Edward Gillespie, the managing director of Cheltenham racecourse, has told the BBC that they already have plans to honour racing legend Best Mate. The three-time Cheltenham Gold Cup winner died on Tuesday during his seasonal debut at Exeter.
The Gloucestershire track already has an enclosure named after Best Mate.
"Having a statue would certainly be a natural way of celebrating his contribution to the sport, and also having a race," said Gillespie.
"I think it's inevitable, because he stands up there with Golden Miller and Arkle and Dawn Run, for whom we have statues.
"We also have the Arkle Chase at the Festival, and I think people like to see great horses like this remembered."
 |  We will really grieve the fact that we won't see him in retirement, which has been such a joy with horses like Desert Orchid |
Best Mate was a Cheltenham legend and Gillespie said it was a great shame the horse would not be seen at the course again.
"His association with Cheltenham is uppermost in people's minds because he is simply the first horse since Arkle to have won three Cheltenham Gold Cups," Gillespie told BBC Radio Four.
"That is what stands him apart because he is the highest-achieving champion that National Hunt racing has had in 40 years.
"I think we will really grieve the fact that we won't see him in retirement, which has been such a joy with horses like Desert Orchid."
Meanwhile, Best Mate's trainer, Henrietta Knight, has been reflecting on life without the champion jumper at her Oxfordshire stables.
"We're feeling a bit flat and a bit sad this morning," she told Radio Four.
"The yard is very quiet and there's a big hole and an empty stable, and it's not nice.
"Best Mate loved racing, he was a real competitor and he was really happy when he galloping and jumping.
"He was very good for racing and he was a wonderful animal to work with."
MMIX
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