Free Worth €2,500 for 96 race days
There’s only one WILLIE MULLINS
LOOK DE VEGA.
He looked right out of the top drawer when running away with the French Derby... couldn’t have won any easier “ “ “
the only unbeaten runner in the field ran out a clear-cut winner “
GR.1 WINNING MILER BY NEW BAY
FEE: €12,500
• Won the Gr.1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes and Gr.2 Champagne Stakes – 123
• Covered 245 mares in his first 2 seasons & the 2 BEST BOOKS of any 2nd season sire in Ireland by % Winners & % Blacktype mares
ONE OF THE WORLD’S LEADING SIRES
. FEE: €175,000
• More Group 1 winners, European Classic Winners and Stakes Horses than any other stallion in the world in 2024!
• Over 60 Stakes horses in 2024 with 6 Gr.1 winners including CARL SPACKLER, LOOK DE VEGA, ROUHIYA and 2yo SHADOW OF LIGHT
CLASSIC WINNER, CLASSIC SIRE
. FEE: €8,000
• 7 Stakes Winners in 2024 including Group 2 winning 2yos LAZIO & KLAYNN and 2yo FAST SPIRIT
• 3yo Group winners in 2024 include SAJIR & MAKING DREAMS
DUBAWI ‘S SENSATIONAL SIRE SON
. FEE: €75,000
• Stakes horses in 2024 include Gr.1 horses ALCANTOR & NEW ENDEAVOUR, 2yo Gr.2 winner BAY CITY ROLLER and sire of 29 individual 2yo winners
• 5 3yo Stakes winners in Europe in 2024 – that’s more than Wootton Bassett, No Nay Never, Too Darn Hot & Zarak and they were bred off his lowest ever fee
BOUTTEMONT
DUAL STAKES WINNING SON OF ACCLAMATION
His frst son to retire to stud in Ireland since Mehmas in 2017
KODI BEAR
SIRE OF 20 INDIVIDUAL STAKES PERFORMERS incl. 2024 Gr.2 Winning Juvenile LEOVANNI and Gr.3 Winning Juvenile COWARDOFTHECOUNTY - all from nomination fees of less than €10,000
STATE OF REST
FOUR TIME GR.1 WINNER - TOP RATED OLDER HORSE IN IRELAND & FRANCE IN 2022 (9.5-10.5F.)
Strongly supported by leading breeders in his frst two seasons in both hemispheres
Paul Cashman Catherine Cashman Niamh Woods Francis Woods
Paul McCarthy Micheál Fahy
Joan Tyner
Love the sport
While the racing landscape is far from perfect, and it is incumbent upon the powersthat-be to improve matters, it is a bit tiresome to be accused of appeasement by actually enjoying the sporting action.
In terms of the calibre of horse, trainer and jockey, these are heady days in Ireland. Would we like more opportunities for more people?
Yes. Would we like less free hits and a pruning of the graded programme over jumps? Yes.
But you shouldn’t punish people for doing things better than anyone else, for building an empire from rubble. It will come as no surprise that in the cover feature, Willie Mullins points out that everyone else had the same environment and set of conditions as him when he began, with five horses.
There are plenty of people profiled within these pages who concur. John Murphy, who reckons he may have become the first Corkbased trainer to win a Group 1 when saddling White Birch to defeat Aidan O’Brien’s Auguste Rodin in the Tattersalls Gold Cup, is one. The Upton man is adamant.
“You must commend brilliance. They’re top of their game for a reason so getting to that level should be the goal.”
As an industry, we know there are issues with attendances, field sizes and the
Publisher: JOHN FLEMING
Editor:
DARAGH Ó CONCHÚIR
GARY CARSON
ROBERT CATTERSON
BRENDAN COFFEY
RORY DELARGY
overproduction of racehorses but from a truly sporting perspective, we can surely celebrate the feats of Mullins and O’Brien in becoming British champions, the gaiscí of Galopin Des Champs, City Of Troy, Teahupoo and Porta Fortuna, the blows landed by Pat O’Donnell (Extensio), Pat Foley (Special Wan), Jimmy Mangan (Spillane’s Tower), Tom Gibney (Intense Raffles), Harry Rogers (Lord Erskine) and indeed, John and George Murphy with White Birch.
Just as we can hail the enduring magnificence of Dermot Weld and how Gavin Cromwell, Philip Rothwell, Ross O’Sullivan and Jack Davison can thrive against such stiff competition. We can admire the skills of Jack Kennedy, Chris Hayes, Derek O’Connor and Shane Foley in the saddle, and the resilient response of JJ Slevin to his Cheltenham Gold Cup unseat from Fastorslow by delivering at Fairyhouse, Punchestown and Galway.
And that’s not to mention the likes of Sean Levey, Brian Meehan, Rossa Ryan, Johnny Burke and Seán Bowen doing it away from home, albeit while effecting the odd successful raid too.
Thanks to all our contributors, writers and photographers, and to our page designers at Thoroughbred Advertising. I hope you enjoy the culmination of all their efforts.
Gach rath oraibh go léir i 2025
Daragh Ó Conchúir – EDITOR
DONAL MURPHY
DARREN NORRIS
BRENDAN O’BRIEN
JOHN O’BRIEN
Photographs: BRONWEN HEALY
HEALY RACING
PETER MOONEY
GRAHAM DENCH
Marketing:
MEGAN ROGERS
KERRY RYAN
Design: THOROUGHBRED
ADVERTISING
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Distributed by: EASON
Contributors:
JOHN BERRY
JOHN BOYCE
DONNCHADH BOYLE
DAVID DONOHUE
ANNE MARIE DUFF
MICHAEL DUGGAN
IAN GAUGHRAN
RONAN GROOME
ALAN HEWISON
LAURA JOY
FRANCIS KEOGH
DONN MCCLEAN
ENDA MCEVOY
DR SIEGLINDE MCGEE
PATRICK MULLINS
DARAGH Ó CONCHÚIR
BRIAN O’CONNOR
JOHN O’RIORDAN
FINTAN O’TOOLE
EDWARD PROSSER
MARTIN STEVENS
MARCUS TOWNEND
MICHAEL VERNEY
DENIS WALSH
EOGHÁIN WARD
JOHNNY WARD
GUY WILLIAMS
SEB VANCE
ZUZANNA LUPA
CAROLINE NORRIS
MARC RÜHL
Front cover: Willie Mullins kicks off the celebrations with racing fans from Skerries in Willie Mullins masks, after the Closutton trainer is crowned British champion at Sandown in April
Front Cover Photo:
CAROLINE NORRIS
Enduring quality
Invincible
WILLIE MULLINS
Words: DARAGH Ó CONCHÚIR • Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS
it over MULLIN
Though grateful for the bounties that have come his way, the future is always more alluring than the past to the Irish and British champion trainer
“
Any time you have a health scare is a fright. You don’t take for granted that you’re going to come out the other side of it. It makes you respect life, maybe what you eat and drink more… is it the fecklessness of youth? (Chuckles) You certainly have a lot more respect... yes.”
Willie Mullins is smiling ruefully, maybe a little cheekily too. He still likes to celebrate the good times and there have been a lot of those. So, he hasn’t sworn off ALL of life’s luxuries.
That he hasn’t become bored or desensitised by metronomic achievement is noteworthy and laudable. It means, of course, that there is no slacking off. He wants more. Better. Bad news for everyone else.
He enjoys the social element of racing. Conversing over a cup of tea or a beverage with a little more bite. And when there is something to get really excited about, that might just entail the odd late night.
Events that fit that description last season
include crossing the 100-winner landmark at Cheltenham to reach 103 and counting; landing the Cheltenham Gold Cup (Galopin Des Champs) and Champion Hurdle (State Man), as well as the Grand National at Aintree (I Am Maximus), the Scottish National (Macdermott) and the Bet365 Cup (Minella Cocooner), to become the first Irishman and Irish-based trainer since Vincent O’Brien 70 years previously to be British champion trainer; securing an 18th Irish championship; breaking Dermot Weld’s all-time Irish record of winners to bring his lifetime number to north of 4,450 by the end of November; setting a new world record tally of 39 Grade 1s in a season to take him to a career total of 392 elite triumphs, prior to Punchestown’s Morgiana/John Durkan weekend and including Wicklow Brave’s Irish St Leger success in 2016 – all started by Tourist Attraction and Mark Dwyer in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham in 1995.
There have been a few late nights.
WILLIE MULLINS
Executive Management: with wife Jackie and son
Patrick, after Patrick had provided his father with the landmark 100th Cheltenham Festival triumph on the Munir/Souede gelding
Jasmin De Vaux in the Champion Bumper
A heart bypass five years ago may have prompted a little more circumspection but it will not turn William Peter Mullins into a hermit. He is off sugar ten days when he plays host to the Irish Racing Yearbook, taking in a brisk constitutional around the facilities that is part of his routine before dishing up a spot of lasagne and apple tart.
That is a lifestyle choice. The only thing he has been banned from indulging in is salt.
The sweet tooth can absolutely be pandered to. He might often have six or seven bars hidden around the house, out of the clutches of his wife Jackie and son, Patrick.
Past glories, even those in the very recent past, are less alluring than the future, however. Particularly in the early part of a campaign when established stars, and potential ones, are back from their holidays.
“We felt it was extraordinary as we were going through (the year),” he says of his annus mirabilis “We thought we had a good team, but we never dreamt that we would have the sort of success we had. It surprised and delighted us.
“It always amazes me how much people grow when you give them the responsibility and make the job their own, and they make the job even bigger and better”
There are none now, however. Or so he says. But the dinner and dessert are the finest, heated in the Stanley range that was bought on the day Patrick was born, 35 years ago on December 5, and was fired up for the first time when Jackie brought him home.
It was the summer of 2019 when James McCarthy put him under the scalpel. He was a few months shy of 63. For many, it would have been the signal to slow down, pass the reins over to the young lad, who had served a long apprenticeship.
It’s not the way he is wired though. Just as when Michael O’Leary removed 60 horses from the yard in 2016, when Gordon Elliott was about 24 hours away from becoming champion trainer the following April, he came out swinging.
His only concession to the health scare was to adopt the 3Ds advice proffered by one of his owners, Noel O’Callaghan, of Alexander Banquet fame – Decide, Delegate and Disappear. And that has proven beneficial personally and professionally. In the last four seasons he has recorded increasing totals of 182, 213, 237 and 257 winners for a cumulative yield of around €25.5m in prizemoney. Relentless.
“But then the season is over and you start from scratch again. Rather than looking back, we’re always looking forward. This year, next year, the year after. See what you have coming through the ranks.
“It’s like any sports club and that’s what we are. We’re an industry but we’re a sports club as well. The money that we have spent on that gallop alone,” he says, pointing. “The sand gallop, the other gallops. But every year, you look at our pitch and for us that’s the gallop and you look at the maintenance that has to be done by September 1. It’s a huge investment for any trainer because you are hoping to get a couple of years out of the surface.”
The stellar events of the previous six months have been covered in about 30 seconds and though we return to them, at this remove, there is little he hasn’t said about them now. Far more interesting is his shift of emphasis to the persistent ambition and growth, ever since telling the IHRB inspector a white lie about the number of horses he had to get a licence to train in 1988. He was shy of the six required. There are 200 in Closutton on the day of my visit, before the season has gotten into gear properly. There are countless more in pre-training around the land.
He is the bar and his deep gallop is now copied and pasted in more and more yards on both sides of the Irish Sea. It is an amazing journey, given he had nothing when he started.
Sales Dates 2025
Winter Flat & National Hunt Sale
28 - 29 January
Breeze Up Sale
22 - 23 May
May Point-to-Point & Horses In Training Sale
29 May
Derby Sale**
25 - 26 June
Derby Sale Part II**
27 June
July Store Sale**
23 - 24 July
September Yearling Sale*
23 - 24 September
September Yearling Sale
Part II*
25 September
November National Hunt Sale
7 - 12 November
Sapphire Sale*
13 November
*featuring the €250,000 Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sales Stakes
**featuring the €100,000 Tattersalls Ireland George Mernagh Memorial Sales Bumper
All dates subject to alteration
T: +353 1 8864300 info@tattersalls.ie www.tattersalls.ie
WILLIE MULLINS
Taking the wraps off the statue of dual Cheltenham Gold Cup hero
Al Boum Photo, commissioned and presented by grateful owners, Marie and Joe Donnelly
Tom and Tony were exposed to the same upbringing he was, as sons of Paddy and Maureen and have had successful careers as trainers. But they have not been at their older brother’s level. No one has. They, and their generation, came through at the same environment, with the same racing programme.
He had no idea about racing but the former vet had proven his managerial chops by leaving his Department of Agriculture job aged 45, to oversee Kerry Co-Op’s operation in Mexico. He had later taken his philosophy to Brazil and was 65 when answering an SOS to help rescue Punchestown. That code of management is as follows:
“I try to treat everyone the same. The smaller owner with a horse, if his horse is good enough and Paul wants to ride it, Paul will ride, because Paul wants to ride the winner”
While he will not talk directly about the HRI announcement that 60 pre-existing races were being ringfenced for every other trainer bar himself, Elliott, Henry de Bromhead and Gavin Cromwell, he is clearly irked by what he sees as a punishment, and seems to want to make the point about what went into the creation of the business and what goes into maintaining it. The new barns being built is just another step. Standing still is going backwards in the high performance world.
The phone rings. It is the first of many over three hours. There are various little matters broached with him on our walk, a chicane that needs fixing, paving that needs to be replaced, travel arrangements for horses racing in France. Many are trifling, some more pressing. One or two prompt a little more animation than others. All are dealt with on the spot.
These are the bits and pieces that go into the day-to-day running of a huge operation employing close on 100 people around the Carlow-Kilkenny region. Ali said it best.
“The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses – behind the lines, in the gym and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.”
It is almost seven years since Dick O’Sullivan listed his principles of leadership for this fascinated inquisitor tasked by The Irish Field with finding out how the cheerful Kerry man had managed to turn Punchestown Racecourse from a basket case in threat of liquidation, to a booming theatre of dreams.
1. Mission: “That means where I am now, where I want to be. In other words, what’s the ambition?”
2. Strategy: “What’s the plan to get there? And a strategy is mostly looking at what strengths have you and what weaknesses. Now leave the strengths alone and work on the weaknesses. Try and take them out, and the strengths will handle themselves.”
3. Structure: “Most guys in business that are badly run have nothing at the top, or maybe nothing at the bottom. They don’t have a clue what’s going on. There’s no structure. They don’t know who the boss is often.”
4. Capability: “The people you have must have some capability. Now, they don’t have to be geniuses but they must have some capability.”
5. Clarity: “There’s nothing worse than guys in a business trying to do a job and they’re not clear of what is wanted of them. That’s a desperate important thing in any business.”
6. Take responsibility: “Don’t say it’s someone else’s fault. Rubbish. You will make mistakes if you’re any good. The guy that never makes a mistake, never does anything.”
It is a manual Mullins could have written himself. The mission changed when making do wasn’t cutting it. He and Jackie decided to strive for the moon, thinking the stars would be fine. Who knew that they would discover new planets? But there was also the danger that they would crash and burn. There was no guarantee, no back-up plan. No safety net. But they knew, to blast off, they would need the raw material.
