Fantasy Ladbrokes Trophy: who would win if the best from the last 20 years met?

Newbury's Ladbrokes Trophy, or the Hennessy Gold Cup for those with longer memories, brings together some of the best staying chasers in the business each season. The famous handicap has provided some thrilling moments and memorable winners.

But who would come out on top if they were all to meet? Obviously this can never be answered definitively and is incredibly subjective, but for a bit of fun we've brought together the last 20 winners for an almighty yet hypothetical showdown.

Our experts have their say below, but who do you think would come out on top?

3.00 Newbury Saturday: 2021 Ladbrokes Trophy racecard and betting

1 Denman

Two-time winner of the race, with his weight-carrying performance in 2009 going down in history as one of the best ever. Next to unstoppable at his best.

Trainer: Paul Nicholls
Jockey(s): Ruby Walsh (2009) and Sam Thomas (2007)
Winning weight: 11st 12lb
Official mark(s): 174 (2009) and 161 (2007)
Fantasy race weight: 11st 12lb

2 Bobs Worth

Never flashy but won the race in 2012 off a mark only 1lb lower than Denman's first success and then followed up in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Overlook him at your peril.

Trainer: Nicky Henderson
Jockey: Barry Geraghty
Winning weight: 11st 6lb
Official mark: 160
Fantasy race weight: 10st 12lb

3 Diamond Harry

Appeared a chaser going places when defeating Burton Port and an ageing Denman in 2010. Was then not seen again until the following season and, like several in the field, could not recapture his previous form.

Trainer: Nick Williams
Jockey: Daryl Jacob
Winning weight: 10st
Official mark: 156
Fantasy race weight: 10st 8lb

4 Smad Place

Distinctive front-running grey would ensure a strong pace and the 2015 winner took apart his opposition in emphatic fashion with a 12-length victory, proving talented and courageous in equal measure.

Trainer: Alan King
Jockey: Wayne Hutchinson
Winning weight: 11st 4lb
Official mark: 155
Fantasy race weight: 10st 7lb

5 Native River

The 2016 winner held off Carole's Destrier in a thrilling finish before finishing third in the Gold Cup in the same season and going two better in 2018. Would be more than capable of keeping up a strong gallop in front.

Trainer: Colin Tizzard
Jockey: Richard Johnson
Winning weight: 11st 1lb
Official mark: 155
Fantasy race weight: 10st 7lb

6 Trabolgan

Along with Denman, is the only horse in the field to have won off top weight but it's probably best to end the comparisons there. A game winner in 2005 but it was not a vintage year.

Trainer: Nicky Henderson
Jockey: Mick Fitzgerald
Winning weight: 11st 12lb
Official mark: 151
Fantasy race weight: 10st 3lb

7 Many Clouds

Stamina was his strongest suit as he completed a remarkable Hennessy-Grand National double in 2014-15 on his way to becoming one of the most beloved jumps horses in training.

Trainer: Oliver Sherwood
Jockey: Leighton Aspell
Winning weight: 11st 6lb
Official mark: 151
Fantasy race weight: 10st 3lb

8 Madison Du Berlais

Had a great 2008-09 season, which included victories over Denman and Exotic Dancer, with this win the highlight. Was not quite a top-level performer but very dangerous on his day.

Trainer: David Pipe
Jockey: Tom Scudamore
Winning weight: 11st 4lb
Official mark: 150
Fantasy race weight: 10st 2lb

9 Gingembre I

A fortuitous winner in 2002 having finished half a length behind Be My Royal, who was subsequently disqualified after testing positive for a banned substance. It would prove to be Gingembre I's last win.

Trainer: Lavinia Taylor
Jockey: Andrew Thornton
Winning weight: 10st 13lb
Official mark: 149
Fantasy race weight: 10st 1lb

10 De Rasher Counter

Progressive when winning on what was a superb weekend at Newbury in 2019 for Emma Lavelle, but his momentum has been checked since. Could still have more to offer, perhaps at Aintree?

