'Cheltenham hurt, but it didn't hurt anywhere near as bad as that'

David Christie has spoken of his heartbreak at seeing Winged Leader collared by Billaway in the dramatic St. James's Place Festival Challenge Cup at Cheltenham last Friday, but revealed the pain he felt in defeat was scarcely comparable to what came over him when John Thomas McNamara suffered horrific injuries from a fall at the 2013 festival.

The County Fermanagh trainer believes a certain amount of perspective is needed in evaluating his near-miss and, while he admits he may never come closer to Cheltenham Festival success than he did last week, he left the Cotswolds with nothing but pride in his horse.

Winged Leader arrived at Cheltenham off the back of five wins and, after jumping like a buck under Barry O'Neill, fended off Mighty Stowaway to kick clear of his rivals coming down to the last. However, his stride began to shorten as the line loomed, and Billaway dived to deny Christie his greatest success as a trainer.

Billaway and Patrick Mullins (left) gradually reel in Winged Leader at the climax of the Hunters' ChaseCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

Speaking of the emotion surrounding the defeat, the trainer said: "I was proud of him. He gave everything and never shirked the battle. We were just unlucky. You couldn't fault Barry or the horse. On one hand, I was absolutely gutted, but on the other hand, I was so proud of my horse in defeat."

Christie added: "Walking out of those gates at Cheltenham last Friday, I couldn't help but remember leaving the racecourse the year John Thomas got his injury. Last week hurt, but it didn't hurt anywhere near as bad as that. That gives you a certain perspective."

Winged Leader was not the only narrow defeat Christie suffered last week. On Thursday, Ask D'man lost out by a neck in a hunter chase at Down Royal, while Handy Headon was pipped by a short head at Downpatrick on Saturday.

"You could say it was written in the stars," the trainer joked on Tuesday. "It was a tough week. Sometimes people looking in at our yard would think that, just because we concentrate on hunter chases, the whole thing is easy.

"It's far from easy and some of the horses we have are not easy to train. If they were, they'd be in other yards. When you have a horse ready to win and he doesn't, it's not always as simple as saying you'll be back.

"It has been a character building few days. Six feet was the difference between us winning three hunter chases, including the biggest one of them all, over the course of a few days. That was tough to take."

Christie acknowledges the goodwill and sentiment that he was met with at Cheltenham last week, especially from Willie Mullins, whose Billaway mowed his horse down in the final strides. However, he revealed throwaway lines like "you'll be back next year" did not help ease the pain.

He explained: "People were telling me, 'you'll be back next year,' but the truth of it is, you might not have a horse next week, not to mention next year. Getting back to those places, you need everything to go right. We had a tremendous run with Winged Leader this year and that doesn't often repeat itself."

Christie added: "You'd be hoping to get him back there next year but the simple truth is you might not ever get the chance again. That's why it hurts. And it hurts a lot. But there are bigger things going on in the world and we just have to keep going."

Winged Leader is reported to be none the worse for his Cheltenham exploits by Christie and, provided things continue to go to plan, he could bid for compensation at Aintree.

He said: "There's only a few weeks between Cheltenham and Aintree and that's a worry. You like to give horses at least one easy week after a tough race, just to see if anything shows up and to make sure they are okay, so that leaves things pretty tight.

"On the plus side, he actually had an easier race than Billaway and I'd be hoping he can recover in time for the Foxhunters' at Aintree. The other thing you'd be hoping is that he can confirm his superiority over the British horses. If he does that, he'd have to have a big chance."

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The Front Runner is our latest email newsletter available exclusively to Members' Club Ultimate subscribers. Chris Cook, a four-time Racing Reporter of the Year award winner, provides his take on the day's biggest stories and tips for the upcoming racing every morning from Monday to Friday