WILLIE MULLINS
Memories of Mother
Racing followers are still getting used to not seeing Maureen Mullins around, so we can only imagine what it is like for her family. She died on St Valentine’s Day, aged 94. Needless to say, she was at the forefront of her son’s thoughts as he experienced the most extraordinary run of success.
“She was fantastic to go racing with, and always ready at the drop of a hat to go racing or go look at horses or just to go anywhere. She loved looking forward to stuff. She was always great company to have in the car. Would know seed, breed and generation of everyone, as most mothers do.
“That love of the horse was at the core of it. She was a farmer’s daughter. Loved land, loved country life. You could be looking at a farm with her, or something like that. I’d be looking at maybe whether it could be a nice gallop, or what sort of grass, and she’d be over counting bales, seeing how many acres were in each field. Everything was a number with her. How much could you earn out of this? That’s just the way her mind worked.”
She once told a story about taking Willie to a career guidance guru, who suggested that architecture might be suited to such a detail driven individual. He had it banished from his mind before he left the office.
“She was hoping I might be good at something,” he says with a grin. No worries there then.
So the strategy was to attract wealthy patrons. They would have to source them, seek them out, persuade them that this would be a fun way to spend some of their money. It was all well and good being able to train but neither Jesus Christ nor Harry Houdini could get a slow handicapper to win a Gold Cup. The horses in the stables were the weakness, the ability to train the strength. The limiting factors were removed. Hey presto.
The structure of the operation is very clear and the capability of the team is unquestioned.
Speaking on ITV, Megan Nicholls argued that from what she had gleaned from visiting Closutton, they had built the best of everything, staff included. This, remember, is the daughter of Ditcheat leviathan, Paul Nicholls, a man with no intention of
throwing in the towel and spending as much, if not more than Mullins at public auction on horses.
Willie, Jackie and Patrick are at the top of tree and then you have David Casey, Ruby Walsh, Paul Townend, Dick Dowling, Danny Mullins, Jody Townend, Rachel Robbins, David Porter, Virginie Bascop, Harold Kirk, Pierre Boulard, Rich Ricci. The list goes on and on.
There is definite clarity. Everyone knows their job within the conglomerate, with a number of separate entities, run as such, but coming together to form an irresistible force.
And clearly, they enjoy working for him. Success helps but Mullins doesn’t do scapegoating. For sure, they must own their actions, but for all that he gives his staff ownership, allows them to do things a little differently even than he might and seeks every little bit of information and opinion they have to offer, the buck stops with the gaffer.
Walsh has always said that the man who has been his boss since 1996 – there is a photo in the porch of Mullins beating the then seven-pound claimer in a bumper that year- and is now a close friend, needs a deadline to make a decision. And that he doesn’t go in for regrets if it goes wrong. There is no blame game. It is on him.
As O’Sullivan himself put it, you empower people, let them grow and assume responsibility.
Steve Kerr, Michael Jordan’s teammate at the all-conquering Chicago Bulls where he won five rings, coach of the USA Olympic team that won gold in Paris and more impressively of the Golden State Warriors that have ascended the NBA mountain four times, described it similarly.
“80% of coaching is relationships, 20% is the Xs and Os.”
With Mullins, those relationships are everything, from staff, to jockeys and to owners.
Pat Doyle is a legend of the point-to-point world, producing future champions for many trainers, Mullins included. He broke dual Champion Hurdle hero Monksfield half a century ago, pre-trained Aintree Grand National winner Minnehoma and then, via his pointing operation, educated countless Grade 1 and Cheltenham winners, Bob Olinger, Appreciate It, First Lieutenant, Shattered Love, Colreevy, Readin Tommy Wrong, Bacardys, Commander Of Fleet, Champ Kiely and Brindisi Breeze in their midst.
He has no doubt what moved Mullins to stratospheric levels.
“Willie Mullins is one of the greatest men of all times to deal with people,” he told me once. “And he’s so knowledgeable. He can sit down and talk to a rugby crowd, golf crowd. I sat with him the other day and he was explaining so much to me about the trotters in France, the headgear they were wearing, the shoes they were wearing.
“Willie Mullins can talk about every subject. If he wanted to talk about opera I’m sure he could because he’s a very intelligent man.”
Dealing with people is key, at all levels. None of the past year, the past five years, the past ten, would have happened were he not able to connect on a human level, to sell a vision and a dream.
WILLIE MULLINS
Yes, the man can train racehorses. But as we know from the calibre of horseman and woman in this country and beyond, it’s not just about that, is it?
Al Boum Photo is back. No, not in the flesh but immortalised in statue in the yard, just across from Galopin Des Champs’ stable. The inanimate form of the horse that gave Mullins his first Gold Cup success in 2019, after 31 years with a licence, and followed up the following season, is a present from his grateful owners, Marie and Joe Donnelly.
Galopin Des Champs has emulated his former
stablemate now with a two-in-a-row. The target is to go one better. Emulate Best Mate and Arkle. There are many top-flight challengers to the Audrey Turley-owned son of Timos, who only turns nine in 2025. Some of them are working alongside him, representing other patrons, such as JP McManus and Cheveley Park Stud. That way with people must be tested most supremely when he is moving the chess pieces around the proverbial board, sometimes choosing a lesser target over a headline one, or else pitching a handful of his charges against one another. How to
The shift in the balance of power from Britain to Ireland
“I remember when Ireland didn’t have any winners at Cheltenham, or they had one winner or two winners. The first one we had, I thought, ‘If I never, ever come back here again and have another winner, at least I’ve had one winner.’ And that’s the way Irish trainers thought at the time. You didn’t ever think you were going to come back and win another one. All the good horses were in England. All the good owners were in England.
“Nowadays, we have HRI, which was preceded by the IHA, which was preceded by the Racing Board, and when IHA took over from the Racing Board and HRI was formed, they formed a programme which is the envy of England now, because they’ve seen the benefits of that programme, that the whole thing has turned 180 degrees.
“We probably have most of the best horses, and we certainly have a huge amount of the best owners, which were never in Ireland before. We have tremendous prizemoney. And I think that programme should be held onto and cherished.
“I think a lot of people nowadays in racing don’t remember what it was like when any good horse that was produced in Ireland was just sold abroad. I remember riding beautiful bumper horses for my father thinking, ‘Wow, these could be great chasers and hurdlers,’ and next thing, they were gone out of the yard because Irish owners simply couldn’t afford to race them. Plus the fact that there wasn’t good enough prizemoney to keep them unless you were very wealthy, and we just hadn’t those people in Ireland. But now we have both.
“So I think people should be very careful when they start messing with a programme. When you do little tweaks, you don’t realise the consequences there might be somewhere else. That’s a great legacy that Brian Kavanagh and Jason Morris gave to Irish racing and we should cherish it.
“We have such a diverse group of owners. It’s different people winning. That’s the one thing I love about jump racing in Ireland. There is such a broad spectrum of owners. It’s not just one big owner dominating a yard and you can see that in our yard. You can see it in Gordon’s and Gavin’s. That’s great.”
“One thing I love about jump racing in Ireland (is) there is such a broad spectrum of owners. It’s not just one big owner dominating a yard”
prevent jealousy setting in, or the notion that another owner is getting preferential treatment?
If his management skills would be appreciated at his beloved Man United, his diplomacy wouldn’t go astray dealing with Ukraine and Gaza. He plays it down, of course. Yet it is showcased when he is asked to pick his favourite horse. That gets a swerve Gary Ringrose would be proud of.
Ricci was the one that really moved the dial though. Of that, there is no doubt.
“Different things propel you a little bit more. Tourist Attraction, obviously, Wither Or Which (ridden by the trainer to win the Champion Bumper in ’96), and then buying Archie O’Leary Florida Pearl. All those things happened very quickly and they’ve propelled us up another notch all the time. And then, I suppose, meeting Rich Ricci, which is, I think, huge, because Rich had the ambition to have some really good horses.
“Myself and Rich got on like a house of fire and he loved the Irish angle of jump racing. And that propelled us huge. Now, it built up slowly. It wasn’t that he came in one day and said, ‘Willie, I want 20 horses,’ or anything like that. But every year we acquired a few more. And every year the extra ones, one or two we got, there was always a good one in it, and the thing grew.
“And of course, Rich is such a personality, that was a huge part of it, TV interviews and what not. He brought a bit of fun to the game… and I’m sure that in itself for jump racing too was a big plus.”
The way he tells it, there is never a bother with owners about choosing targets.
“I think the horses usually pick their own races, rather than me and the owners. I think a lot of jump owners are very pragmatic. They know the way the game works. We’re in it to try and maximise the winning potential of every horse. And obviously they’re all going to meet at some stage, but sometimes during the year, they have to take each other on as well.
“And you know, sometimes the choice of jockey might be… everyone wants to maybe have Paul all the time. But the way it works for us, is lots of our second and third choice jockeys win Grade 1s. I think Danny had a huge amount of Grade 1s last year. Everyone gets a sprinkle of Grade 1s, and they all go out with an equal chance. And you never know what happens in a race.”
The owners know that if they are in the race, they are considered to have at least the semblance of a chance, that it will not always be the market selection that prevails.
“I try to treat everyone the same. The smaller owner with a horse, if his horse is good enough and Paul wants to ride it, Paul will ride, because Paul wants to ride the winner. I always felt that’s the way to treat people, that everyone gets treated the same.”
That’s why Michael O’Leary had to go. There would be no special deals.
Once you have the means, then it is about the calibre of the sourcing. Lots of money is spent every year on horses that don’t reach the levels commensurate with their price tags.
Renowned British producer, Tom Lacey
remarked to me that Kirk is incredibly on the ball in terms of talent spotting, but beyond that, business is conducted swiftly, with no messing. There is no prevarication.
“People say, ‘What’s Willie Mullins doing, that allows him to get all these best horses?’”, Lacey noted for the Trainer magazine earlier this year.
“If you’ve got a good horse and you genuinely believe it’s a graded horse, if you ring Harold Kirk and say, ‘Harold, I’ve got one for you,’ he will say, ‘What do you want for it?’ You’ll name your price and he will say, ‘I’ll have it.’
“That is what Willie Mullins does differently. He doesn’t say, ‘I’ll come back to you in a week’s time.’ The vet’s there within the week and they just get the business done. They do not sit on the fence and allow horses to be sold from underneath them. That is one of the things he does that no one else does. They are so straightforward.”
It’s about having the necessary firepower with which to go to war. Kirk and Boulard are the main buyers but the network is wide and the cast involved numerous.
“The first time I went to France, I didn’t know anyone except Pierre, and I only knew him because he worked for my father. I met him the time of Dawn Run, and then he came over to Doninga and worked there. When I was looking for a horse, I just happened to have his phone number and rang him up. He’d come back from the East. He was either in Hong Kong or Macau or somewhere, and he was setting up as bloodstock agent. And the two of us grew from there. Then
WILLIE MULLINS
Harold came on board. So it just evolved.”
There is no specific Willie Mullins type.
“If you can hopefully get a nice, sound horse. We buy them in all shapes, sizes and colours. If you can just pick out the one that goes faster than the others. That’s the favourite thing.”
And then there’s the team. He never liked the idea of an assistant but after his illness, accepted that he could not continue to be hands-on in every aspect of the business himself. He was fortunate that most of the individuals were already there. Patrick was already an executive officer but the support network was there too. So he gave them more to do and as the stats illustrate, they got better.
“It always amazes me how much people grow when you give them the responsibility and they make the job their own, and make the job even bigger and better. You know, that’s been as much fun, watching people coming here, either for the summer or just working as an ordinary rider around the place, and then growing into being a barn manager, a yard manager, assistants. Just running with it and working it. It’s good. Maybe sometimes not doing it a way I would have done it, but once the winners keep going, I’m happy.”
It is not just horses that inhabit Closutton. Munch is a tiny Chihuahua that covers far more mileage on the gallops than the horses through a week. Hattie, a powerful Rottweiler obsessed with stones, retrieving one from a little nook under a seat, in much the same way the human sitting on it might dig out a bar from one of his little cubby holes when the urge strikes.
Hettie is very patient with Munch and despite their size differential, play is good-humoured.
Jeff is an elderly cock, moved indoors after losing the power struggle outside. He isn’t very patient at all. And from what I hear, not always good-humoured either.
They all contribute to a bustling, happy, hub of activity and accomplishment. They can’t prevent the anxiety setting in at the start of each new campaign, however.
“Horses are coming in and maybe carrying an injury from the year before, and the first or second gallop, next thing, ‘Bang,’ and even before they get that far. And then the likes of Facile Vega (who suffered a fatal injury in his stable in July), you know?
“I used to get my flu vac in September, October, and then by the end of October, I’d be flat. And I was blaming the flu vac for years. And so one year, I said, ‘I’m not going to take it anymore.’ and I was still flat in October, and I reckon it was just… job-related stress is what you call it nowadays!
“All these beautiful horses going around… they get little injuries and knocks, and some of them are out for a year. Others out for six months, three months, which in our game, can be the whole season. I hadn’t realised how much I was taking stress. To me, it was just part of it.
“I take my flu vac every year now! And the pneumonia vac.”
All bases covered.
“You could be looking at a farm with her... I’d be looking at whether it could be a nice gallop, or what sort of grass, and she’d be over counting bales, seeing how many acres were in each field”
Three exciting new Group 1 winners BIG EVS
Winner of the Group 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint over 5f A son of Champion First Crop Sire BLUE POINT
THE HIGHEST RATED EUROPEAN 3YO OVER 5 FURLONGS IN 2024
Fee: €17,500
BUCANERO FUERTE
2yo Gr.1 winner by WOOTTON BASSETT
Winner of Gr.1 Phoenix Stakes, by 4 lengths, beating Porta Fortuna (Gr.1 x4), Unquestionable (Gr.1)
2nd Highest Rated 2yo of 2023 (120 – 1lb behind CITY OF TROY)
Fee: €12,500
KING OF STEEL
Gr.1 Champion 3yo by WOOTTON BASSETT
Winner of the Gr.1 Champion Stakes, beating 3 Gr.1 winners ` including Via Sistina
The Highest Rated son of WOOTTON BASSETT at stud in Europe
Fee: €20,000
Group 1 Producing Sire
Sire of 6 Group Winners
Sire of 31 Black-Type Horses, including 15 in 2024 From only 4 crops
2024 Yearlings have made 280,000gns • €150,000, etc.
Fee: €15,000
Record Breaking Sire of 2yos in Europe in 2024
Sire of 7 Group 1 winners, including 3 in 2024
Sire of 23 Group winners, including 9 in 2024
2024 Yearlings have made up to 1,000,000gns
Fee: €70,000
Group 1 winning son of KODIAC
Winner of the Gr.1 Prix Jean Prat beating 4 Gr.1 winners including CHALDEAN
420,000gns yearling at Tattersalls Book 1
FIRST CROP FOALS 2025
Fee: €12,500
PERSIAN FORCE
Group 2 winner & triple Group 1-placed at 2 By record breaking sire MEHMAS
Winner of Gr.2 July Stakes; 2nd Gr.1 Phoenix Stakes and Gr.1 Prix Morny; 3rd Gr.1 Middle Park Stakes
FIRST CROP YEARLINGS 2025
Fee: €8,000
Sire of over 100 Stakes winners
In 2024 sire of Gr.1 2yo winner BABOUCHE, 3 2yo Group winners
6 Group winners
26 Black-Type horses
Successful Broodmare Sire
Fee: €25,000
Champion European Sprinter
Winner of Gr.1 July Cup and Gr.2 Duke of York Stakes.
