Lift Me Up putting celebrity owners in the Cheltenham spotlight

Lift Me Up is spicing up jockey Jack Andrews’ life, as he prepares to take the wheel for Red Bull Formula One supremo Christian Horner and his wife Geri at the Cheltenham Festival.

A well-known name in motorsport, Horner has a starring role in Netflix’s Drive To Survive series, while Geri Halliwell-Horner needs no introduction following her many years in the spotlight with chart-toppers the Spice Girls.

However, Andrews is no stranger himself to column inches, with the 6ft 4in rider widely known as the ‘world’s tallest jockey’. Alongside his sister, and often weighing-room rival Gina Andrews, the 26-year-old has become a key figure in the Horners’ foray into racing.

But the man who will be aboard their prized equine asset – named after Geri’s number one hit of 1999 – in the St. James’s Place Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase admits he was at first more familiar with the Red Bull chief than his pop star wife.

“Christian and Geri are people I met a couple of years back now when they asked us – me and my sister Gina – to ride their horses point-to-pointing and in hunter chasers,” said Andrews.

“I’m potentially showing my young age here, but I was very young when the Spice Girls were big so Geri wasn’t someone who was high up on my list of celebrities and Christian was probably more famous to me because I enjoy Formula One.

“We’ve developed a good relationship and they are a pleasure to ride for. They love going racing and are very easy to deal with and love the sport.

“I think they like that they can come point-to-pointing with us at the weekend and not get overly hassled by anyone. They can walk round and enjoy their day out with the family and we just treat them like friends really and like any other owner we’ve got to know well.”

Such is the nature of the international sporting calendar, Horner will be in Australia preparing his Red Bull team for the opening race of the Formula One season when the tapes go up for the ‘amateur Gold Cup’ at Prestbury Park.

The man who has guided Max Verstappen to four Formula One World Drivers’ Championships is sure to be a keen observer from the southern hemisphere. But it will be trainer Maxine Filby who will be giving Andrews his instructions on March 15.

Andrews explained just how the dynamic with the Formula One team principal works, with proven winner Horner appreciative of the straight-talking nature of the relationship.

“Christian is just a normal chap and we don’t beat around the bush when we talk about the horses, we tell it as it is and if it needs saying we say it and I think he likes that,” continued Andrews.

“I think he sometimes struggles when the odd thing goes wrong. When there’s a problem with a car, you put it in the garage and fix it, but when there’s a problem with a horse it can be hard to understand and get to the bottom of. But saying that they absolutely love it and they are simply a pleasure to ride for.”

It could be a first for owners, trainer and jockey if Lift Me Up was to follow in the footsteps of 2019 Festival winner Hazel Hill and add to his win in Warwick’s competitive Willoughby De Broke Open Hunters’ Chase with victory in the Cotswolds.

The nine-year-old’s appearance at National Hunt’s showpiece event has been long in the planning for his team, with Andrews now relishing the possibility of walking into racing’s famous winner’s enclosure on Gold Cup day.

He said: “Cheltenham has been on the cards for 12 to 18 months now, we wanted to go last year but he couldn’t get qualified in time. This year there has been no rush and it was nice he could have a nice prep run and now we can look forward to Cheltenham.

“At that time of year hunter chases are always competitive as everyone is dreaming of the same thing and we like to think he goes to the Festival with a live chance and adds a bit of spice to the foxhunters anyway.”