TONY McCOY showed just why he is the British champion jockey elect yesterday when thrilling the Punchestown crowd with a 593 to 1 treble, highlighted by the success of Shaunies Lady in the Murphys Irish Stout Champion 4 year old Hurdle.

With half a mile to go, Shaunies Lady's 10 to 1 starting price looked miserly as McCoy was working overtime and Storm Damage looked to be going well in the lead. Besides Shaunies Lady, trainer Aidan O'Brien had three other runners in the race and on the turn in Theatreworld looked to be his best hope of winning, but McCoy, from Toomebridge, Co Antrim, didn't give up.

With the 20 to 1 shot, Lady Arpel, running on strongly on the outside, McCoy drove Shaunies Lady between her and Storm Damage and the filly showed admirable resolution to win by a length and a half.

Typically cool, McCoy said the situation wasn't as desperate as it seemed before the straight. "I knew I'd win then as Aidan and Charlie (Swan) told me she is very tough and would stay on, he said. Maybe, but she needed all McCoy's strength and O'Brien said: "He gave the horse a brilliant ride."

On form O'Brien was unable to separate his four horses before the race. "It's virtually impossible to pick one of the four as the best and if you ran the race again, you still might not pick the winner," he added.

In contrast, it was easy to spot McCoy's first winner of the day. Mayasta, a long way from the line in the Dunne Insurance Handicap Hurdle and the Frank Berry trained mare cruised home stylishly by four and a half lengths.

Arthur Moore was effusive in his praise of 21 year old McCoy, who got Have to Think home three lengths clear of Anabatic in the Castlemartin StudPai Taaffe Handicap Chase. "He's a beautiful rider and another great ambassador for the country. This horse was third in this race last year to Rough Quest and deserved it, but his place is in England and he'll go to the Doncaster Sales," Moore said.

McCoy was the leading rider at the Festival with four winners but he wasn't the only jockey to thrill the crowd and there won't be a more exciting race all year than the Tripleprint Novice Chase where Richard Dunwoody and Charlie Swan exhibited their awesome skills.

The Arkle winner, Ventana Canyon, was the clear form choice for the race, but from four out Dunwoody knew he had a battle on his hands when Swan kicked Double Symphony clear. Two fences later the gap was closed and Ventana Canyon led but he couldn't shake off Double Symphony, even after the mare burst a hole in the final fence that would have done credit to a rampaging elephant.

Both jockeys were so close at the line that neither rider was sure who'd won. "I didn't think I had been beaten when I was pulling up, but then I saw the big screen replay and I wasn't so sure," Dunwoody said.

O'Brien was amazed Double Symphony had even finished after her horrible mistake and said: "I couldn't believe it. She halved the last fence and I don know how Charlie stayed on."

Ventana Canyon's trainer, Edward O'Grady, was confident his horse had won though and the camera confirmed his confidence. "It's been a long season, but he jumped better than ever today and he will come back for the First National City Bank Chase at Ascot in November, which favours novices," O'Grady said.

That was Dunwoody's only success of the Festival and Mark Dwyer also had to make do with one winner, but he was ice cool on Derrymoyle, who turned around Cheltenham form with the odds on Cyborgo in the Davenport Hotel Tipperkevin Hurdle.

Cyborgo was in trouble before the straight but Dwyer waited and waited with Derrymoyle before unleashing him at the last to beat What A Question by two and a half lengths.

"I didn't want to get there too soon, but he was impressive. It's just a shame he didn't spark at Cheltenham." Dwyer said. Trainer Michael Cunningham believes Derrymoyle simply doesn't like Cheltenham but the horse is unbeaten around Punchestown.

"We'll pop him over fences in the next week to see how he takes to them and then we'll turn him out for the summer. Tom Costello sold him to Herb Stanley (owner) and has been telling him for the last two years to go chasing with the horse." Cunningham said.

Willie Mullins trained and rode Three Scholars to win the Naas Traders Flat Race while Risk of Thunder won his fourth race over the famous Punchestown banks to win the La Touche Cup for the second year running.

Trained by Limerick based Noreen Hayes, Risk of Thunder used his experience of the distinctive course to out stay the opposition in the extended four mile marathon. Hayes said: "He is an out and out galloper. He'd go for five or six miles if he had to, as he never gives up."