The Tingle Creek Chase is one of the big 2m steeplechasers of the season – but many horse racing fans might not know much about the Tingle Creek horse – which is how this great Sandown race got its name.
With that in mind, Andy Newton looks back at the horse Tingle Creek – how many races he won, who rode him and just why the big Sandown race was named after him.
Tingle Creek Horse Profile: Who Was The Sandown Specialist Racehorse?
The horse called Tingle Creek was actually an American-bred chaser who raced during the 1970’s in the UK.
He was a good-looking chestnut that had a distinctive white blaze down the middle of his face – that stretched from his forehead to his nose.
Tingle Creek also became well-known for running with white leg bandages.
The horse was an expert in running over fences at two miles and during his career won a remarkable 31 times from his 80 career starts.
Those 80 outings saw him race 52 times in the UK – winning on 23 occasions – and was famed for blazing out in the front and most of the time never being caught. He loved fast ground.
As a result of his many wins, Tingle Creek was also often burdened with a big weight, while he will also be remembered for never taking a tumble during his career. Which is an amazing stat considering he raced 80 times and was tackling fences at speed.
The Sandown Park course in Esher a specialist track for Tingle Creek, where he also broke the course record many times.
Tingle Creek competed in the Sandown Handicap Pattern Chase six years on the spin – winning the race three times and finishing second the other three.
However, Cheltenham was a track Tingle Creek didn’t enjoy – many put this down to it being a left-handed track.
WATCH: Tingle Creek’s Wins At Sandown Park
Who Was Tingle Creek’s Jockey and Trainer?
Steve Smith Eccles, who was one of the best jumps jockeys in the UK during the 1970’s and 80’s, rode Tingle Creek in most of his races.
Smith Eccles also won the Champion Hurdle three times on the Nicky Henderson-trained See You Then.
He said that Tingle Creek was one of the most exciting jumpers he ever rode – saying “the horse was flat out from start to finish and would just eat fences.”
“Tingle Creek never seemed to meet a fence wrong, never had to fiddle it, seemed to hurdle his fences with his front legs up around his ears. He met them right, long or effing long!”
Before Smith Eccles, jockeys David Mould and Ian Watkinson also rode Tingle Creek.
Tingle Creek was trained by Harry Thomson Jones and often known as ‘Tom Jones’ (not the singer). His career spanned from 1951 to 1996 and won 12 races at the Cheltenham Festival before focusing more on the flat.
In 1982 he trained a horse called Touching Wood to win the St Leger for Sheikh Hamdan al Maktoum.
Tingle Creek Horse Pedigree
He was a son of Goose Creek – hence the second part of his name.
His father ran on the flat as more of a sprinter to a miler, which explains where Tingle Creek got his speed from.
Tingle Creek was also known for having two white socks. These were both on this left legs.
Having started his racing career in America, Tingle Creek was transferred to England in the 1970’s and after developing a liking for Sandown Park, the course named a race in his honour in 1979.
It was the same race the horse had won at the track in 1973, when carrying a staggering 12st 5lbs.
During his retirement he lived at Tom Jones’s yard and was often seen leading up the 2 years-olds at the stable.
He was also asked to head the parade before the Tingle Creek each season at Sandown Park until he passed away.
Tingle Creek died aged 30 in 1996.
Tingle Creek Chase 2024 Race Info
The Tingle Creek Chase has been a Grade One contest since 1994. Prior to that it was run as a handicap.
📅Date: Saturday 7th December 2024
⌚Time: 3:00pm
🏇Racecourse: Sandown
🔄Trip: 1m 7 1/2f
💷Winning Purse: £99,663
📺 TV: ITV / Racing TV
See the 2024 Tingle Creek Chase runners here.
Best Recent Tingle Creek Winners
There have been many big Tingle Creek winners over the years.
These include former Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Kauto Star, who won the race twice in 2005 and 2006 – he remains the most recent ‘back-to-back’ winner of the race.
However, in 2024 Jonbon – who won the race in 2023 – is a popular pick with the best horse racing betting sites in the UK to be the next repeat winner.
We’ve also seen multiple Tingle Creek winners since 2007. These include Twist Magic, Master Minded, Sire De Grugy and Politologue – but none of these took the honours in consecutive seasons.
Trainer Paul Nicholls Has Won The Tingle Creek Chase 12 Times
No trainer has won the Tingle Creek Chase more times than Paul Nicholls – the Ditcheat-based handler has mopped up 12 successes in the big Sandown race over the years.
The fist Nicholls winner came in 1999 with Flagship Uberalles, who later went onto win the race for the following two seasons – but for different yards (Noel Chance and Philip Hobbs).
Greaneteen (2021) remains the most recent Paul Nicholls-trained winner of the Tingle Creek Chase.
- Flagship Uberalles (1999)
- Cenkos (2002)
- Kauto Star (2005, 2006)
- Twist Magic (2007, 2009)
- Master Minded (2008, 2010)
- Dodging Bullets (2014)
- Politologue (2017, 2020)
- Greaneteen (2021)
Tingle Creek A Big Pointer Towards The Queen Mother Champion Chase
The Tingle Creek Chase is also a solid guide ahead of that season’s the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.
Since 2000, the likes of Altior, Dodging Bullets, Sire Du Grugy, Sprinter Sacre, Master Minded and Moscow Flyer are all horses that have won the Tingle Creek Chase and the Champion Chase in the same season.
While the 2017 and 2020 Tingle Creek winner Politologue also won the Champion Chase in 2020. Just not in the same campaigns.
Who Won Last Year’s Tingle Creek Chase at Sandown Park?
The 2023 Tingle Creek Chase winner was the prolific winning chaser Jonbon.
He’s trained by Nicky Henderson, who was winning the race for a third time, and also provided top jockey Nico de Boinville with his second success in the race. Having won the Sandown Grade One in 2018 on Altior.
Tingle Creek Past Winners (Since 2000)
- 2023 – JONBON (30/100 fav)
- 2022 – EDWARDSTONE (5/1)
- 2021 – GREANETEEN (12/1)
- 2020 – POLITOLOGUE (11/8 fav)
- 2019 – DEFI DU SEUIL (2/1 fav)
- 2018 – ALTIOR (8/13 fav)
- 2017 – POLITOLOGUE (7/2)
- 2016 – UN DE SCEAUX (5/4 fav)
- 2015 – SIRE DE GRUGY (10/3)
- 2014 – DODGING BULLETS (9/1)
- 2013 – SIRE DE GRUGY (7/4 jfav)
- 2012 – SPRINTER SACRE (4/11 fav)
- 2011 – SIZING EUROPE (11/8 fav)
- 2010 – MASTER MINDED (10/11 fav)
- 2009 – TWIST MAGIC (9/4)
- 2008 – MASTER MINDED (4/7 fav)
- 2007 – TWIST MAGIC (5/1)
- 2006 – KAUTO STAR (4/9 fav)
- 2005 – KAUTO STAR (5/2 jfav)
- 2004 – MOSCOW FLYER (2/1
- 2003 – MOSCOW FLYER (6/4 fav)
- 2002 – CENKOS (6/1)
- 2001 – FLAGSHIP UBERALLES (7/2)
- 2000 – FLAGSHIP UBERALLES (100/30)