Trainer: Emma Lavelle
Jockey: Ben Jones (5)
Winning weight: 10st 10lb
Official mark: 149
Fantasy race weight: 10st 1lb

11 Sizing Tennessee

We'll sadly never know how good Sizing Tennessee could have been, as he never made it back to the track after his brilliant ten-length win over Elegant Escape in 2018, but he looked to have plenty of potential.

Trainer: Colin Tizzard
Jockey: Tom Scudamore
Winning weight: 11st 3lb
Official mark: 148
Fantasy race weight: 10st

12 Triolo D'Alene

A 20-1 winner in 2013 and this would prove his Gold Cup as he never really hit the heights afterwards, and would be among the outsiders of this stellar bunch.

Trainer: Nicky Henderson
Jockey: Barry Geraghty
Winning weight: 11st 1lb
Official mark: 147
Fantasy race weight: 10st (1lb out of the handicap)

13 Total Recall

Looked a chaser going places when becoming the first Irish-trained winner in 37 years in 2017, but the wheels rather came off after that when tried at the highest level, with jumping his biggest weakness.

Trainer: Willie Mullins
Jockey: Paul Townend
Winning weight: 10st 8lb
Official mark: 147
Fantasy race weight: 10st (1lb out of the handicap)

14 Carruthers

Another whose big moment in the sun came in this race in 2011, when he memorably battled gamely to victory to strike a for a smaller yard and for owner Lord Oaksey, the founder of the Injured Jockeys Fund who had won the race as an amateur jockey in 1958.

Trainer: Mark Bradstock
Jockey: Mattie Batchelor
Winning weight: 10st 4lb
Official mark: 146
Fantasy race weight: 10st (2lb out of the handicap)

15 What's Up Boys

Overhauled Behrajan in the final strides in 2001 and enjoyed a fine season thereafter, finding only Bindaree too good in the Grand National.

Trainer: Philip Hobbs
Jockey: Paul Flynn
Winning weight: 10st 12lb
Official mark: 145
Fantasy race weight: 10st (3lb out of the handicap)

16 State Of Play

Stays forever and the 2006 winner would become very interesting if this fictional race was run on testing ground. Would go on to have an outstanding record in the Grand National, without ever managing to win it.

Trainer: Evan Williams
Jockey: Paul Moloney
Winning weight: 11st 4lb
Official mark: 145
Fantasy race weight: 10st (3lb out of the handicap)

17 Celestial Gold

It was not a vintage running that Celestial Gold won in 2004, but he had had also claimed the Paddy Power Gold Cup just two weeks previously and did go on to win the Bowl at Aintree. Did not return to same level of form after a long absence.

Trainer: Martin Pipe
Jockey: Timmy Murphy
Winning weight: 10st 5lb
Official mark: 142
Fantasy race weight: 10st (6lb out of the handicap)

18 Strong Flow

His 14-length triumph in 2003 is the widest winning margin of any horse in this field and he followed up in the same season's Feltham Novices' Chase. Unfortunately, he missed the following year and did not return in the same form.

Trainer: Paul Nicholls
Jockey: Ruby Walsh
Winning weight: 11st
Official mark: 140
Fantasy race weight: 10st (8lb out of the handicap)

19 Cloth Cap

Last year's winner struck from the bottom of the weights and ran them ragged from the front with some terrific jumping. Easily won a Listed contest at Kelso next time up, but couldn't emulate fellow Trevor Hemmings-owned star Many Clouds when sent off favourite for the Grand National.

