After the Jockey Harry Cobden had pushed the Fire Flyer to victory for coach Paul Nicholls on February 6 in Taunton in the second division of the Novice Hurdle, he paid his slow colleague and passenger Keagan Kirkby a moving homage.
Before the race there was a beautifully observed minute silence through the jockeys and the weighing of the Libra Room on the Somerset route in memory of Kirkby, which died of injuries that died in a fall on point-to-point at Charing on February 4. The rider was a key cog on the bike on Nicholls Yard.
After the victory of Fire Flyer, the touching scenes continued in the winner's enclosure when Cobden hugged the Dükeat assistant, Charlie Davies, after the 6-year-old's termination. The victory was the first for the stable since the news on Sunday afternoon broke the defeat of Kirkby. While Kirkby was a difficult -working and basic -to -do member of the team, Cobden revealed that he also had a special connection to Fire Flyer.
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Paul Nicholls, who was not on the track, posted on X: “This winner is dedicated to Keagan, who drove fire fire pilots almost every day. Thank you.”
