See also » Seddon-routs-rivals-in-Leopardstown-opener-
It's all down to the lads in the syndicate that wanted to run because I was getting very watery about the ground. It seemed to make no difference to him,. He jumped great, Ben was always happy that he was going the right pace and it's great to have a guy with a brain and a clock in his head. I was never worried he was going too fast because Ben is such a good rider. On his handicap mark, compared to his hurdle mark, he was entitled to run very well. When he won in Cheltenham this was always the plan to come here. We thought we'd get nice ground here and then it started to rain. We got a little bit worried but what a horse. Mr handicapper is going to have his say now! He's going to get into the hurdle race in Cheltenham off the mark he's on now and probably the chase as well so we can do what we want and he doesn't owe us anything now. For some of these guys having a Leopardstown winner is as good if not better than having a Cheltenham winner as they've been coming here all their life. It's brilliant. He's really easy to train and I don't think we need to run him again. If we want to have a go at a real big one we'll leave him on whatever mark he's going to get. It's just a decision about whether to go hurdling or chasing. I didn't think he was as good over fences but he was good there today, to jump around Leopardstown like that. I said to Ben 'save your long one for when you need it' but he didn't really need any of them. John C McConnell, trainer

Following a request from broadcasters, the Raceday Stewards granted permission for this race to be delayed by +2 minutes

Owing to the low elevation of the sun, the Raceday Stewards granted permission for fence #1 (last fence) to be omitted from both circuits of this race

A.P. Kelly, rider of Marshalled trained by Padraig Roche, reported to the Clerk of the Scales that his mount hung right throughout this race

J.P. O'Sullivan, rider of Handsworth trained by J.P.Dempsey, reported to the Clerk of the Scales that his mount was hampered by a faller

The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board Veterinary Officer examined Arctic Ambition, trained by Gordon Elliott, at the request of the Raceday Stewards and reported the animal to be post race normal

The Raceday Stewards interviewed P.J. O'Hanlon, rider of Galon De Vauzelle (FR), concerning his use of the whip in the latter stages of this race. Evidence was heard from the rider concerned. In his evidence, P.J. O'Hanlon accepted that he had breached the whip guidelines for frequency and added that the omission of the last fence may have been a contributing factor. Having viewed a recording of the race and considered the evidence, the Raceday Stewards were of the opinion that P.J. O'Hanlon was in breach of R10(3)(g) by using his whip with excessive frequency. Having taken his previous record into consideration, the Raceday Stewards suspended P.J. O'Hanlon for one raceday

The Raceday Stewards reviewed an incident where the runners rejoined the track after bypassing the final fence involving Charlie Stout, ridden by K. Callaghan, and Gondor, ridden by Sarah Kavanagh where it appeared that Gondor edged towards Charlie Stout and may have made contact. Having viewed the recording of the race and considered the matter, the Raceday Stewards were satisfied that no further action was warranted.

An extended handicap steeplechase for four years old and upwards rated 0-123
Penalties - Winner of a steeplechase after calculation of the handicap shall carry 7lb extra for each steeplechase won.
Riders - Confined to Professional Riders under I.N.H.S. Rules who have not lost the right to claim the allowance under Rule 52 (iii). Allowances - (which are not cumulative, up to and including 25th December) Riders who have not ridden the winners of 25 *races allowed...........4lb Those who have not ridden the winners of 40 *races allowed..........2lb No allowance under Rule 52 (iii) may be claimed *Including races under any N.H. Rules or Rules of Racing