125
First Crop Yearlings have made 260,000gns • 240,000gns 240,000gns • £220,000, etc.
Fee: €10,000
I Took That JACK HEALY
Where & When: Toomebridge, May 11
Equipment: Nikon D6 165mm lens
Circumstances: It’s a 5yo mares’ maiden and they are just completing their second circuit, jumping what will be the last next time, when Mandalay Maggie unseats Harry Goff
It works because: I like how it takes in everything that’s going on at ground level – the hooves, the shoes, the grass flying and Harry, somehow avoiding getting a kicking from the following Far Out West. And he looks so calm about it
I TOOK THAT
BUCANERO FUERTE
PETER MOONEY
Where & When: Navan, April 27
Equipment: Canon EOS D7 300mm lens
Circumstances: Kyprios’ first outing of the season in the Vintage Crop Stakes It works because: It shows Kyprios in typical pose towards the end of a race, driven out with head stretched in determination. Also, the light clipping his mane enhances the picture further
I TOOK THAT SEÁN HEALY
Where & When: Tipperary, October 6
Equipment: Nikon D6 500mm lens
Circumstances: Down at the start for a two-year-old maiden and Junkyard Dog, who is making his debut, rears up, with jockey Mikey Sheehy and a stalls handler needing to take evasive action, though another stalls handler holds on
It works because: There is so much action and emotion in the antics of the horse and the faces of the stall handlers in particular, who are among the unsung heroes of racing. Junkyard Dog is being fractious but looks powerful, proud and majestic at the same time
BUCANERO FUERTE
CAROLINE NORRIS
Where & When: Sandown Park, April 27
Equipment: Canon 70-200mm lens
Circumstances: Willie Mullins is crowned champion NH trainer in Britain, the first Irish-based trainer and indeed the first Irish native to take the honours since Vincent O’Brien 70 years before It works because: It captures the spirit and mood of a great day, with a marvellous atmosphere. This group of lads from Skerries flew over for the occasion and wore WPM masks, which added to the sense of fun about the occasion. Willie embraced the whole thing and that is all there in the photo
THAT
KEVIN O’CARROLL
Where & When: Galway, August 1
Equipment: Nikon D6 120mm lens
Circumstances: A beginners’ chase at the Ballybrit festival and Faux Fur unseats Sam Ewing after a bad error
It works because: It shows just how brave jockeys are – who in their right minds would place themselves in such danger? Thankfully, Sam escaped uninjured. Knowing that, the image is a little funny as it looks like Sam is attempting to crawl under Faux Fur to escape, whereas the reality is he curling into a ball to avoid a kick
I TOOK THAT PAT HEALY
Where & When: Quakerstown, November 11
Equipment: Nikon D6 100mm lens
Circumstances: Winter Orchid and Adam Ryan are in the lead but the horse veers left and jumps through the wing, leaving Love Bite and Paul Cawley to win
It works because: It is a striking image I think, very dramatic, with the little bits of plastic flying through the air, in the opposite direction to Adam. It encapsulates so much about the sport, particularly the dangers and thankfully, both horse and rider emerged totally unscathed
I TOOK THAT
JANE HURLEY
Where & When: Ballindenisk, May 5
Equipment: Nikon D5 85mm lens
Circumstances: Peaceinthevalley is four lengths clear at the last in the second division of a 5yo geldings’ maiden but a bad mistake gives Susie Doyle no chance of staying on board
It works because: You can almost sense Susie’s despair as gravity takes hold and she is sent flying through the air. What gives the photo added life is the reactions of those looking on, reflecting all that is good about live sport, particularly as Susie walked away unharmed
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HORSE RACING IRELAND Awards
HORSE OF THE YEAR
CITY OF TROY
GALOPIN DES CHAMPS
KYPRIOS
PORTA FORTUNA
STATE MAN
TEAHUPOO
HRI AWARDS NOMINEES
NATIONAL HUNT
GAVIN CROMWELL
JACK KENNEDY
WILLIE MULLINS
JJ SLEVIN
PAUL TOWNEND
FLAT
NATIONAL HUNT ACHIEVEMENT
MARTIN BRASSIL
SAM EWING
TOM GIBNEY
SHARK HANLON
JIMMY MANGAN
ERIC MCNAMARA
DANNY MULLINS
FLAT
ACHIEVEMENT
COLIN KEANE • DYLAN BROWNE MCMONAGLE
RYAN MOORE • AIDAN O’BRIEN
CHRIS HAYES
GERRY KEANE
WAYNE LORDAN
JOHN MURPHY
DONNACHA O’BRIEN
PAT O’DONNELL
POINT-TO-POINT
DAVID CHRISTIE
SHANE COTTER
ROB JAMES
EMMET MULLINS
BARRY O’NEILL
EMERGING TALENT
ALEX HARVEY
WAYNE HASSETT
KEITHEN KENNEDY
CARL MILLAR
JAMES RYAN
Leave it to Mr O’Brien
The magpie forever picking up tidbits professes to always be learning and while that explains his enduring greatness, it also means that there is no off switch
Alfred Harmsworth, better known to posterity as Lord Northcliffe, was 42 years of age when he secured the purchase of The Times newspaper for the sum of £320,000 in 1908. Buying Britain’s pre-eminent paper had been his life’s great ambition but his mother feared for what this most momentous turn of events might mean.
“I’m sorry, Alfred,” she is reported to have said. “You have lost your horizon.” Her son still had 14
years of energy and achievement ahead of him but Geraldine Harmsworth’s concerns touched on an existential question as old as mankind: how do the highest of achievers keep climbing once they’ve reached their summit?
Aidan O’Brien’s CV is a sea of Himalayan peaks. His list of achievements are a Grand Canyon of sporting success: so vast that the whole is impossible to comprehend. This last 12 months have been no different with his
Photos: HEALY RACING & CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: BRENDAN O’BRIEN
confirmations as champion trainer in both Ireland and Britain merely the wrapping on another bounty.
His strike rate in Ireland this year (27%) was his best in two decades, the 22 Group/Grade 1 winners accumulated approaching the last week of November were claimed on home soil, across the Irish Sea, in France and the US, and they took him past the 400-mark. They included a pair of juvenile triumphs at Del Mar that brought him alongside the venerable D Wayne Lukas as the most successful Breeders’ Cup trainer of all time with 20 successes. Lukas is 89. O’Brien turned 55 in October.
There is no point in putting any of this to him. Credit, as always, is deflected and dispersed around his vast team in Ballydoyle, towards Coolmore and elsewhere. But it is worth asking just what he considers success to be.
“I don’t know really. We’ve got some results that we have some horses to retire the stud… We have to get results obviously, and if everyone looks like we’re okay going into the end of the year, and we have a chance to survive next year, that’s what we call a good year, really. I don’t think there’s any set results or goals or results that we have to get.”
All sporting empires rise and fall. Some rise again. The New York Yankees stewed through 15 seasons without making a World Series until late
AIDAN O’BRIEN
years in their rut going back to Alex Ferguson’s departure. Aidan O’Brien? He continues to do all this on an annual basis without any sort of North Star to act as a grand ambition.
“We never have,” he explains. “We never had that, literally.”
Maybe that’s part of it.
It’s five years since his sons, Joseph and Donnacha, chatted for this publication at a quiet midweek meet in Gowran and gave a glimpse into the dynamo that is their father. Joseph claimed he could never match the old man’s work ethic. Donnacha described it as “unhealthy”. Neither of them could be accused of being slouches.
The man himself has addressed this before. The job, he has said, is both his hobby and his downtime. Does that even things out on the work/life balance scale? Maybe it does. His whole family is wedded to the sport in one way or another, so it isn’t as if his immersion in racing is an oddity that isolates him inside his own walls.
But that immersion is absolutely total. It involves consistency and sacrifices.
A lifelong teetotaller, his kids have joked that he can be all over the latest healthy food fads and there is still an almost boyishly thin look to his frame at the age of 55. O’Brien compares the human body to a car that only has so many miles in it, and how it won’t keep going if the engine is
“That’s one thing racing can do… It mentally can really help people”
“If
another bad run came, he was going to be gone,” says O’Brien by way of putting context on the pressure leading into City Of Troy’s Derby victory at Epsom (HR)
There is a side to him that would love to sit up and watch the nine o’clock movie with his wife Annemarie but… he routinely finds himself reaching the evening’s end “absolutely drained out” and with no more to give (HR)
“Like, there’s only so many hours and so many days now, or so many years in all our bodies, and we all only get one body and it only lasts so long. There’s so many people pass away and their body is tired but their mind is still okay. So if we don’t respect ourselves and respect others we can’t preach to anybody else.”
That’s the theory. He knows, like us all, that he doesn’t always live it.
Sleep has always been paramount. There is a side to him that would love to sit up and watch the nine o’clock movie with his wife Annemarie but the time just isn’t there for it right now. Maybe someday, he says. As it is, he routinely finds himself reaching the evening’s end “absolutely drained out” and with no more to give.
“You know then you’re doing too much. That’s too much. And that happens a lot.”
This is the gig. And the man. O’Brien’s attention to detail is legendary. He once put it that a coat hung on a different peg in a yard could have an adverse effect on a horse, yet change in the form of innovation is always welcome. The speedometers that now adorn the Ballydoyle gallops were installed on the urging of the two boys.
A trip around all 700-plus acres of the stables in Tipperary showcases a replica of Tattenham Corner’s sharp, sloped bend at Epsom – the work of Ballydoyle’s founder, the unrelated Vincent O’Brien - and the fact that, unlike most trainers, there are still no mechanical horse walkers. Doing it manually allows the animals to bring out their personalities. He wants that. Every little detail matters.
Ronan O’Gara once suggested that O’Brien’s success boils down to just how much he cares. It shows in the form of a magpie who is never not picking up tidbits but the flip side is that there is no off switch. This natural curiosity expands into the little bit of downtime he might allow himself.
Even sport on TV is a source to be tapped rather than a break from the job.
“One of my failures - or not a failure, whatever it is - is I’m always analysing. Everything. And people. And that’s what I do because observing is what I do every day. And because you do that with people, you do it with everything you’re watching, everything you’re listening to, it’s just a thing that you do.
“And because you’re analysing everything, everything said, every look on everybody’s face, every expression on every horse’s face, every movement: that’s what you’re doing all the time. So you’re processing a lot of stuff all the time. Like, I wouldn’t feel comfortable watching a film or anything I have to think about because then it’s not downtime.”
His former boss, Jim Bolger once said that O’Brien has a mind like a sponge. That might just be half of it. Taking everything in is only a benefit if you can filter enough back out. Many is the top sportsperson who stews on the ones that got away more than they celebrate successes. O’Brien doesn’t seem beholden to either.
Numbers alone suggest that 2017, with a Guinness World Record of 28 Group 1 winners, was his best season of all. Eight of the ten Classics across Britain and Ireland were claimed by Ballydoyle that season and yet he claims ignorance when asked if he could recall the pair – Enable’s wins for John Gosden in the two Oaks - that got away.
“No. I don’t remember any of them, to tell you the truth. I don’t remember because that’s gone and we’re losing races all the time. Day-in, day-out, we’ve lost a lot of races. And I remember the ones that are close up. And listen, dwelling on the past is going to take away from the future. So that’s why I don’t ever go back there.”
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AIDAN O’BRIEN
“Stopping people from betting is the wrong thing”
The last grains of sand are falling on the allotted time with Aidan O’Brien when the conversation expands beyond the expanse of Ballydoyle to the wider world. He meets it with the same energy, the first mention of the word ‘attendances’ setting him into a gallop like a starter’s gun.
Sport has never been bigger business, here and worldwide, but progress is never linear and horse racing is no different to any other branch of the industry in having to mull over concerns and problems. Attendance figures cut to the heart of the conversation with numbers in Ireland, Britain and elsewhere giving frequent pause for thought.
“People have to be encouraged to go racing,” says O’Brien. “I think that stopping people from betting is the wrong thing. I think that’s not fair because an awful lot of people don’t get addicted to betting. There’s some people that do - and I don’t drink at all - and we always have to be there to help those people.
“But by trying to stop people… Interest is where it comes from. Some people start having a little bit of interest and they start forming an opinion and as they go along then, they grow up and they’ll be looking forward to the week. We get them to go racing and that can last them their whole lifetime.”
It’s not for the want of ideas that racing has an issue with crowd numbers. Various stakeholders have suggested and implemented novel concepts, like musical acts and more festivals being incorporated into the calendar. Prizemoney has been supplemented.
O’Brien sees merit in sitting down with other sports, and in leveraging the media. No sport is as accessible to the fourth estate as horse racing, which is maybe the last
“Dwelling on the past is going to take away from the future”
bastion for old-school sports journalism in that its main figures are reachable beyond the confines of a stale press conference.
Use this, he says.
Getting the word out is one thing but it’s hard to be heard when the message is being blared without a break. Most sports have leaned into the belief that there is no such thing as too much. Football is a seven-day-a-week presence on our TVs and rugby and the GAA are both bursting their banks in terms of ‘product’ now offered.
Racing is no different. There was just the one day in October of this year in which there was no meet held in Ireland. That’s an astonishing statistic and, while O’Brien doesn’t agree that there is too much racing per se, he does make the case for some bigger windows being created between meets so that the sport and the punter can breathe.
“I think in a lot of those very successful countries, they have racing on at the weekends more than in the middle of the week. And I can get that because people have to work in the middle of the week. And then if they do their work and then have the weekend to enjoy themselves, it’s definitely a possibility.
“So, have the races from weekend to weekend and people will be looking forward to it. But keep the stream of information going during the week where people can see what’s happening and what’s coming up. Listen, there’s definitely something there. And all the successful countries are the same. Most of them.
“They have to have something to look forward to,” he adds at the end. “And that’s one thing racing can do. It mentally can really help people.”
Maybe he really doesn’t remember those 2017 Classics, and the fact that he saddled the second and third in the Epsom Oaks and the runner-up in the Irish equivalent. Then again, it’s nine years since he said that if you don’t feel the hurt then it doesn’t drive you on to the next one.
Maybe it’s just the case that hurt has a finite lifespan.
There is, as always, a remarkable openness about his own fallibility. Mistakes are referenced early and often over the course of almost an hour’s conversation. He goes as far at one point as to say that, “Most days most stuff goes wrong.” This is where all that experience, the work ethic and the refusal to contemplate complacency or standing still pays dividends.
“I know when it happens it’s my fault. And everyone knows that. You just make bad decisions, you try and cover all the eventualities, but then the stalls could be just about ready to open and you could think that, ‘Janey, I’m not after discussing this.’ More often than not that thing that you didn’t discuss will come and get you.”
All of which brings us to City Of Troy and that day in Newmarket last May when the three-year old phenom trailed in ninth in the 2000 Guineas.
