Sean Bowen rode his rivals to sleep from the front on Glengouly to give Faye Bramley the biggest winner of her career in the Support The Hunt Family Fund December Gold Cup at Cheltenham on Saturday.

Champion jockey Bowen was allowed to dictate matters at his own pace, stacking up the field behind him as he continued to give his mount breathers.

Turning into the straight all the main market fancies were moving into a position to challenge with Vincenzo, Hoe Joly Smoke and Jagwar close enough if good enough.

Bowen knew exactly what he was sat on, though, and the former Willie Mullins inmate had plenty left as he powered up the hill for a 33/1 success.

Vincenzo was a length and a half away in second with Jagwar a neck away in third.

The winning owners, The Cheeky Pups syndicate, pledged to donate £10,000 of their winnings to the Hunt Family Fund with close to £500,000 being raised through various channels over the course of the week for charities.

“I honestly can’t believe it, I’m gobsmacked. He’s a star. I’m speechless!” said Bramley.

“I couldn’t have been happier through the race as I know the horse inside out and I could tell he was loving it.

“I can’t believe I’m ever near never mind having a winner.

“I’ve worked for A.P. (McCoy) for about eight years, helping his daughter with show jumping and what have you but to be honest we got a bit bored of the pre-training and we just wanted to give it a proper go and he was behind the decision.

“This horse was quite hard to train, but he’s come to life.”

Sam Thomas said of Vincenzo: “It was better ground today on which he’s jumped well and run a blinder. He’s still a young horse in National Hunt terms and I hope there is more to come.

“We will step him up to three miles at some point in the future.”

Oliver Greenall, joint-trainer of Jagwar, said: “He was a little bit rusty and he got shuffled back and lost his position, then it turned into a sprint and the winner got a freebie.

“With the top weight out he was carrying top weight.

“I think we will stick at two and a half miles and come back here on New Year’s Day.”

Grade 2 novice hurdle

Dan Skelton landed his customary Saturday winner when Carlenrig took the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle in a driving finish.

Three held a chance over the last with Conman John’s 3lb penalty just finding him out in the final 100 yards, leaving Carlenrig (4/1) and the lunging They Call Me Hugo to contest a photograph.

As has happened so often this season, it was Dan and Harry Skelton who came out on top, this time by a short-head, adding another £47,000 to the stable’s prize-money haul for the term so far.

“I found it hard to split my two but the race wasn’t run to suit Big Cadillac (sixth),” said Dan Skelton.

“Carlenrig needed his race at Chepstow. He has a bit of pace which was necessary today because it became a tactical affair, but we had the rail to race against.

“I bought him from an English point-to-point and I’m pleased I wasn’t temped to run him in a bumper.

“He will have one stop between today and the Albert Bartlett.”

The Skelton team of Dan and Harry also took the Download The BetMGM App Mares’ Handicap Hurdle with 13/2 chance Nurse Susan.

Gutsy success

David’s Well continued his progression with a gutsy success in the Read Meg Nicholls’ Blog At betmgm.co.uk Handicap Chase .

Chris Gordon’s six-year-old had won his previous three races but was facing his stiffest task to date against some classy operators, none better than top weight JPR One.

It was those two who settled down to battle it out over the last but Harry Cobden got a good leap out of David’s Well at the last and the 6/4 favourite held on to win by half a length.

Gordon’s wife, Jenny, said: “He spooks at everything at home and we have to keep the lid on him but he’s better on the racecourse, and he’s progressive.

“He’s a lovely horse that has done nothing wrong, but you have to take your hat off to JPR One trying to give him two stone in weight.”

Charlie Deutsch excelled on Zertakt who won for the first time over fences in the Michael Eakins Senior Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase.

Coming down the hill for the final time Venetia Williams’ Zertakt (7/1) still had many lengths to find as Holokea took over in front.

Down in trip having been caught close home over three-and-three-quarter miles at Newcastle last time out, he powered up the hill and got there by a neck.

“It was lovely to see him run that way it was a little bit like L’Homme Presse yesterday,” said Williams.

“The aim was to give him the experience because the long-term the plan is to bring him back here in March for the three-mile-six (National Hunt) chase.”

Former champion jockey Richard Johnson celebrated his first Cheltenham winner as a syndicate manager in November and he did not have to wait long for another as Party Vibes (12/1) came out on top in a blanket finish to the Quintessentially Mares’ Handicap Chase under Sam Twiston-Davies.

Winning trainer Henry Daly said: “She’s just tough and likes being a racehorse. You ask her to gallop and she gallops, you ask her to jump and she jumps. At the second last I thought she was going to finish fifth.”

Unbeaten

Adam Nicol’s Minella Study maintained his unbeaten record in emphatic style in the JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle.

Victories at Musselburgh and Wetherby had marked him out as an above-average early juvenile, but this performance took him to another level.

Towards the head of affairs with Harry Derham’s prolific winner One Horse Town, the two turned into the straight with it seemingly between them.

Grand National winner Ryan Mania knew what he had underneath him, though, and began to forge clear approaching the last.

He was spring-heeled at it and the 5/1 chance pulled six-and-a-half lengths clear of Winston Junior with the odds-on favourite One Horse Town back in third.

The winner was given a 16/1 quote for the Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival by Coral, with his handler hopeful of a return to Prestbury Park in March.

Nicol said: “He works very well this horse. I gave him a blow earlier in the week and he showed great speed. The thing about this horse is he doesn’t know he’s a racehorse yet.

“He’s going from strength to strength, he has speed and he travels.

“I have some fantastic owners and the plan is to let the dust settle, then probably go to Musselburgh on January 31st (on Cheltenham Trials day) where he will hopefully chase a few off before heading for the Triumph.”

Winning rider Mania, added: “He took me through the race at Wetherby well last time but not like he did today, he felt like a different animal.

“I still don’t think we know how good he is, he’s so settled and relaxed.

“I was told not to get to the front too soon but I couldn’t help it! We came here to find out how good he is and I still don’t think we know.”