From King Of The Jungle To King Of Kempton
Harry Redknapp understands all about sporting delights and spills on Boxing Day, however absolutely nothing might have prepared him for the drama of Kempton Park, where The Jukebox Man stepped into the Champions League and left the previous Premier League manager holding the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase prize aloft.
It was 12 months ago the apple of Redknapp and fitness instructor Ben Pauling's eye revealed himself as a high-level entertainer with triumph on this extremely afternoon, now was his time to show he belonged amongst the elite.
Sent at 7-1 after returning from injury in style at Haydock last month, Redknapp compared the challenge of handling the may of Willie Mullins and Nicky Henderson in the Christmas masterpiece to his days in the dugout taking on some of Europe's best.
Harry Redknapp is mobbed after winning the King George VI with The Jukebox Man pic.twitter.com/oELRQtlpEa
- Adam Morgan (@Adam_Morgs) December 26, 2025
Redknapp' star signing remained in excellent type, shaking off his oppositions in a performance that was influenced, unrelenting and entirely dazzling in equivalent procedure. After an age-long wait for the judge to deliver the verdict by a nose, the former 'King of the Jungle' from ITV's I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here! was in no doubt where the minute ranked amongst his numerous sporting accomplishments.
He said: "We had actually entered the Premier League with this horse which was wonderful, but today we went Champions League and we were handling the top teams, the Real Madrid, the Barcelona and we proved we can compete with them and win, it's an incredible sensation.
"This is right up there with my best sporting achievements. Football has actually been my life and when you win a cup final for the fans it is an incredible sensation at a football club, but I love racing and I enjoy the video game and the people in it - to have a winner like this is simply fantastic.
"To have a horse that good is astounding. I love the game however to come here on King George day and just run made me so happy - but to have the winner is special.
Harry Redknapp with the King George VI Chase trophy (Steven Paston for The Jockey Club/PA)
"I'm so lucky and everyone was jumping on me at the end, but I didn't even understand if I had won. Everyone else appeared so positive, however I wasn't sure. It was a dream when they called the winner. I got a big kiss from Sandra at the end as well and she thinks I just have that horse."
It remained in 2008 that the-then Portsmouth manager Redknapp raised the FA Cup aloft simply a brief drive around the M25 from Kempton at Wembley.
That Pompey squad perhaps typified the 78-year-old's supervisory career, but after The Jukebox Man was made 7-1 by a variety of firms for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the master of the transfer market appears to have actually worked his magic when again as his ₤ 70,000 purchase sparked more Cheltenham Festival dreams.
"What a race he has run and he's jumped astounding," said Redknapp. "When they pertained to him I thought he was beat and would end up 4th, however he's returned and the guts the horse has actually revealed is .
Harry Redknapp (centre) and group The Jukebox Man commemorate at Kempton (Steven Paston for The Jockey Club/PA)
"Ben has actually been so bullish about this horse and I'm asking him about the opposition, however he's simply telling me he does not care which they all had us to beat. Ben Jones stated he wants more cut and more range, perhaps we get that in March?"
He went on: "I've had my finest days with Ben. He trained Shakem Up'arry to win for me at the Cheltenham Festival which was a dream and after that to come here today. He's been fortunate for me and it's remarkable truly. I don't think we have actually had a bad horse together."
Set versus the background of Kempton's much-publicised possible closure, it was a King George which served a tip of why the race's put on the Boxing Day calendar is imperative for the sport.
A titanic four-way battle after the last left many explaining it as the very best renewal of the Grade One feature they have actually ever seen and on a day without any Premier League football in the afternoon, saw more than 17,000 yuletide revellers submit through the gates.
The Jukebox Man was the star of a fantastic day of racing at Kempton (Steven Paston for The Jockey Club/PA)
Simon Durrant, general supervisor at Kempton Park, stated: "Today was a great example of everything that is fantastic about dive racing in Britain.
"I'm pleased for Harry Redknapp and all those linked with Ben Pauling's team and The Jukebox Man and I'm likewise pleased for the group here at Kempton Park.
"To have more than 17,000 individuals through the gates, including sold-out hospitality and Premier and Paddock enclosures, is a fantastic benefit for all their hard work and long days in the accumulation to Christmas and on the day today.
"While there has actually been a lot of speculation about the future of this racecourse, our message to racegoers has actually constantly been that our focus continues to be on hosting racing here, both for next year and into the future, and tickets for next year's Ladbrokes Christmas Festival at Kempton Park go on sale on Monday (December 29th December)."