O’Brien knew when the star with the black mane and grey tail went into the stalls that the son of Justify was too fresh, having been worked too little over the winter.
Another month had to pass before a shot at redemption at Epsom. It’s hard to imagine what that period must have been like for a trainer, even one with his success, given the stakes and the spotlight. MV Magnier remarked after the Derby resurrection that O’Brien had been overcome with stress in the lead-up. It’s easy to see why.
Coolmore’s Michael Tabor had described City Of Troy as “our Frankel” in December of last year. O’Brien had gone on record time and again describing the horse as the best two-year old and the best horse, period, that he had trained. If there was pressure from outside the walls then plenty of that was sourced from within.
“If another bad run came, he was going to be gone,” he says now looking back.
All of this was etched on his face when, surrounded by the ever-present swarm of journalists after the colt had secured his tenth Epsom Derby, O’Brien reeled off his usual praise for team and jockey and then paused before inhaling and expelling huge gulps of oxygen. The Racing Post report said it looked like his first breath in days.
“There always will be pressure with those horses. I don’t know what it is, it’s relief, and I probably do that a lot because that’s the way I just get rid of my tension. I just blow it out quick, and I don’t hold on to it. It doesn’t get inside me.
“When you’re watching those horses, those races, you’re probably not breathing as easily or fluently or as relaxed as you should be. And then the minute it’s over you just let it go and it’s, ‘Next.’ It’s a habit I probably have, but that’s the way I am. If it works for you, it’s gone. That’s the way to do it.”
The script stuck to the page for the rest of the summer.
A gutsy success in the Eclipse at Sandown in July was followed by a stunning win at the Juddmonte International at York in August. And, a month later, by a trip to Southwell’s tapeta track where the bars were opened and a few thousand punters took in some prep work for his tilt at the Breeder’s Cup Classic on the dirt.
“There’s a real sense of excitement, it’s become almost like a race day,” said John Holliday, clerk of the course.
It was a decision that found some disfavour in Ireland, especially with news that the colt would retire to stud after the trip to America and confirmation with it, that one of the greats would never have run in this country from the time he won his maiden in July 2023. O’Brien gets that.
He could have gone in the Irish Champion Stakes in Leopardstown but everything was calibrated with an eye on Del Mar.
To take a horse all the way to California is to subject it to any number of variables outside your control. Opting for Southwell allowed the team to replicate at least some of the challenges. They even travelled to England with their own American starting stalls, replete with its different bell and dimensions.
“We felt to give him his best shot it was to do this.”
City Of Troy’s ultimate failure in the Classic was still over a week away when O’Brien discussed all this with the Irish Racing Yearbook It was a task, in a race never before won by the Coolmore/Ballydoyle axis, that he described at the time as “nearly next to impossible” but one where he had a “big shot”.
Win or lose in America, he was determined even then to stick to his guns.
“No doubt. He’s still the best we’ve ever had.”
Best ever. It’s a moniker he has used more than once down the years. Istabraq and Galileo have long sat on a pedestal reserved for only the few. Others, Camelot and Australia among them, have been lauded in similar terms in real time. And plenty more again - the likes of So You Think 13 years ago - failed to live up to the expectation and the hype.
Henri Matisse and Ryan Moore brought up a Breeders’ Cup double in the Juvenile Turf at Del Mar, after Lake Victoria had won the Juvenile Fillies’ Turf earlier, and in the process moved O’Brien level with D Wayne Lukas on the top of the all-time Breeders’ Cup list with 20 career victories (HR)
“For that few months you’re not out there being examined, but at the same time you’re very focused… You have to work very hard then”
Aidan O’Brien on…
… what makes City Of Troy so good
“It is the way he’s made. He’s a beautiful, balanced horse. He has an unbelievable long stride. He runs with his head down and he’s very determined. And probably the biggest part about him is his mind. He has an unbelievable physique, his forelegs and the correctness of him, and the physical make-up and the shape of him, and the balance, which is vital.
“But he has the mind to go with it. He’s a hardy customer. He’s not for kids now. Usually those horses, if they’re too nice and too gentle, they get swallowed up. And what makes him a little bit different is, if he’s in a bunch of 80 horses on a string and there’s a few messers in the string, they usually disrupt the whole string.
“But with him, what’s a very unusual thing about him is he doesn’t see any disruption. He does what he wants to do and nothing fazes him other than what’s going on in his head, which is a very unusual thing. What’s another unusual thing is, most horses with a black mane usually have a black tail, or a grey tail and a grey mane, but he has a black mane and a grey tail.
“There’s a lot of stuff different with him, but I think it’s his movement and his determination that makes him very different.”
... Kyprios’ return from life-threatening injury to re-establish his supremacy in the stayers’ division
“At one point we didn’t think he’d live. When I saw him coming out of the rehab place and I saw him going to the yard beside our house, even at that stage, he used to be walking down from the yard to our house to the rehab. He was very lame. So I thought it was the biggest waste of time. But, listen, it’s him again, the determination. He just kept coming. He kept taking, he kept getting better.”
… Galileo’s death and what’s next?
“Galileo was the most unbelievable stallion of all but I think the lads have better stallions now. John just keeps improving the thing. He went and got the best stallions and then he got what suited them and made them better and got the right mares for them. Justify now is probably the greatest racehorse of all, unbeaten at three.
“A lot of his demeanours and carries-on are very like Galileo, but he’s quicker. And it looks like he’s really working on Galileo mares and Wootton Bassett the same. And it looks like the Galileo mares are absolute gold dust for those horses. I don’t know whether we had him for 20 years or whatever, but the time had come when there was a change ready.
“His influence was everywhere, so he was ready for a change. If the breed was going to improve and keep improving, to add to Galileo mares was going to improve the best stallions again. But listen, he was incredible really.”
KYPRIOS
It is, of course, O’Brien’s job to ‘make’ stallions for a Coolmore Stud that is looking to negotiate the same sort of transition with the passing two years ago of Galileo, that it did when the mighty Sadler’s Wells died in 2011. So, best ever? If these proclamations makes sound business sense, then he offers further reason for why it can hold true time after time.
“We have had great horses like in Giant’s Causeway, all those horses. They’re all around. We had St Mark’s Basilica. They’re all great horses to go to stud. Those horses at that time were considered brilliant, and they were, but horses are even doing more now.
“Times are just moving on all the time. I think (because of) knowledge, information. Information is probably what changes the world all the time, because it’s so much at everyone’s fingertips and there’s teams working to pump out information quick to you when you want it, so that you find the right patterns to work on straight away.”
Think about how that must excite him, this man of minutiae and endless “tweaking”, as his son Donnacha has put it. If numbers matter to him at all then it isn’t so much in the volume of winners, as the dozens of yearlings that arrive in the yard at the back end of every year and the potential delivered with them.
“This is when the dreaming is done,” O’Brien said of the off-season almost a decade ago. He wouldn’t be alone in that. Ger Lyons told this
publication some years ago that the potential to spot greatness in his yard every January, another Siskin maybe, made it his favourite time of the year.
If there is a North Star at all then, this could be it. It’s the endless chase for the next big thing. The promise of what’s next. And it’s a process of discovery that O’Brien gets to experience without the world looking over his shoulder, secondguessing and deconstructing every move and every decision.
“There’s probably less pressure,” says the master of Ballydoyle. “Really, every time you have runners you’re tested publicly. For that few months you’re not out there being examined, but at the same time you’re very focused. You have to work very hard then, because if you don’t put it in then… (But) that time of the year it is just a bit more chilled.”
Yes and no.
The season has long burst beyond its traditional banks. Racing in America, Japan and Hong Kong meant that the traditional family holiday to the Caribbean was delayed this year but then O’Brien is renowned for spending vast chunks of even this downtime on his phone. The business of winning doesn’t stop. This is not a man who reads novels on a sun lounger.
“No, I don’t read that much. I should read a lot more but I don’t and, listen, I just relax the best I can really. I’m relaxed all the time but I suppose I’m probably most at home doing what I love doing.”
“I’m always analysing. Everything. And people. And that’s what I do because observing is what I do every day” (CN)
Still DANCING
Last season, 30 different trainers in Ireland and 13 in Britain saddled winners for the champion owner in bothjurisdictions, who remains in thrall to horses and to racing, and the memories they have created
S“When you’re asking yourself the question, you really know the answer”
tories? How long do you have? In truth, you’d listen to JP McManus telling stories all day.
Like the one about him buying tickets from a tout. The total came to an odd number. He didn’t have the correct amount in cash and the tout didn’t have change. Or he said he didn’t anyway.
(Imagine a ticket tout not having change.)
Anyway, they said that they would toss a coin for the odd amount. The loser paid the difference. If the ticket buyer won the toss, he got a discount. If the tout won, the buyer paid over the odds.
“You toss the coin,” said the tout. “I’ll call in the air.”
JP tossed the coin and the tout called it as it spun:
“Heads on the ground!”
The coin landed and JP looked down. He could see the harp looking back up at him. Tails. Not so bad, he thought. Every win counts. He went to shake the tout’s hand, gracious in victory, but the tout wasn’t conceding.
“No, no, no,” said the tout. “I called heads on the ground.”
JP looked at him, knowing that this was going against him without being fully sure how.
“Heads on the ground,” said the tout again.
He pointed to the coin that was still on the ground between them, Tails side up.
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS & HEALY RACING • Words: DONN MCCLEAN
“Heads on the ground.”
JP smiled and shook his head. For ingenuity alone, the tout deserved to win the bet. He named a horse Heads Onthe Ground, and that horse won the Cross-Country Chase at Cheltenham in 2017.
There are more stories, and the one element that they all have in common is that they are all told against himself. Like the one about the time that he went to Killarney Races with £600 in his pocket, loaded. He stood in the ring for the day and lost £300. He played cards that night, all night, and lost the other £300.
He had to hitch home the following day, broke, all the way from Killarney. He got home and faced into a field of hay. Start again. Work for your money, build up your tank again, get back in the game. Be smarter next time.
Cheltenham. Again, how long do you have? It’s everything. Every day at Cheltenham is special for JP, every race, every winner.
He first went to Cheltenham in 1973, he saw The Dikler beat Pendil in the Gold Cup and he saw Comedy Of Errors win his first Champion Hurdle, and he thought, “Imagine owning a horse that was running at Cheltenham and seeing your horse carrying your colours come up that hill in front?”
There were losers before there were winners, like Jack Of Trumps, sent off a short-priced favourite for the National Hunt Chase in 1978, fell at the 15th fence; or Deep Gale in the same race
the following year, again sent off at a short price and travelling well when he departed at the fence after the water. That was the year too that Jack Of Trumps was well-fancied for the Gold Cup, only to miss the race through injury.
JP had to wait three more years for Mister Donovan, but the wait was worthwhile. At the time of purchase, Mister Donovan had failed the vet because he had a heart murmur, but JP liked him as an individual, he saw enough in him and having been highly recommended by trainer Edward O’Grady, he took a chance on him, and reportedly backed him accordingly to win the 1982 Sun Alliance Hurdle.
Some 72 more horses carried the famous South Liberties green and gold hoops up that Cheltenham hill in front before this year. All are memorable, some were extraordinary. Mister Donovan’s win was obviously very special, not just because he had backed it and it was his first Festival winner, but as he has often said, if he didn’t have this one he may not have had any subsequent runners.
Elegant Lord winning the Foxhunter in 1996 for Enda Bolger, Like-A-Butterfly winning the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle in 2002 for Christy Roche, Danny Connors winning the Coral Golden Hurdle Final in 1991 for Jonjo O’Neill. Synchronised’s Gold Cup in 2012. And Istabraq again, again, again and again.
There will always be a poignancy about Istabraq, because he was John Durkan’s horse. He was the horse that John Durkan was expecting to
“Paul Townend, having won the Champion Hurdle and Gold Cup, riding at the top of his game, I was so happy when he chose I Am Maximus for the National” (HR)
“You’re excited for yourself but you’re also excited for Jimmy and his team, seeing how much it means to them” – On the impact of Spillane’s Tower, the Jimmy Mangan-trained dual novice Grade 1-winning chaser (CN)
train, until he contracted leukaemia. In the winner’s enclosure at Cheltenham in 1997, and in 1998 and 1999 and 2000, thoughts were always of John Durkan. The three-time Champion Hurdle winner, brilliantly trained by Aidan O’Brien, provided his owner and all those around him with many memorable days and, after the curtain came down on his racing career in 2002, Istabraq lived out a long and happy retirement at Martinstown until last July.
He reflects on the passing of Istabraq.
“The grandkids come to the National and that makes it very special… They got so excited, and they caught it on camera, which was lovely”
“I usually have my phone by the bed but that night it was downstairs charging. I didn’t hear the calls. But when I got up I could see all the missed calls. Immediately I suspected something was wrong. Istabraq was 32 years old. His time had come. Old age had caught up with him in the end. There were lots of tears shed and you’d miss him around here. He was a special horse, he had a great life, we owe him so much.“
He takes a moment to pour the coffee.
Milk?
JP went to the Cheltenham Festival in 2024 with a strong team. Corbetts Cross in the National Hunt Chase, Majborough in the Triumph Hurdle, the homebred siblings Limerick Lace and Inothewayurthinkin and Fact To File in the Brown Advisory Chase.
“Fact To File,” says the horse’s owner. “I thought going there in top form he was the one they all had to beat, as long as he settled. It was important that he settled over three miles because the three-mile novices’ chase was the race we wanted to go for. Corbetts Cross in the National Hunt Chase, you always have a distinct advantage in an amateur riders’ race when you have Derek O’Connor on your side. We were hopeful enough going, but sure you’re always hopeful.”
The Cheltenham routine is the same as it always
has been. Get there on Sunday night, maybe early Monday morning. Meet up with the family. Walk the track on Monday. Soak up the atmosphere, immerse yourself in the anticipation.
Cheltenham still means as much now as it ever did.
“It’s a unique week, every winner there is so special.”
The week started well this year, and continued well. Corbetts Cross won the National Hunt Chase on the Tuesday, Fact To File won the Brown Advisory Chase on Wednesday, Inothewayurthinkin won the Kim Muir on Thursday, Majborough and Limerick Lace both won on Friday.
At least one winner on each of the four days and two on the final day and six seconds to go with the five winners, which took JP’s total number of Cheltenham Festival winners to 78. And he and his wife, Noreen bred Inothewayurthinkin and Limerick Lace, full-siblings, by Walk In The Park out of their mare Sway, making the meeting all the more special.
It could have been better too because Jonbon would have had an obvious chance in the Champion Chase. But there was a cloud over the Nicky Henderson horses at the time, and the decision was made to take him out of the race.
“I have little doubt that he was in top form but if you do the right thing, you’re never upset. When you’re asking yourself the question, you really know the answer. I spoke to Nicky, and it was like pushing an open door. We were both on the same page. In the end, you have to do what you think is the right thing for the horse.”
JP has had runners at Cheltenham in six different decades, from the 1970s to the 2020s, and he has had winners in five. He just couldn’t get there in the 1970s. Fate and the fences conspired against Jack Of Trumps and Deep Gale, but Mister
Fact To File was the Cheltenham banker in his owner’s mind prior to the festival and the facile nature of the Willie Mullins-trained gelding’s success in the Brown Advisory Chase proved him right
Donovan got it done in 1982 and subsequent Irish Grand National winner Bit Of A Skite won the National Hunt Chase the following year.
