that Frost could well become the first female to cross the line at the head of
the field.   

Indeed, seven-year-old Frodon made Saturday’s triumph look
like a walk in the park, jumping for fun and pinging the last fence five
lengths clear. Despite admirable opposition from Elegant Escape, he nonetheless
finished with three-quarters of a length to spare, and lots more left in the
bag. 

As
trainer Paul Nicholls explains: “[Frodon]…
loves the track. He was idling and tiring from the back of the last but it’s
difficult when you’re bringing them back after a bit of a break. He didn’t do
much for a month after his last run but he’s proved he
stays.”    

He added: “He’s such a genuine horse. He and Bryony get on
really well and he loves life. The pair of them are both good for
racing.” 

A
winning partnership

Nicholls is not the only one to have commented on the
fantastic rapport between the gelding and his jockey. Frost herself has
described Frodon as “a complete pleasure to ride”, “brave”, and
“awesome”.  

The 23-year-old says: “I’ve never ridden a horse with a
heart like that. He was getting a bit lonely in front but when he felt company
he kicked on.”  

In tune with her mount, as she is, it’s also heartening to
hear the talented rider say that the bay gelding loves both the course and
racing – two assuredly vital elements in any would-be Gold Cup
winner.  

A second
shining star 

Frodon was not the only runner to impress on trials day.
Paisley Park has also sparked much conversation after sauntering to a
phenomenal 13-length win in the Cleeve Hurdle – marking him out as a sure
prospect for the Festival itself. 

The Emma Lavelle seven-year-old has improved rapidly this season, having been so far unbeaten in four starts. This last performance was so astonishing that it allowed him to leapfrog the reigning champion, Penhill, to become the new favorite in the Stayers Hurdle, with odds of 4-1.  

Lavelle herself claims to have waited 21 years for a horse
with so much natural talent and given his seemingly effortless performances so
far, it’s no wonder she’s getting excited about him.  

With the likes of both Frodon and Paisley Park promising to
do great things, the Cheltenham Festival is shaping up to be as exciting as
ever. We wait with bated breath to see whether history will be made, but know
that even if it isn’t this time around, the action will still be as
phenomenally thrilling as ever.