AP McCoy: Three of our favourite memories

Matt Gardner - Edredon Bleu, 2000 Queen Mother Champion Chase

Ask a National Hunt fan what his favourite type of race is and I'd make "two mile chase" an overwhelming favourite, as very little beats watching top-class horses flying over fences at incredible speeds.

The common perception, and indeed my memory, of the 2000 Champion Chase was that AP McCoy went flat out from the start on perennial trailblazer Edredon Bleu but, having watched the replay a number of times, I've realised that there was much more craft and guile on display than I had previously imagined for all that they still lowered Tiutchev's course record which had been set just the previous day.

The pace was expected to be furious but McCoy appeared to dictate matters in the early stages, allowing Edredon Bleu's slick jumping to establish his position at the head of the field with Flagship Uberalles and Direct Route sat just behind him as they travelled down the back straight. McCoy was at work from four out, gradually winding up the pace and as the three principals galloped down the hill it became clear that a titanic tussle to the finishing line was in store. 

A mistake at the penultimate obstacle by Flagship Uberalles left him with a mountain to climb and McCoy urged Edredon Bleu clear as they entered the home straight. Norman Williamson sent Direct Route off in hot pursuit and, after jumping the last and going about a neck up half-way up the run-in, it looked for the entire world that Direct Route would triumph.

Many had not counted on the courage of both Edredon Bleu and AP McCoy however, as in tandem the pair went into overdrive with a kind of determination scarcely seen. They would not be beaten and so it transpired, a now synonymous power-packed drive from McCoy inspiring a stirring rally from his mount to stick his nose in front where it counted most.

Joe Rendall - Albertas Run, 2011 Ryanair Chase

The loudest roars at the Cheltenham festival are often reserved for those who have toiled to earn their place in the hearts of the crowd. Albertas Run's gritty defence on his Ryanair Crown in 2011, his third win at Cheltenham in four years, was greeted by one such chorus.

He looked a different horse that day to the rest of the season where his form had been lacklustre, and although the good surface undoubtedly played its part, it was as much about the ride from AP McCoy that ensured this Cheltenham hero cemented his place in Festival folklore. 

What is most significant about this particular ride is that allowed us a rare glimpse of McCoy as master tactician alongside the familiar image of his relentless drive. It was a deliberate move to ride Albertas Run from the front on this occasion, and given his victory in the RSA over three miles in 2008 and the fact he was ten at the time, it was unlikely a hold-up ride would have suited. 

Albertas Run had led or contested the lead from the moment the tapes went up, jumping and travelling fluently throughout, but as they began the descent downhill on the second circuit there was a queue of challengers waiting in the wings.

Yet in the hands of McCoy any tendency to idle in front was quashed and his mount found plenty to ward off the challenges of J'Y Vole, Rubi Light and finally Kalahari King to see the race out strongly. 

The champion had judged the pace of the ride to perfection, and he returned a 6-1 second favourite to the joy of the enraptured Cheltenham faithful.

It may not have had the wow factor of Wichita Lineman's 2009 victory, or the grim determination of Synchronised's Gold Cup, but on Albertas Run we saw McCoy's judgement - a quality which is often overlooked - to be as important as his peerless will to win. 

Tony McFadden - Shutthefrontdoor, 2012 Betfair Mobile For Best Prices Bumper

McCoy's supreme fitness has been well noted - he has won on many horses through sheer persistence and a refusal to stop pushing - but, to this observer at least, one of McCoy's finest and most remarkable performances came when he wasn't at the peak of physical health, when he had to display determination and mental fortitude that was scarcely fathomable.

Darlan had been travelling ominously well in the valuable Betfair Hurdle when he took a crashing fall at the second-last flight, sending McCoy to the floor with sickening speed. Anyone who witnessed the incident must have feared for the health of McCoy, so it was heartening to see him hobble away from the scene. The thought that McCoy could ride again that day at Newbury never crossed my mind, nor the mind of anyone other than the man himself, one suspects. 18 straight jump jockeys' championships and near 4000 winners is testament to the fact that McCoy is extraordinary, though.

Shutthefrontdoor was unbeaten in two starts - on neither occasion had he been ridden by McCoy - and was strongly fancied for the valuable Newbury bumper. McCoy, hauling himself off the canvas, took the ride as originally planned and, in spite of surely being in a good deal of pain, rode a trademark strong finish, urging the horse to get up close home. 

McCoy has obviously ridden higher-profile winners but the circumstances of the ride made it a remarkable feat in my eyes. He had been in a bad way on the Newbury turf a mere few hours earlier and he surely can't have been in top condition, but he still found a way to get on the last-race favourite. He simply refused to give up on a winner. It is that sort of commitment that has allowed McCoy to near this unprecedented figure of 4000 winners, a record that will surely stand for a long time.

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