He didn’t have a Cheltenham Festival winner between Bit Of A Skite in 1983 and Danny Connors in 1991 and he had to wait another three years after that for Mucklemeg and Time For A Run in 1994, but since then, there has hardly been a break. With the exception of 2011, JP McManus has had at least one winner at every Cheltenham Festival between 1994 and 2024 inclusive and that is remarkable.
He had won the Grand National twice before this year and they were both so cherished. Don’t Push It was his first in 2010 and the victory was a first also for trainer Jonjo O’Neill, while for jockey AP McCoy, it was his one and only success and all was right with the world.
Minella Times was JP’s second, Henry de Bromhead’s first and shattered history’s glass
ceiling, ridden to victory by Rachael Blackmore, the first female rider to win the Grand National, ending what was thought to be an impossible dream less than a generation ago.
I Am Maximus last April was JP’s third Grand National winner and that was memorable too.
“It was a pity that we couldn’t be there for Minella Times,” he says. “That was during the Covid restrictions. To win the National again this year was fantastic. All the family go to Cheltenham and to the Grand National. It’s lovely, it brings them all together. The grandkids come to the National and that makes it very special. They got so excited, and they caught it on camera, which was lovely. It was heartwarming to see the emotion from them all.”
They all watched intently as Paul Townend smuggled I Am Maximus into the race.
“There’s something about the National. Now, I know the purists would prefer to win the Gold Cup and that’s a wonderful achievement, I consider myself so lucky to have won it and we had a great celebration. I don’t think though there is anything to equal the Grand National.”
It wasn’t all plain sailing. I Am Maximus can be quirky – less quirky than he used to be, his owner assures you, but still a little quirky – and the Willie Mullins-trained gelding was the beneficiary of a superb ride from Townend.
“Paul, having won the Champion Hurdle and Gold Cup, riding at the top of his game, I was so happy when he chose I Am Maximus for the National. The ride he got when winning the Irish Grand National last year was one for the ages. We were very hopeful going to Aintree. We felt that I Am Maximus had won the Bobbyjo Chase with plenty in hand.”
The National was always the primary plan after the Bobbyjo.
“Willie wanted to enter him in the Gold Cup as well. He felt that he would have a big chance, which was understandable. I just felt that it may be too much. To get revved up for the Gold Cup, and then to try to peak for the National would be a big ask, so we agreed, let’s just go for the National.”
It was some season last season, being champion owner again in Ireland and Britain. These included important wins with Harvard Guy for Eddie and Patrick Harty, Battle It Out for Conor O’Dwyer, Jonbon coming back to win at Aintree and Sandown, Spillane’s Tower winning Grade 1 races at Fairyhouse and Punchestown.
“That was tremendous, seeing the excitement when Spillane’s Tower won. He was excellently handled by Jimmy Mangan. You’re excited for yourself but you’re also excited for Jimmy and his team, seeing how much it means to them. He got a wonderful ovation in the winner’s enclosure, a very popular winner.
The benefits of the McManus horses are spread out through many different trainers. Last season 30 different Irish trainers and 13 different British trainers had at least one winner in the green and gold hoops. Decisions on who trains what are decided by logic and feel.
“ With the exception of 2011, JP has had at least one winner at every Cheltenham Festival between 1994 and 2024 inclusive”
“When we have bred a horse and should the trainer have done well in the past with members of the family, or with the dam, we tend to send the progeny to the same trainer.”
Like, Gavin Cromwell trained Spades Are Trumps to win an Ulster National, so it made sense that he would also train Ilikedwayurthinkin, Inothewayurthinkin, Walk Me Home, Mywayofthinkin and Limerick Lace. If it ain’t broke.
If he buys a horse in training he tends to leave the horse with the trainer.
“When we buy a horse at the sales, it might be different, but when we buy a horse in the yard, we usually leave the horse there. It may upset a few people when you move a horse. You must consider the lads and lasses who look after that horse as they are so important. You know if you’re buying a horse who is already in training, the chances are that the trainer has done well with the horse up to then so why would you move to another trainer?”
There is lots to look forward to too. Significantly, his five Cheltenham Festival winners are all young horses. Corbetts Cross is seven, Fact To File is seven, Inothewayurthinkin is six. All three were novices last season. Limerick Lace is also seven, Majborough is four.
Five of the top ten in the betting for next year’s Gold Cup are owned by JP, seven of the top
12 if you include Jonbon and Impervious, who is on the way back.
“We’re looking forward to having Inthepocket back this year too,” says JP. “With A Dream To Share. They never got a run at it last year. Down Memory Lane could be a nice chaser for Gordon (Elliott) this year, Johnnywho for Jonjo, Jeriko Du Reponet at Nicky’s.”
The conversation has moved outside now, to the Martinstown grounds which JP himself cleared as a 19-year-old, manoeuvring a digger for his father’s earth-moving business, when the property was owned by Mrs McCalmont. It’s stranger than fiction, this world sometimes.
“I remember all of that very well, because Mrs McCalmont owned Linden Tree, who was running in the Observer Gold Cup (the modern day Futurity Stakes) the following week. She told me that Mr Walwyn thought that he would run well so I had a fiver on him at 25/1.”
Linden Tree won but the story doesn’t end there because he ran in the Derby the following year, JP had a score each-way on him at 20/1 and he finished second to Mill Reef. He had £200 on Linden Tree in the Irish Derby too, three weeks later but, sent off the 7/4 favourite, Peter Walwyn’s horse was left at the start after getting his tail stuck in the gate.
The story goes on. How long do you have?
Limerick Lace (Keith Donoghue) was one of two homebred full-siblings to win at Cheltenham, both trained by Gavin Cromwell, whose previous success with members of the family ensured that the mare and Inothewayurthinkin would be bound for Danestown
Mr Reliable
Top-fllight success has now become a given flor Chris Hayes
The Tuesday before the Epsom Oaks, Chris Hayes was chatting to his wife Rachel about his chance in the race on Ezeliya.
“You know, if I win on Friday, I don’t want to be going mad with a big celebration passing the line,” he said. “I need to start being more like Mick Kinane and Ryan Moore when they win these big races. I need to be a bit more cool and calm.”
There was a time when the Limerick native was a bit of box-walker before these big races. He’d agonise about tactics, other horses, the position he wanted/needed to be in at every point of a race, but that’s less the case now.
All of those things are still important, he admits, but coming off the back of more regular
big-race success, he has won the confidence in himself and from his boss Dermot Weld, to play it as it falls.
On Friday morning at Epsom he walked the track, stopped and chatted to anyone who approached and then went back to the weigh room to watch a bit of Netflix on his phone before catching a 20-minute nap.
Just before getting a leg-up on the daughter of Dubawi, Weld asked what he was thinking with regard to tactics and he explained he’d like to drop her in, do what they did at Navan when she won the Salsabil Stakes, that she enjoyed that.
“Perfect,” said Weld. “Just ride her with plenty of confidence.”
Music to the ears of any jockey.
If Hayes and Weld had sat down and plotted the way the Oaks would be run, it couldn’t have gone better. Ezeliya settled beautifully in behind, travelled into the race smoothly before Tattenham Corner, and at the top of the straight, she was the only filly you wanted to be on.
“I’d never get sick of that feeling,” Hayes reflects now. “You’re looking up at the marker pole and you can’t believe you’re travelling so well, it’s better than any feeling you could get. It’s just class where you know that it’s all working out to plan and you’re looking up and everyone else is pushing and shoving and not only that, you know you’re going to pick up.
“To win a Classic at Epsom. It’s some buzz. The grand plan of no celebration passing the line fairly failed - but it was such a rush of adrenaline, I had to do something. These are the races you want to be winning.”
On the way home from the races at Navan on a rainy October evening, Chris Hayes is asked to reflect over his season.
“Frustrating and disappointing,” he asserts. “I guess that sounds mad when you win an Oaks but we didn’t get to see Ezeliya again after that and when you have a flagship horse of that class and that potential, it kind of dents your year. It was a real kick in the teeth.
“Myself and Rachel came back from Epsom that night and I was buzzing. We had a barbecue the following day and in my own head I had the Irish Oaks won, I had the Prix Vermeille won, and
CHRIS HAYES
it was a question of either the Prix de l’Opera or the Arc after that.
“I was just thinking, ‘This filly is going to bring me to another level again.’ You look at her form this season and she beat the Irish Oaks winner well. Then Content came out after getting beat in an Irish Oaks and won the Yorkshire Oaks well.
“The boss had a campaign in mind and you’re thinking about what’s to come and then you get a phone call, and in seconds it’s all gone. With Homeless Songs and Tahiyra, they had midseason breaks but you knew they were in the pipeline and you had that in your mind all the time.
“Look, I’ve been very lucky in the last few years and I’ve been lucky this year because I’ve won an Oaks and I’ve now had Group 1 winners every year since I’ve gone to Rosewell. We didn’t get to see the best of Ezeliya and that is frustrating, but that’s racing.”
Ezeliya’s career resembles that of a shooting star. She blazed brightest on one of the biggest stages in racing, but soon after she was away and gone. Maybe in ten years’ time, she’ll be a hard Oaks winner to recall straight away but she’s a special one in many ways given she gave her world decorated owner-breeder a very first win in the race and ended her world decorated trainer’s remarkable 43-year wait for a second.
For Hayes, she will always be special, by virtue of giving him his first British Classic. That was reason enough to be ecstatic but superseding that was the feeling that these Group 1 wins were starting to feel normal.
“I think you do have to prove yourself all the time to other people but the days of proving it to myself are gone”
“If I win on Friday, I don’t want to be going mad with a big celebration passing the line” (HR)
“In my own head I had the Irish Oaks won, I had the Prix Vermeille won, and it was a question of either the Prix de l’Opera or the Arc after that”
Regular big-race success has won Hayes the conflidence in himselfl and flrom his boss Dermot Weld, to play it as it flalls once the stalls open (CN)
Since he joined forces with Weld, firstly in 2019 and then again in 2021, he has won eight Group 1s, all for Weld bar Eddie Lynam’s Romantic Proposal. It’s a stark upturn when you consider the Limerick native had just three in his first 14 years riding.
A proud disciple of Kevin Prendergast, he has always been viewed as a top talent however, and the position he holds now at Rosewell House is much deserved. With all of two decades riding, he has a seat at the top table and it’s all about maximising the opportunities presented by such a privileged position.
Initially, he was perhaps a little uneasy under the sear of a more constant spotlight. Indeed, it was telling just how quick he was to point to a couple of media comments questioning his ability in the saddle after Tahiyra won the Coronation Stakes, but he sounds far more comfortable with the pressure now.
“I think you do have to prove yourself all the time to other people but the days of proving it to myself are gone,” he says thoughtfully. “I’ve competed at the top level since I’ve gone to Dermot more frequently and I’ve produced the goods numerous times.
“I know what I’m capable of, how good or how bad I am. With other people, it’s a fashion, you can be in or out of fashion. Someone said to me a couple of weeks after winning the Oaks when I hadn’t ridden a winner in a while at home, ‘Jesus you’re quiet at the minute,’ and I’m kind of there thinking, ‘I’m just after winning the Oaks.’
“It’s just the way this game is, you do have to keep proving yourself but if you over-analyse it and get in your own head, you’ll start making
mistakes or do silly things. I’d like to think I’ve grown out of that but maybe other people would say I’m not.
“I still get a buzz from it. I still really enjoy riding a fancied one. I got some buzz out of Ezeliya but I was more relaxed than I ever was. Tahiyra, I used to really enjoy it on the day, but the lead-up was stressful, just her last bits of work, she was never a real flashy work horse so a lot of it was down to my own feedback.
“You’d always have little doubts and you’d be thinking, ‘Jeez, I really wish she’d quicken five lengths clear of her lead horses,’ but that was never her style. On the day, it never seemed to matter, and I’d always be fine.”
The solidification of his relationship with Weld is clearly a key part to everything that is good with Hayes’s career right now. The pair first linked up on a more regular basis in 2019 and had high-profile success with Search For A Song and Tarnawa but in the following two years, the Limerick rider had just 51 rides for Weld, who prioritised using Oisín Orr and Colin Keane.
Hayes’s role at Weld’s was elevated again in 2022 and this year was his third full term as number one rider at Rosewell. In an interview with The Irish Field last year, he spoke of how he might have been a little immature in his first stint and how it took him a while to gain an understanding of how the boss wanted his horses ridden. Three full seasons later, it seems the pair are firmly in sync.
“I think he has a lot more confidence in me now,” Hayes reflects. “I think I have as much faith in myself as I do in him now as well. I know what
he likes and he knows that I’m going to do the best thing for the horse and if I have to change tactics, there’s a reason for it, I’m not just going to make it up as I go along.
“With Ezeliya, we were initially planning to ride her forward in her trial, to be positive on her because we knew she’d stay, but then going down to post, she was pretty fresh in my hands and I just decided to drop her in, because I knew if I gave her a kick out of the gates, she’d be keen.
“I actually thought she really enjoyed being ridden that way and then when it came to Epsom, I said to the boss, ‘Would you mind if I did something similar, that she seems to like getting into a rhythm?’, and he said that he was thinking the same thing.
“I think, in general, the boss expects you to have an opinion. Whether he takes it on board or not, he’ll ask you. And it’s not just a case of asking what trip this horse wants, and I say, ‘Seven furlongs,’ and he’ll say, ‘Okay, that’s fine.’ He’ll ask you why, and he’ll point to the pedigree and say, ‘Well the horse is bred to go on this trip,’ and you can sound it out.
“He always takes what you say on board. Maybe he doesn’t always go with it but he has never come back to me and said, ‘Jeez, you were really wrong there.’ That has given me a lot of confidence.”
CHRIS HAYES
Hayes’s underwhelming feelings towards his season is a surefire sign of his progression as a jockey. You’d imagine he’d have taken hand and all for an Oaks-winning season five years ago, and while he feels the campaign never caught momentum, he did record pattern race success on the likes of Tarawa, Sumiha, Bellezza, Harbour Wind and Shamida, while also scooping the Goffs 500 on Bolo Neighs. It was also notable that he was drafted in to ride the Aga Khan’s Candala for trainer Francis-Henri Graffard in the Prix de Diane.
With his position, big-race success is always potentially just around the corner, with a host of could-be-anythings that have been given all the time they need to develop at Rosewell this winter.
The days of heading out to Dubai are gone and instead Hayes will be up to Dundalk under the Friday night lights while also tending to his and Rachel’s small breeding operation at home.
“We had a couple of foals to sell there and if things go well, we might re-invest again,” Hayes says. “We might try and get a stakes performer mare if we could. It’s a nice little distraction from the racing but it’s only a side gig, I’m still concentrating everything on racing.
“Tahiyra and Homeless Songs whet the appetite. I enjoy being at the top table and I don’t want to leave it anytime soon.”
