McConnell over the moon with Cheltenham winner

John McConnell was on the mark with Moon D'Orange at Cheltenham on Saturday

Tom Gannon

On the same card that superstar Constitution Hill asserted his dominance once more, a Meath-trained horse brought himself to the Cheltenham Festival picture with a victory on trials day. John McConnell's Moon D'orange was the winner of the £100'000 handicap chase at Cheltenham on Saturday.

In an enthralling race, Moon D'orange was way off the pace for a large portion of the contest. However, despite a sizeable mistake at the last fence, Sean Bowen bided his time on board and produced the seven-year-old late to score the big prize.

Speaking to Racing TV, Sean Bowen explained how he had accepted early on in the race that he wouldn't be near the front of the pack but that his mount jumped brilliantly to get himself back into contention.

It was a nice winner for the Welsh native jockey to pick up and he confirmed that a light weight and softer ground in the Ultima at the Cheltenham festival would suit Moon D'orange.

John McConnell's latest talented chaser is a 40/1 shot with Paddy Power for the Ultima handicap chase which takes place on day one of the Cheltenham festival in March.