Celebrating the mighty Denman and the joy he brought to so many of us

With Denman’s passing I get the sense we shall not see quite his like again. Quarried from granite, the inspirational Tank was magnificent.

The great racehorses have defining qualities that single them out not just from the herd, but from other great horses. If not the absolute best in purist terms – in deference to the likes of Arkle – Denman was my favourite chaser. I was mesmerised over six seasons by a horse who defied logic and confounded the sceptics.

Never out of the first two at six consecutive Cheltenham Festivals, he destroyed his field by ten lengths in the 2007 RSA Chase, the same year stablemate Kauto Star won his first Gold Cup.