Sharing a kiss at Epsom with his wife Rachel (HR)
Everest scaled
Finally becoming champion was a monkey off the back, though reaching the fiirst century ofi winners and adding to his accelerating tally ofi Grade 1 and Cheltenham winners meant it would have been a successfiul season regardless
“Gordon supported me in every way he could. That was a massive help” (CN)
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS & HEALY RACING • Words: FINTAN O’TOOLE
JACK KENNEDY
Before the rewards, came the perseverance. Jack Kennedy’s season required patience, that valued resource he has needed to draw upon in those moments during his jockey career where he has been shattered by setbacks and had his belief system come under attack.
Take the early days of last February.
Hovering just short of the century of winners mark, he landed at Leopardstown for the Dublin Racing Festival. Moving off that 99 tally at a meeting that featured a bunch of marquee races would have felt like perfect symmetry, but instead that figure stubbornly refused to move.
He left the weekend without a winner and then pitched up at Punchestown on the Monday afternoon. Coko Beach, a former Thyestes winner at Gowran Park and Troytown victor at Navan, was stepping into the cross-country environment for the first time. He thrived, first home with six lengths to spare.
And in that low-key opener, Kennedy had broken new ground as he reached 100 winners for the first time in a season.
He had battled to reach that milestone throughout his career, sometimes creeping up and other times falling back - 68 in 2017, 63 in 2018, 57 in 2019, 33 in 2020, 59 in 2021, 40 in 2022, 77 in 2023.
And now on Monday, February 5, came the 100th victory.
“I probably wasn’t far off it for a few weeks and I don’t know, maybe the momentum slowed down a little bit. It kind of took me a couple of weeks to get it.
“But, yeah that was a big thing,” he admits now. Move forward a month or so to mid-March. Patience required again.
The first two days of Cheltenham were immensely frustrating. On the Tuesday he was third on Firefox in the Supreme Novices’, second with Found A Fifty in the Arkle, fifth with The Goffer in the Ultima Handicap, second in the Champion Hurdle on board Irish Point, fourth in the Mares’ Hurdle with Lantry Lady, and third on Ndaawi in the Boodles Juvenile to round off the series of near-misses.
Wednesday? No respite from that pattern.
American Mike was a distant fifth in the Brown Advisory, Sa Fureur finished fourth in the Grand Annual, and Jalon D’oudairies was third in the Champion Bumper.
On Thursday, he steered Zanahiyr to fourth in the Turners Novices’ Chase and Conflated had to settle for third in the Ryanair Chase.
And finally, the 3.30pm race brought the breakthrough he desired, Teahupoo delivered in the Stayers’ Hurdle, the success achieving lift-off for Kennedy in the jockey stakes and for Elliott in the trainers’ race.
“The horses had been running brilliantly, just things weren’t just falling our way,” reflects Kennedy. “I suppose, there wasn’t really any excuses. We were delighted with the way the horses were running, but we were just hitting the crossbar.
“So to get a winner there then, it’s a massive relief. For it to be one of the main races as well was brilliant.”
Finally, it’s on to the closing stretch of the campaign.
When they got to the start line for the Punchestown Festival, Kennedy remained in pole position to be crowned champion jockey. His lead, 122-115, over Paul Townend was sizeable or slim, depending on your perspective. Was your faith invested in the challenger to hold on or the champion to launch a comeback in the final week of the season?
After drawing a blank on the first two days at the track, Kennedy was forced to hang in there. Townend was chipping away at the deficit and Kennedy needed to settle his nerves.
That release arrived on Thursday, in what transpired to be his only victory of the week, and it represented something greater than merely bumping up his overall number.
The Kennedy-Teahupoo partnership struck gold once more, just like it had in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle at Punchestown the previous December and in the Cotswolds in March. For the first time in 25 years, the CheltenhamPunchestown Stayers’ double was completed.
More than that, it lifted a weight of pressure off Kennedy.
“We see these jockeys coming through pony racing and we’d be watching them, following their careers. You’d be proud of them all but Jack is our own lad and his family are local”
Kennedy’s parents, Billy and Liz, have been there every step ofi the way, firom his pony racing days to fiinally becoming champion jockey (HR)
Teahupoo delivered succour fior Kennedy afiter a run ofi near-misses on the opening couple ofi days at Cheltenham with a convincing triumph in the Stayers’ Hurdle at Cheltenham and doubled up at Punchestown to do so again, when Paul Townend had closed the gap between them (CN)
“I badly needed a winner and he pulled it out of the fire again. He was a great, reliable horse for me.”
By the close of racing on the Saturday, Kennedy had protected his position, his 123 versus the 121 of Townend settling the issue.
The Dingle man was champion jockey for the first time.
Back to those West Kerry roots, where it all started. His family’s passion for the sport burned bright, Billy and Liz Kennedy mapping out the summers around the interests of their sons - Paddy, Mikey, Jack and David.
“I just had an interest from a very early age really,” says Jack.
“My older brothers were interested in ponies and I followed along then, we had a few horses and ponies at home. So I started doing a bit of pony racing and had plenty of success at it. It was a brilliant training ground for any jockey.”
In an area with a deep-rooted fanaticism for Gaelic football, Kennedy was not immune to those sporting charms.
“I played plenty of football underage (but) I had always had my mind set on being a jockey. I loved football, but it was never something that I had to think too hard about, picking between that and horses. It was always going to be horses.”
His brother Michael progressed to play in defence for Dingle in the senior championship arena in Kerry, but given he was labelled ‘Mikey Horses’ to identify him from another panel member, the destination of his sporting loyalties was clear.
Michael is now a trainer based in West Cork, training mostly point-to-point runners and with a handful of horses for the track. Paddy, who was forced into early retirement as a jockey by injury, has a pre-training business located in Kildangan in partnership with Jack. The equine theme runs deep in their family.
Kennedy is conscious of the sporting area he grew up in. Tom O’Sullivan and Mark O’Connor are a couple of years older than him. In July 2022 he saw O’Sullivan and Paul Geaney fly the Dingle flag at Croke Park as they lifted the Sam Maguire with Kerry. Two months later, on the other side of the world, there was the seismic moment for O’Connor
of tasting AFL Premiership glory at the Melbourne Cricket Ground with the Geelong Cats.
Consider Kennedy’s own achievements that year - first home in the Champion Novice Hurdle at Punchestown with Mighty Potter, success in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle on board Teahupoo at Fairyhouse that December, and then Christmas joy with Conflated at Leopardstown in the Savills Chase.
In their West Kerry community, the sheer range of sporting achievements by the natives was savoured.
“The people in Dingle, they are very supportive as well. They love seeing a local person doing well at what they’re doing. So it’s always nice to go home and meet people and they’re all very supportive.”
With Kennedy, that pride stems from the local racing culture. As a youngster on the pony racing circuit, the headline event was the one closest to home, the Dingle Derby every August.
The three pony racing associations - the North, the Midlands, and the South - have their events throughout the summer, racing on fields, tracks and beaches.
Then they all converge on Dingle in August at the field in Ballintaggart with its famous Beenbawn turn, on the left towards the coast as you travel the main N86 approach road into the town. The festival has been on the road since the late ‘70s; the field has had some form of racing on it since 1896.
There’s history through the generations there, a tradition that Kennedy does not neglect.
“My mother and my father were very good to bring me around the country every weekend during the summers. But then we’d the big one at home in Dingle and it was such a big occasion for us as well.
“I can remember going there from a very young age and watching lads racing and you’re just kind of wishing it was you up there. And yeah, thankfully, my time came around as well.”
In 2014 Kennedy realised a dream, claiming the Dingle Derby with Coola Boola.
“Years ago pony racing would have been seen as like the poor man’s horse racing, it was called flapping,” recalled Colm Sayers, the chairman of the Dingle Races Committee, speaking in 2021 in the wake of Kennedy’s Gold Cup win with Minella Indo.
“But what’s after happening in the last number of years, it’s producing the jockeys in Ireland. Paul Townend would have won the Dingle Derby, Barry Geraghty was champion jockey there. Pat Smullen rode in Dingle, Oisín Murphy came through as well.
“We see these jockeys coming through, then they’re gone after a few years and we’d be watching them, following their careers. You’d be proud of them all but Jack is our own lad and his family are local.”
To reach the summit, Kennedy needed to overcome the kingpin. Paul Townend is the sport’s current blue-chip name, a six-time champion jockey and one who stitched together five seasonal wins between 2019 and 2023.
“He was always going to be very hard to beat so when you get it done, it makes it sweeter when it is so tough. He’s a great fella. I suppose you could say we’re kind of in rivalry, but we get on very well off the track.
“Paul was the first man to congratulate me, there was never a cross word all of last year. He was a great man to be in competition with.”
A quirk of last season was the recurring trend in major races of Townend finishing first, Kennedy forced to settle for second after a strong challenge. State Man took the Cheltenham Champion Hurdle ahead of Irish Point; Galopin Des Champs finished clear of Gerri Colombe in the Cheltenham Gold Cup; I Am Maximus saw off Delta Work in the Aintree Grand National.
If there was frustration in that list of runner-up finishes in March and April, it was wiped away for Kennedy in early May.
“No matter who it is, it’s frustrating when you finish second in any of them big races. To finish second in the three of them, obviously you’re delighted with the performances that your horses have put in, but you’d love to be going one better.
“It was funny that it was Paul that beat me in the three of them but thankfully I got the championship over the line anyway.”
The other key jockey dynamic at play during Kennedy’s career has been the presence of Davy Russell at Cullentra House. A week before Christmas 2022, Russell announced his retirement but after Kennedy broke his leg in January at Naas, he returned to the saddle for Gordon Elliott as cover.
In April 2023, Russell retired on a permanent basis, signing off with a Grade 1 winner at Aintree. When Kennedy returned for a new campaign that autumn, fully fit and refreshed, he was the prime jockey in Elliott’s yard.
“I didn’t really feel much more pressure because even when Davy was riding, I was still riding in all the big races and things for Gordon. So when he retired, it wasn’t as if I was just being thrown in at the deep end. I had been riding on the big days already, so it wasn’t too much of a shock to the system. Everything kind of just worked out well.
“I learned loads off Davy. Growing up, he was the one I watched and rated the whole time, and then to end up working alongside him was brilliant, and he was a massive help to me. I was very lucky, the position I ended up in.”
He feels fortunate to have had the guiding presence of Elliott as well, the trainer expressing his delight after the champion jockey crown had been claimed.
JACK KENNEDY
“I’m thrilled for Jack - we have been thinking about this day since he was 16. We knew this year he was in good nick. He’s a lot stronger,” said Elliott once it was official.
“I’m so happy. He deserves this more than anyone, with all the injuries that he’s had. He bounces back and that’s his attitude. Hopefully we’ll get another 10 or 15 years out of him.”
Kennedy appreciated the input of Elliott as the season reached a critical and tension-filled closing stage.
“The last six or eight weeks, it was probably on my own mind a fair bit and (I was) just trying to find winners. Gordon was very good when I felt maybe (I) had a better chance of winning on an outside ride, than whatever he had, he was very good to let me off and he supported me in every way he could. That was a massive help.”
In those moments during his career when his fortunes plummeted, that type of support was invaluable. Kennedy has sparked plenty of sympathy from racing followers with the hardship of his injury setbacks, characterised by breaking a leg on five occasions. He finished Punchestown in a moon boot again after suffering a foot injury but this time, it didn’t deny him the coveted title.
He has always dug in and showcased his resilience. Long ago he resolved in his mind that this is all part of the trade and letting the misfortune contaminate his focus was never an option.
“The injuries are all part of it. I don’t really think too much about them to be honest, because if you become a jump jockey and you don’t think you’re going to get injured, you’re probably in the wrong game. It is part of it. The chances of picking up an injury are fairly high. You just have to come to terms with it.
“The season before probably showed that becoming champion jockey was probably possible if I did get a clean run at a season.”
For 2023/24 he got the chance to set the record straight.
123 winners, with 112 of those provided by Elliott horses.
11 Grade 1 winners with Teahupoo providing a trio of those and Gerri Colombe a pair.
Those numbers defined his season and all added up to a winning combination.
“It makes it all worthwhile after everything,” he reflects.
The peak had finally been reached.
“I can remember going there firom a very young age and watching lads racing and you’re just kind ofi wishing it was you up there. And yeah, thankfiully, my time came around as well” – Winning the Dingle Derby on Coola Boola in 2014 (HR)
“I learned loads off Davy. Growing up, he was the one I watched and rated the whole time, and then to end up working alongside him was brilliant”
on the PAT back
When you are a six-horse trainer with only one proper dart to fiire, hitting the bullseye at a huge cross-channel fiestival has to be one ofi the achievements ofi the year
Extensio smiles fior the cameras, as does Pat O’Donell, his wifie Úna, in whose colours the gelding runs, and daughter Sylvia, who has propelled the son ofi Xtension to two ofi his seven racecourse triumphs, though Joey Sheridan was on board on the Knavesmire
The broad smile of ginger-haired winning rider Gerry O’Neill may have had a British audience tuning in to a rather quaint looking 1995 Coral Cup success. Pragmatic-sired grey, Chance Coffey hit the bullseye when Irish wins weren’t altogether plentiful at the Cheltenham Festival.
Pat O’Donnell’s succinct post-race summation - “The culmination of all my hopes, dreams and aspirations” - hinted that there was a bit more to the victory than met the eye though.
Fast forward 27 odd years and his emotional interview following the memorable success of Extensio, with daughter Sylvia aboard, in the Ladies’ Derby of 2022 at the Curragh, thrust the Herbertstown handler back into the spotlight.
A further five wins followed, with lofty targets now on the horizon for the cheaply bought seven-year-old, who was purchased on the advice of Michael Browne.
“At the moment we’ll be working back from Royal Ascot. Sylvia is good at research and thinks
he’ll struggle to get into the handicaps there, and if he does he’ll be towards the bottom,” O’Donnell explains.
“We’ll run him in a couple of races before then, Sylvia will ride and maybe he’ll win and go up another few pounds. That’s all in the mix.”
After his biggest triumph to date in the Sky Bet Stayers’ Handicap at York’s Ebor Festival, the likeable bay returned to hurdles on his next start at Tipperary, having won a maiden on his debut over obstacles at Roscommon 14 months previously, defying top weight when making it two from two over flights.
O’Donnell, nearly 30 years on from his famous Coral Cup success, is not tempted to return to Prestbury Park with the stable star owned by his wife Úna, just yet.
“He is not going to Cheltenham this season. He wouldn’t have enough experience for it.
“You’ve got to work within your system and mine is a small one. I’m not going to suddenly change it to get a horse to Cheltenham. Of
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: DONAL MURPHY
course, it would be lovely to get there with him when he has adequate experience.
“I’m not tempted to go down the hurdles route just yet. All in good time. He is rated 137 and the Galway Hurdle has to be high on the agenda though. It would be at the end of July, with Royal Ascot being in late June, so it would tally nicely.
“He is caught in a bit of a no man’s land at the moment. I wasn’t totally comfortable with having to run him in Tipperary with top weight, but it had to be done.
“In the last season in Ireland you can’t run in those better handicap hurdles unless you’ve ran three times over hurdles, so as it stands, he wouldn’t even be allowed to enter the Galway Hurdle. We’ve obviously got to look at that.
“He would need more experience anyway and a hurdle race or two would fit in ideal in the build-up to Ascot, in the hope that he will get into one of the handicaps there.”
