The King George Curse: Why No Horse Has Done What The Jukebox Man Is Trying Since 2011

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 17:00:00 +0000

The Jukebox Man won the King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day. He’s being aimed at the Gold Cup in three weeks. Sounds like a logical next step. The data says it’s anything but.

No horse has completed the King George–Gold Cup double in the same season since Long Run in 2011. That’s fifteen years of failure.

The Numbers Are Brutal

We pulled every King George winner since 2003 and tracked what happened when they turned up at Cheltenham in March. The results are grim.

Ben Pauling's Ascot Treble Caps His Best Ever Season — And Cheltenham Is Next

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Ben Pauling saddled a treble at Ascot on Saturday that underlined just how far his Bourton-on-the-Water operation has come. The Jukebox Kid took the Reynoldstown Novices’ Chase by five and a half lengths, Mondoui’boy landed a novice hurdle, and Fiercely Proud — a 8/1 shot — completed the haul in a handicap hurdle.

It was a statement afternoon from a trainer having comfortably his best season.

The Numbers Don’t Lie

Pauling has saddled 68 winners from 363 runners this term — a 18.7% strike rate that puts him firmly in the top tier of National Hunt trainers. More importantly, four of those wins have come in graded company:

The Jukebox Man on The Race Lab

The King George Curse: Why No Horse Has Done What The Jukebox Man Is Trying Since 2011

The Numbers Are Brutal

Ben Pauling's Ascot Treble Caps His Best Ever Season — And Cheltenham Is Next

The Numbers Don’t Lie