Trainer: Jonjo O'Neill
Jockey: Tom Scudamore
Winning weight: 10st
Official mark: 136
Fantasy race weight: 10st (12lb out of the handicap)

Forecast SPs: Denman a strong favourite

Here is how a mock betting market may look if these 19 stars came together:

5-2 Denman, 11-2 Native River, 6 Bobs Worth, 8 Many Clouds, 11 Smad Place, 14 Total Recall, Celestial Gold, 16 Madison Du Berlais, Strong Flow, Cloth Cap, 20 What's Up Boys, 25 Diamond Harry, Trabolgan, Gingembre I, State Of Play 33 De Rasher Counter, Carruthers, 40 Sizing Tennessee, Triolo D'Alene

Racing Post verdicts: 'Native River to prevail in Denman slugfest'

Denman famously gave subsequent Lexus winner What A Friend 22lb when winning in 2009, but the difference between them was guts more than talent.

Conceding similar amounts of weight to much hardier rivals, two of whom won the Gold Cup, will prove the toughest test of his career. Denman will not enjoy the run of things up front, either. Smad Place, Native River, Carruthers and Cloth Cap are just some of the rivals likely to be harassing him from the off.

As such the advice is to take him on at likely short odds – an approach that admittedly cost me money in the 2007 and 2009 runnings of the Hennessy. Assuming the usual soft ground prevails, the vote goes to Native River, who receives 19lb from Denman but at his peak was only half a stone or so inferior.

Native River: would he lower the colours of the mighty Denman?Credit: Edward Whitaker

Were these two heavyweights to slug it out up the Newbury straight, expect the weight difference to tell on the long run-in. Those playing at bigger odds should consider the immensely talented Diamond Harry – who tanked all over 'The Tank' in a real Hennessy – or even Cloth Cap from miles out of the weights. The latter's effective mark of 148 is still 6lb lower than what he will carry in the real thing on Saturday.
Keith Melrose, betting editor

'Denman at his brilliant best would be hard to beat'

It would be a monumental challenge for to overcome arguably the toughest task of his career, but at his brilliant best he was a monumental horse and I'd be backing him to get the better of Native River and Bobs Worth.

The sheer size of Denman made carrying that weight an easier task than it would be for mere mortals and despite those allowances there wouldn't be many capable of laying it down to the 2008 Gold Cup winner, whose sheer will to win would see him over the line.

Many of these would be well out of the handicap thanks to Denman's presence, but Sizing Tennessee would race off his true mark and weight of 10st and could easily run into a place at big odds.
Sam Hendry, reporter

'There can't be many who had more in hand'

The 16-1 SP forecast looks an underestimation of last season's winner Cloth Cap's chance of landing a fictional Ladbrokes Trophy.

The Jonjo O'Neill-trained chaser is fancied by many to go close off an 18lb higher mark of 154 in his bid to capture back-to-back runnings on Saturday.

Cloth Cap: an emphatic ten-length winner of last year's Ladbrokes TrophyCredit: Edward Whitaker

His subsequent Kelso victory (RPR of 164) shows just how well handicapped he was off 136 when bolting up by ten lengths from Aye Right in the 2020 running.

There can't be many winners who had more in hand than Cloth Cap did that day.
Robbie Wilders, tipster

'He stands out like a sore thumb in the market'

Nostalgia fills the air when looking at the SP forecast above but there's one high-class performer who stands out like a sore thumb in the market and that's 2010 winner Diamond Harryat odds of 25-1.

He was a hugely talented if fragile performer, yet his course record of five wins from six completed starts would make you stop twice and his huge price does him a disservice. The manner in which he beat proper sluggers Burton Port and Denman sticks in the memory and you could even argue he never quite fulfilled his immense potential.

In receipt of chunks of weight from the mighty Denman, admittedly not as much as in the real thing, you could see him travelling easily before staying on past tired rivals off another light weight.
James Pugh, audience editor

Read more on the Ladbrokes Trophy:

2021 Ladbrokes Trophy at Newbury: the runners, the odds, the verdict

2021 Ladbrokes Trophy: why this horse can win Saturday's big race at Newbury

Denman: 'He could pick you up and chuck you out the box or take your arm off'

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