Offers for the fast-improving gelding have surprisingly been thin on the ground, with John McConnell identified as one who showed an interest from an early stage.
“I’ve only had one genuine offer for him. I think it was before he even won the Ladies’ Derby, John McConnell showed a genuine interest and approached us twice, but at that stage he certainly wasn’t for sale.
“We haven’t had anyone ringing up, but I do refer to him as certainly not a big horse, so that might put people off.
“We’ve had fan mail though and I’ve got a lot of interviews on the head of him. One lad from Birmingham sent me on an envelope to post him one
PAT O’DONNELL
of his shoes from the day he won at York. I sent it on, but you’d associate that with Gold Cup winners!
“As things have become so polarised now, our story resonates a bit stronger than it might have done 15 odd years ago. This has gone down bigger than when I had the winner at Cheltenham!”
While failing to emulate that memorable triumph and going many years without a winner on the track, O’Donnell never lost his love for the game.
“I was well aware after four or five years of having a trainer’s licence that I was going to struggle to make a business of it. We never had any doubt that we were capable horse people. I was never going to leave training horses because I like it, I enjoy it, it’s part of me and it’s a wonderful challenge.
“You get massive satisfaction out of seeing a horse progress and develop and making the right calls with them. When you make the wrong call and be able to straighten the ship again.
“I think commentators in the industry are missing that point. It’s not all about the bottom line. Of course we’ve got to balance the books, but you’ve got to remember that at the end of the day it is a sport.
“No more than theatre is entertainment. I suppose there is moguls in the theatre who make millions, but there are a lot of people who like amateur dramatics. I probably just epitomise the small trainer and the small operators. There is a lot of us out there and a lot of us good at what we do.
“I would have trained some point-to-point winners during the quiet period, so I always kept my eye in the game. I’d say during that period the
Extensio rewarded his trainer’s supreme preparation and planning by streaking to victory in the Stayers’ Heritage Handicap at York, with rivals trained by Messrs Elliott, Hannon, King, Balding, Palmer, Johnston, Ryan and O’Meara in his wake
“The culmination ofi all my hopes, dreams and aspirations”Brough Scott was one ofi the fiirst to be exposed to the impassioned, eloquent O’Donnell postrace interview afiter Chance Coffey, bred by his Uncle Bill, owned by his fiather PJ (right), and ridden by his neighbour and close firiend Gerry O’Neill, won the Coral Cup in 1995
standard rose very quickly both in point-to-points and on the track.
“We have a great programme of schooling bumpers and you can go to Dundalk and trial flat horses, so we had a fair idea that the horses we had weren’t up to much. Then the two children both wanted to do some riding and that spurred me into getting a few flat horses.
“I would have been doing a lot of breeze-ups and I also farm on a small scale. I might put 30 bullocks through the place on the round of the year. We keep a few mares and do a bit of pinhooking, so like a lot of Irish people, we have plenty of strings to our bow.”
While Pat O’Donnell is the name on the licence, he is keen to emphasise the importance of family in the running of his operation.
“My wife Úna comes from more of a sport horse background. She coaches dressage and I wouldn’t buy a horse without her seeing it first.
“Our son Patrick is back home after four years in Hong Kong. Two years previous to that, he was with Malcolm Bastard and he had a superb apprenticeship with Ralph Beckett and Fozzy Stack. It’s great to have him home now, he gained
a lot of experience out in Hong Kong and has some good contacts.
“Sylvia works full time with BBA Ireland. She rides out every morning with Ken Condon before going into work and comes home then at the weekend.”
Amassing over €150,000 in prizemoney, there is no doubt the impact Extensio has had on the O’Donnell family, with their business growing as a direct result.
“We’ve got a couple more horses lately. Sylvia and I have bought a yearling with the view to having a two-year-old runner and Patrick has bought a couple of yearlings, so there is definitely more work being done in Herbertstown.
“Extensio has won a nice ball of money for us and we got nearly all the farm refenced on the head of it, while we poured some concrete as well and he is directly responsible for that. We refurbished our straight gallop too.
“I’d never turn down more business, but I wouldn’t go asking for it. I’m not going to get anything much at this stage though. You’ve got to remember I’ve found my level and you’ve got to be content with that.
“I’ve watched John Kiely very closely all through my career. I would put John down as the epitome of the master trainer, who didn’t go big. I’d say he probably could have gone big if he wanted to. People like him are definitely ones you’d look up to.”
Since leaving school half-way through fifth year, to become a jockey, O’Donnell has dedicated his life to the game and whether success continues or not, he will undoubtedly remain involved in the sport he has such a passion for.
“As I’m talking to you, I’m in a car inside in the middle of Michael O’Regan’s farm in Rathcannon, getting ready for Bruff Point-to-Point on Sunday week. There is 22 people here with us and there will be 50 or 60 on the day helping to run it. It’s a lovely big part of Ireland.
“Once we have Bruff out of the way, I won’t miss a Sunday point-to-point, even though I won’t have runners. I absolutely love being among the grassroots and it’s infectious really.”
The same adjective could easily be used to describe the County Limerick native himself, with his warm, wholesome character personifying all that is good about horse racing.
2025 Fixtures
Sunday 5th January
Lawlor’s Grade 1 Novice Hurdle Day &
Winter Best Dressed
Sunday 26th January
January Jumps
Saturday 8th February
Cheltenham Trials Day
Sunday 23rd February
Spring Festival Trials Day
Sunday 9th March
Bar One Leinster National Day
Sunday 23rd March
Flat is Back
Thursday 3rd April
National Hunt Finale
Monday 28th April
Punchestown Preview Evening
Saturday 10th May
Blue Wind Stakes Day
Sunday 18th May
Royal Ascot Trials & Family Fun Day
Wednesday 25th June
Summer Racing, BBQ & Live Music Evening
Saturday 5th July
Summer Racing, BBQ & Live Music Day
Wednesday 23rd July
Summer Racing, BBQ & Live Music Evening
Monday 4th August
August Bank Holiday Racing
Sunday 24th August
Summer Sunday
Thursday 18th September Juvenile Day
Saturday 11th & Sunday 12th October
October Weekend
Sunday 9th November Return of the Jumps
Monday 15th December
Christmas Party Raceday
BOOK YOUR TICKETS !
Home FIRES
Having his family present as he won a Guineas at the Curragh, and delivering a St Leger for the man who gave him such a grounding, Aidan O’Brien, were highlights of a strange season for Sean Levey
“I’ve won
a Leger, St James’s Palace Stakes and an Irish Guineas (this year) but
I can’t get a ride”
It should have been the year to trump all others for Sean Levey, with top-end victories across Europe elevating his profile to a new level.
There were wins in British and Irish Classics, a double at Royal Ascot and a triumph on Arc weekend to crown what was seemingly an unforgettable season for the über-dependable rider, whose famously transient backstory includes spells in Swaziland, Croydon and
Tipperary before settling in Britain.
But despite earning a prizemoney percentage to overshadow that of all but a handful of his weigh-room contemporaries, Levey feels that, as we reflect on 2024, it is impossible not to highlight the cracks appearing in British racing.
For, as well as being Levey’s most lucrative campaign financially by quite some distance, it was also the uninterrupted year when he had the fewest
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: EDWARD PROSSER
mounts and winners since getting properly established in Britain.
“I’m certainly not complaining about the success I’ve had but weirdly I’m not as satisfied as I should be after this season,” he reflects. “I’m having the best year of my life in terms of good horses but the worst year as far as opportunity is concerned. I’m well down on rides and wins.”
By the middle of November, his British winning total was only 38, having been 71 two years ago, and only in 2018, when he missed several months through injury, had he had fewer rides over the last dozen years.
And this was the case after he has cemented his position as number one rider to the Richard Hannon stable, served as first choice for Brian Meehan’s resurgent operation and as a super sub for a man that plays an important role in his story, Aidan O’Brien.
Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum’s homebred Rosallion, winner of the Irish 2000 Guineas and St James’s Palace Stakes, was the poster boy but there was no hiding Levey’s pride when claiming a second British Classic success at Doncaster in September on the O’Brien-trained Jan Brueghel.
With his earnings, he stresses that he is not so much highlighting the situation for himself but more for colleagues who have not had the same lucrative payouts.
He feels that the sale of progressive higherrated horses has left a void between the overpopulated lower-grade 0-65 handicap bracket and the rarefied group with ratings in the 100s.
“Not getting the mounts is nothing to do with me or the people I ride for, it’s that lack of opportunities in that middle ground,” he says. “We are keeping the good horses but we are not
SEAN LEVEY
holding onto the middle, what we call the Saturday horses. Those are the ones that compete every weekend and should be going on to be a Shouldvebeenaring or a Hearty Romance.
“My agent keeps saying how sorry he is that we haven’t had 100 winners, which is what you always hope for in a season, but he said, ‘You do realise there are no rides going?’ I’ve won a Leger, St James’s Palace Stakes and an Irish Guineas but I can’t get a ride.”
It’s notable in some of the historic handicaps that the age profile of horses has increased as the improving younger performers are snapped up by buyers across the globe with big cheque books, and that may certainly have hit Levey, whose patronage often comes from higher-end stables.
“You used to have a Hannon and Gosden running two in those big handicaps and a good chance to pick up rides. That doesn’t exist anymore. I really do worry about racing in Britain now, it’s become more geared towards the mediocrity than the best.”
With a fixture list which the authorities stubbornly refuse to prune in Britain and a
see
Having his brother, Lindani and mother, Tini – who still works at Ballydoyle - at the Curragh to
him win the Irish 2000 Guineas on Rosallion was a huge source of pride
Levey
“Me and Aidan have an argument about whether George Washington or Rip Van Winkle was the best… Aidan would say that Rip was better and I’d always disagree”
reduced number of horses in training, smaller fields become the norm, leading to less opportunities.
“Look, I’m lucky enough to be sailing my own ship and the riding fee (£162.79) is pretty good so that if someone got six or seven rides it’s a decent day’s pay. But there are a load of other jockeys who are completely struggling for opportunities or lacking a good winner. There’s one very popular rider looking to go out on a winner and he’s struggling to get a mount. In the past, trainers would have been queuing up to put him up on a winner.”
As the most successful jockey of colour on this side of the Atlantic, the 36-year-old Levey’s background has been well-publicised. And it’s an upbringing more interesting than most.
His father, Mick hailed from Dublin but spent his apprenticeship with Epsom trainer Ron Smyth, the man who nurtured the career of Mill Reef’s jockey, Geoff Lewis.
A change of lifestyle was to follow with a move to Swaziland, the stunning little southern African country now known as Eswatini. Mick became an entrepreneur, setting up a racetrack, running a bookmaking company, promoting boxing and ending up with a showjumping yard.
It was there that he met Tini and where Sean was born and first sat on a pony without any great enthusiasm, aged two or three.
Next stop was the drab south London suburb of Croydon, which could hardly have been more contrasting, and it was a relief to everyone when Mick found work with Aidan O’Brien, still in his early years at Ballydoyle, and the family moved to Rosegreen in County Tipperary.
A work colleague put the young Leveys in touch with Tony Deegan in Ballinasloe in County Galway and it was there that Sean and his brother Declan (who this year married Frankie Dettori’s daughter, Ella) were dispatched and effectively left to run the pony racing stable.
They returned to Tipperary as more worldly wise and better horsemen and were entrusted to start riding out.
Sean progressed to partner some of the Ballydoyle greats such as Yeats and Rip Van Winkle in their homework but it is another giant of the sport for whom his memory burns brightest
- the 2006 English 2000 Guineas winner and dual Group 1-winning juvenile, George Washington.
“Me and Aidan have an argument about whether George Washington or Rip Van Winkle was the best. Aidan would say that Rip was better and I’d always disagree. I rode George Washington in work a lot and God, he was good,” recalls Levey.
“He was like Mike Tyson on drugs. You couldn’t approach him, he was mental. He was raw but, wow, the talent he had. Meanwhile, the other fellow (Rip Van Winkle) was the nicest person in the world.
“But George Washington didn’t even need to turn up, what you saw from him was 50% of what he was capable of. He had no reason to try, he had no interest. But he was that good. He’d turn up at a heavyweight fight and he’d just win, he wouldn’t know how he’d done it. He was the embodiment of an athlete without even knowing he was an athlete.”
Mick sadly succumbed to cancer as Sean’s career was in its infancy but his mother Tini still works for the O’Brien family and is frequently spotted on the racecourse, proudly supporting her son.
A first ride came at the Curragh in April 2005, when fifth behind no less than Kinane, Smullen, Murtagh and Fallon on South Wind Rising, and two months later came the debut success aboard Beauty Bright at Cork.
Now apprenticed to Ballydoyle, he was given the occasional outing a in a big race and especially remembers the star-studded Arc of 2009 when partnering the pacemaker, Cornish to try and help Fame And Glory overturn the stable’s nemesis, Sea The Stars.
“I remember riding at Longchamp as a claimer in that race behind Sea The Stars. In those days it was just a massive occasion and for the first time in my life I really realised the importance of a big race,” he remembers.
Well down the Ballydoyle pecking order, in 2011 he decided to cross the Irish Sea and travel to Yorkshire, joining forces with Cork-born David O’Meara, which yielded only limited success. He began riding out for trainers such as Karl Burke, John Quinn and Michael Dods, travelled south to John Bridger in Hampshire and hooked up with John Fretwell’s yard.
A meeting with Richard Hannon Snr at Salisbury races one day ultimately led him to transfer his apprenticeship to the stable in an era when Richard Hughes was first rider. Levey has bided his time and - with a wealth of experience under his belt - now comes in for the cream of Hannon Jnr’s rides.
His Irish roots are deep and riding a big winner at the Curragh on Rosallion, watched by Tini and family, was a special day. “I had my first ever ride at the Curragh so it was nice to come back with a favourite’s chance and deliver,” he said, after defeating stablemate, Haatem.
The pressure was on at Royal Ascot, where Rosallion took on the English and French Guineas winners, Notable Speech and Metropolitan, as
believes that Aidan O’Brien, for whom he won the St Leger on Jan Brueghel at Doncaster in December, is improving as a trainer
LEVEY’S STELLAR 2024
G1 Irish 2000 Guineas, Curragh - Rosallion (Richard Hannon) - €290,000
G1 St James’s Palace Stakes, Royal Ascot - Rosallion (Richard Hannon) - £390,094
G1 St Leger, Doncaster - Jan Brueghel (Aidan O’Brien) - £421,355
G2 Prix Dollar, ParisLongchamp - Jayarebe (Brian Meehan) - €114,000
well as Ballydoyle colt, Henry Longfellow, carrying high hopes from connections. Under a ride earning much admiration, he denied O’Brien’s charge on the line.
“That was a stallion-making day at Ascot. The satisfaction for me was that I knew Rosallion was that good, I think anybody would have won on him, that’s how good he was. He’s a fast horse, he’s incredibly quick. And to be honest, if I had got beaten then I would have been the worst jockey. I’d have needed to have been an idiot to have not won on him.”
While Rosallion’s two big wins were in threeyear-old Group 1s that did not fall to Coolmore and Ballydoyle, Levey marvels at their domination of the sport.
