From King Of The Jungle To King Of Kempton
Harry Redknapp understands everything 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 entered the Champions League and left the previous Premier League manager holding the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase trophy aloft.
It was 12 months ago the apple of Redknapp and trainer Ben Pauling's eye announced himself as a high-level entertainer with triumph on this extremely afternoon, but now was his time to show he belonged amongst the elite.
Dispatched at 7-1 after returning from injury in design at Haydock last month, Redknapp compared the obstacle of taking on the might of Willie Mullins and Nicky Henderson in the Christmas showpiece to his days in the dugout taking on some of Europe's finest.
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 finalizing remained in outstanding form, brushing off his challengers in a performance that was motivated, unrelenting and entirely dazzling in equal measure. 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 Star ... Get Me Out of Here! was in no doubt where the moment ranked among his many .
He said: "We had actually got into the Premier League with this horse which was great, but today we went Champions League and we were handling the top teams, the Real Madrid, the Barcelona and we showed we can complete with them and win, it's an incredible sensation.
"This is right up there with my best sporting accomplishments. Football has actually been my life and when you win a cup final for the fans it is an amazing sensation at a football club, but I love racing and I enjoy the game and individuals in it - to have a winner like this is simply great.
"To have a horse that great boggles the mind. I like the game however to come here on King George day and simply run made me so happy - however to have the winner is special.
Harry Redknapp with the King George VI Chase prize (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, but I wasn't sure. It was a dream when they called the winner. I got a huge kiss from Sandra at the end too and she thinks I only have that horse."
It remained in 2008 that the-then Portsmouth supervisor Redknapp hoisted the FA Cup up simply a short drive around the M25 from Kempton at Wembley.
That Pompey team perhaps represented the 78-year-old's supervisory career, but after The Jukebox Man was made 7-1 by a number of firms for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the master of the transfer market appears to have worked his magic once again as his ₤ 70,000 purchase sparked more Cheltenham Festival dreams.
"What a race he has actually run and he's leapt unbelievable," said Redknapp. "When they pertained to him I believed he was beat and would end up 4th, however he's returned and the guts the horse has actually shown is just incredible.
Harry Redknapp (centre) and group The Jukebox Man celebrate 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, but he's simply informing me he does not care and that they all had us to beat. Ben Jones said he wants more cut and more range, possibly we get that in March?"
He went on: "I have actually had my finest days with Ben. He trained Shakem Up'arry to win for me at the Cheltenham Festival which was a dream and then to come here today. He's been lucky for me and it's fantastic really. I don't think we've had a bad horse together."
Set versus the backdrop of Kempton's much-publicised potential closure, it was a King George which served a pointer of why the race's put on the Boxing Day calendar is necessary for the sport.
A titanic four-way battle after the last left lots of describing it as the best renewal of the Grade One feature they have actually ever seen and on a day with no Premier League football in the afternoon, saw more than 17,000 yuletide revellers file through the gates.
The Jukebox Man was the star of an excellent day of racing at Kempton (Steven Paston for The Jockey Club/PA)
Simon Durrant, general manager at Kempton Park, said: "Today was a great example of whatever that is great about dive racing in Britain.
"I'm thrilled for Harry Redknapp and all those linked with Ben Pauling's team and The Jukebox Man and I'm also delighted for the group here at Kempton Park.
"To have more than 17,000 people through the gates, including sold-out hospitality and Premier and Paddock enclosures, is a great reward for all their effort 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 always 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)."