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Versatile career of a young pretender to Arkle's throne

Flyingbolt very nearly the equal of his great contemporary and stablemate

Flyingbolt and Pat Taaffe head for a 15-length victory in the 1966 Champion Chase at Cheltenham
Flyingbolt and Pat Taaffe head for a 15-length victory in the 1966 Champion Chase at CheltenhamCredit: Keystone

Is it really the case that the two greatest steeplechasers in history were housed in Tom Dreaper's County Dublin yard in the 1960s?

Hard for the modern racing brain to assimilate, especially since Arkle and Flyingbolt belonged to a string of no more than 35 horses, overseen by a man who described himself first and foremost as a farmer.

Save for one unintended encounter on the Dreaper gallops, reputedly a flat-out, neck-and-neck affair over four fences involving the pair's regular rider Pat Taaffe on Arkle and Paddy Woods on Flyingbolt, they were never tested together.

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