Having watched the replay several times, it is still hard to envisage Riverside Theatre (9/4f) winning the 2013 running of the Peterborough Chase with three jumps left to take.
As the runners enter the home straight Riverside Theatre is in about fifth place, still in touch with the leaders, but seemingly travelling nothing like as well as his rivals.
But somehow jockey Barry Geraghty rallied his mount and after the last fence he struck the front for the first time in the race and held on by half a length from Champion Court (4/1) with Captain Chris (7/2) a neck back in third.
It was a thrilling three-way finish to the race but these were the only three of the seven runners to really get involved in the contest. Champion Court under Ian Popham made the race a real test by setting a strong pace from the very start. The eight-year-old led until the final half furlong but could not hold off Riverside Theatre in the final strides.
Paul Nicholls’ Ghizao (10/1) was up with the leader for a long way but made a few jumping errors late on and faded.
The victory was a step back on the right path for Nicky Henderson’s gelding after a poor season in 2012/2013. He looked to be heading for the top class when winning the Ryanair Chase at Cheltenham in 2012 but things went wrong after that.
He holds an entry in the William Hill King George VI Chase on Boxing Day but that is just two weeks away and might come a bit soon after his exertions at Huntingdon.