“I know Coolmore are not trying to monopolise it, but that is slightly what has happened. They have it all covered. As an example, I was riding something (Rashabar) by Holy Roman Emperor, one of their stallions in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère when I got beaten by a horse of theirs (Camille Pissarro) that hadn’t shown form at that level until it had encountered soft ground. It seems they win no matter what!”
Not that Coolmore’s success has been bad news for Levey. He linked up with his old mentor O’Brien in August to win a Newmarket Group 3 on Lake Victoria before landing the plum winning ride on Jan Brueghel in the St Leger a month later, while Ryan Moore was occupied in Ireland.
He understandably has a reverence for O’Brien, a man with whom he spent so many formative years, and believes the master trainer gets better with experience.
“As an example, he’s able to train Kyprios even better because of the benefit of having trained Yeats. It’s hard to explain but when he sees something he knows what he has seen and has enough knowledge in the bank to pursue it.
“When I was apprenticed to Aidan, you found that the horses that were the best often had the weirdest of traits - one of those was that you never knew quite how good they were until they were the best, if you can understand that. But Aidan is so good at understanding what is and what’s not.”
Away from his own mounts, there is no horse that impressed him more through the year than the lightly-raced William Haggas-trained Irish Champion Stakes winner Economics.
“There’s a big void between group horses and those really decent Group 1 performers,” he says. “And the last horse that I raced against that was really good was Economics when he beat me on Jayarebe (in the Prix Guillaume d’Ornano) in France. I just said to Tom (Marquand) that the horse is exceptional, he is a machine. I’d have loved
to have seen Economics run in the Arc, I think he’d have won.”
Levey spent time with County Waterford native, Eddie Kenneally in the US in his formative years and returned across the Atlantic to winter in Florida last year, riding a winner in Tampa Bay Downs in late January.
“I wish when I was younger, I had known more then - I really think I might have gone to America and not come back. Racing is flourishing there and I made money even when I was not winning. But the big thing against me was that my belly button touched my spine! That’s how hard it was to do the weight.”
The Arsenal fan and his wife Toni had a baby boy in March, named Michael after his father. Meanwhile, Rosallion stays in training and is going to be a formidable opponent in the top mile races of 2025.
Despite Levey’s concerns over the health of British racing, that’s enough to help the winter pass a little bit quicker.
“Racing is flourishing in America and I made money even when I was not winning (but) the big thing against me was that my belly button touched my spine!”
YES he can
Gavin Cromwell is the latest to prove that it is possible for fresh blood to work from the bottom up and make an impact as a trainer in Ireland, and the Meath man continues to shoot for the stars in both codes
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: IAN GAUGHRAN
Large streams from little fountains flow, tall oaks from little acorns grow – in Danestown, County Meath, the trees are tall and mighty as Gavin Cromwell’s training operation continues to blossom.
From humble beginnings to dining at the top tables, Cromwell’s career arc is a lesson in drive, unwavering determination, and an ability to succeed in an era of domination by a select crew of elite trainers.
An online news search for Gavin Cromwell makes for interesting browsing and highlights a remarkable career progression.
Gavin Cromwell’s remarkable achievement and the worrying implications for British jump racing reads a Racing Post headline from earlier this year.
Gavin Cromwell showcases his remarkable talent at Cheltenham reads another from the Irish Independent, while an Irish Times headline states, Gavin Cromwell’s rapid rise flies in face of elitist fears at top end of Irish racing
Such is his success, Cromwell found himself on a list of four trainers, joining major players Willie Mullins, Gordon Elliott and Henry de Bromhead, excluded from a number of races in Ireland. Due to begin on January 1, these races would be restricted to trainers who have trained less than 50 winners in either of the last two full national hunt seasons.
It is not a debate for these pages, yet it gives an insight into what can be achieved from nowhere.
A farrier by trade, Cromwell took out a training licence in 2005 and saddled his first winner in 2007 when Dodder Walk, a 25/1 shot with an official rating of 74 came home a length and a quarter in front under Andrew Lynch in the Charleville Handicap Hurdle in Cork.
Fast-forward to November 2024 and, for a brief moment about 100 yards from home, Fiery Lucy looks like she could be giving her trainer not only a first top-level flat success, but a Breeders’ Cup one at that.
GAVIN CROMWELL
Ultimately, Fiery Lucy has a bit of a hard-luck defeat in fourth behind Aidan O’Brien’s hotpot Lake Victoria and, again, that career progression is highlighted with how Cromwell reacts to the run, and Fiery Lucy’s campaign.
“Obviously I’m delighted with the way she ran, but she was actually a bit unlucky,” Cromwell says. “She got a couple of bumps on the way around – she was knocked back early and had to make up a bit of ground down the back. So, she had to make up that ground and it probably showed at the end of the race as she didn’t hit the line as strong as she can.
“In these kind of races you always need a little bit of luck and she just didn’t get it – there was a bit of hustle and bustle at the first bend, a horse came off the rail and gave her a bump and then she got a second bump that forced her wide.
“But it was great – her preparations went well and it justified the decision to go there. It was the right call to go there and obviously we’re happy.”
Out of Dubawi mare Craighall, she has enjoyed a very productive and consistent, albeit slightly frustrating season. As one of the top juvenile fillies in the world, it shouldn’t be the case, yet it showcases her, and her trainer’s ability and expectations these days.
“She’s only won a maiden. It’s a little bit frustrating in that sense but she has been running remarkably well in fairness to her.”
National hunt training is Cromwell’s bread and butter, yet he has been pulling up trees on the flat – and the types of horses show how it can be done without paying eye-watering sums of money to purchase the horses required to consistently garner results at the biggest meetings. Wins for Quick Suzy and Snellen at Royal Ascot with his first two runners were followed up this summer with places for his next two, Mighty Eriu and My Mate Mozzie.
“These horses, the ones who have done great at Royal Ascot etc, were all very cheap purchases
“It all comes down to the team I have in the yard… the people you have surrounding you”
Limerick Lace, with Keith Donoghue on board, was one of two Cromwell winners at Cheltenham in March, bringing the trainer’s tally at the festival to six
“He’s just a bit of a freak” – Dual Stayers’ Hurdle winner Flooring Porter, unfortunately ruled out for the season after his Kerry National romp
really. And Snellen was a homebred – so we’ve been lucky enough to have bought the right ones and it’s always nice when you can get them to the big day.”
Speaking of big days, it was another homebred, Jer’s Girl, who catapulted Cromwell into the Grade 1 conversation when she bagged a remarkable double at Fairyhouse and Punchestown in the spring of 2016.
“She was my first Grade 1 winner and my first horse to have for JP McManus so they were special days. And of course, it led to us getting Espoir D’Allen off the back of that. He was incredible, and his Champion Hurdle win (in 2019) still ranks up there as a career highlight.
“Races don’t come a whole lot bigger than that really and thankfully we’ve had other great days as well. Look, maybe the Champion Hurdle fell apart that year – there were three big guns in it and for whatever reasons they didn’t really show up but that said, he was a very good winner.
“At that stage, I think it was the widest margin winner of a Champion Hurdle ever – until Constitution Hill, but if the others had showed up, would we have won? Or would we have won by that distance? I don’t know, but we can’t take it away from him either way.”
Espoir D’Allen never graced the racetrack again after his historic Champion Hurdle as he died after a freak accident on the gallops at the tender age of five. It remains keenly felt for his trainer.
“It was absolutely devastating for everyone,” says Cromwell, his voice lowering. Taking a deep breath, he adds: “It still is devastating, to be honest, but we’ll always have that special day and those special memories.”
From then on, however, Cromwell runners at Cheltenham have become fearsome. Flooring Porter and Vanillier landed an incredible Covidtimes double. They were strange days, however,
and while delighted with the wins they weren’t celebrated with the customary Irish gusto at the Cotswolds.
“It was brilliant, it was great, but it was behind closed doors obviously with Covid. So, it did take from it a bit. I remember lying on my bed up in the Ellenborough Hotel – and I know there’s worse beds you could be lying on – but as soon as the races were over, we were all transported back up there.
“All the jockeys and trainers were housed there for the week and I remember lying on the bed and replying to the messages on my phone and that was it – that was the height of the celebrations! But thankfully he went back the following year and did it again, and that one was different.
“We had all the owners there and all the public there and that was magic. Everybody had come out of Covid and it probably didn’t take much to excite us. And that particular bunch of owners wouldn’t need a massive reason to celebrate but they had great reason to on that occasion.”
Flooring Porter continued adding to his legend and his Kerry National win in September left connections harbouring hopes of him going one better than Vanillier did in 2023 and winning the biggest race in jumps racing, the Aintree Grand National. Unfortunately, he has been ruled out for the season with an injury which it is hoped he can return from.
The admiration for the Yeats gelding, who has accumulated more than €900,000 in prizemoney so far, is obvious.
“He’s just one of those horses – I suppose he’s a bit of a freak. He has a massive engine and a massive will to win and a will to try hard for you. He’s been a brilliant horse for everyone.”
Having mentioned humble beginnings and a desire to be the best, Cromwell is constantly looking to improve the facilities at his training base. Starting with 14 acres and now working off
GAVIN CROMWELL
80, perhaps it should be no surprise that he continues to fire in the winners at such a remarkable rate.
“We’ve a three-and-a-half-furlong deep, sand gallop and now there’s a five-furlong straight off the round gallop, woodchip up a hill. That’s been proving great for us this year for both the national hunt horses and the flat horses, in particular the two-year-olds.
“We are always looking to be better and, while I don’t ever put a number on it, I do know the previous season’s number and the target is always to better that – for both the jumpers and the flat horses. And obviously it would be magic if we could get a Group 1 on the flat but they really are so hard to come by. Hopefully someday.
“It all comes down to the team I have in the yard. It’s not just me, you know? It’s all about the people you have surrounding you, just like in every walk of life, and the team here is brilliant, and we always look to get good horses and try improving them.”
He has gained a reputation as a terrific target trainer, as is evidenced by his exceptional numbers year-on-year, whether with a Flooring Porter type or one with lesser ability. Knowing the calendar is one element, but identifying a horse’s ceiling to eye where they may end up is a talent in itself.
“Everything revolves around budget,” Cromwell muses. “The horse with a higher profile is going to cost more but the horse with the higher profile is the one you would try make a longer-term plan for. The lesser horse is very straightforward to plan for because there’s a lot more of that kind of race. It’s not as case sensitive, but definitely the high-profile one you have to make a long-term plan. Work backwards from the long term.
“You always look to keep the targets low for the lesser one and give the horse a chance to
progress, and then it’s up to the horses themselves, whether they do progress or not and unfortunately not all of them do. But if you start low, you have a chance. Keep the targets low and go from there.”
A couple of exciting horses from the yard that have enjoyed notable successes come up. Brides Hill has been a revelation in the mares’ chase division, winning four on the spin last season, and she is one to be excited about.
“She’s a very talented mare who keeps progressing, but we just got a little delayed with her as she picked up a small injury coming back in. She’s started back but probably won’t run until after Christmas but that’s fine because she’s not one for deep ground in the winter anyway so she’ll be aimed at a spring campaign.
“Leinster National winner Hartur D’arc has a couple of early targets and hopefully he’s another who can go through the season and enjoy another good campaign. It didn’t happen for him in the Irish National but we like him and he’s a nice chaser.”
One thing is for sure – Cromwell will have his entries fit and firing when it comes to the big days, whether it is Cheltenham, where he brought his tally of winners at the festival to six with the McManus homebred siblings, Inothewayurthinkin and Limerick Lace; the likes of Royal Ascot or ParisLongchamp, where he won a Group 2 previously for one of Fiery Lucy’s owners Lindsay Laroche; or another National tilt at Aintree with Vanillier, if not now Flooring Porter.
A model of perseverance, drive and hard work, with a sprinkling of canny know-how, he is very firmly seated at the top table these days and it will come as no surprise if, some day in the near future, he starts troubling Messrs Mullins and Elliott for top trainer honours.
Tall oaks from little acorns grow.
Fairyhouse maiden winner, Fiery Lucy (right) has been second three times, twice at Group 3 level, and was an unlucky fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies’ Turf
“While I don’t ever put a number on it, I do know the previous season’s number and the target is always to better that”
DEREK and his DOMINOES
The most successful jockey in the history of Irish point-to-pointing has added yet another string to his bow but remains at the top of his game in the saddle
Photos: DAVID DONOHUE & CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: DAVID DONOHUE
If it appeared as a question in a pub quiz, even the racing anorak in the room might not know that Derek O’Connor’s bustling training establishment sits at the edge of The Burren, that limestone and wildflower Geopark in North Clare. Although technically, the yard is a field or two into County Galway, this is as far from typical national hunt racing country as you could possibly find.
In the half-hour it takes me to drive from the Clare coast, I don’t pass a single paddock – and encounter just two cars – although I do skirt fields that will magically transform into the Bellharbour Point-to-Point course in February, as well as a sign for Quakerstown, which holds its annual point meeting every Easter Sunday.
The 42-year-old winning-most jockey in the history of point-to-pointing greets me with an open smile and a vice-grip handshake when I arrive midway through morning gallops on a changeable, late summer’s morning.
The first thing that strikes me, as Derek tacks up an imposing Hillstar filly, is the easy, upbeat atmosphere of the place. It’s an atmosphere underpinned by success – the success of a new sphere of endeavour building on the recordbreaking achievements of another – and the sure-footedness that comes from operating within such an enviable domain. This is a yard where horses and humans, including Derek’s wife Carol, all move in an unhurried flow, while their girls Jessica, Abbie and Annabel run about, making the best of the end of the holidays.
From a pre-training yard that kept Derek busy when he wasn’t travelling the country notching up over 1,300 winners through the flags as a rider, the place is now predominately a boutique training operation for yet another giant of the jumps racing game, JP McManus. The two winners Derek rode for JP at Cheltenham ’24 – including man-of-the-match effort on Inothewayurthinkin in the Kim Muir – made it six career victories at the festival and highlighted that, as his talent as a trainer emerges, his prowess in the saddle remains at its peak.
With Max the Dalmatian following, the lot of five valuable four-year-olds takes off for a road hack followed by alternating circuits of the round gallop, a pop over brush fences, then up the dogleg gallop until they disappear into the haze of an approaching West of Ireland shower.
David: Where do you see your career right now?
Derek: I’d say I spent 12 to 14 years with nothing else on my mind only riding winners and chasing point-to-point titles, but that era has passed and I have a few different things going on now. I have my handler’s licence, I’m agenting for Goffs UK and doing jockey coaching for RACE. There was a lot of quantity in what I did before, there is a lot of quality in what I do now, but working with the McManus family has been the biggest game changer in my career so far.
It was a gift from God when the lorry arrived with the first bunch of horses from JP. They had all been broken as two-year-olds by different handlers
and their education continued through the winter as three-year-olds. So, when I got them, they already had two stints of training done. Riding-wise, physical-wise, breeding-wise and preparation-wise, these are high-end horses. It puts me in a very privileged position.
David: You had a very good season as a handler in 2023-24.
Derek: My initial season was stop-start, as we were finding our feet with the horses, but last season went very well. We had five four-year-old winners in the green and gold colours, all first time out. I rode four and Eoin Mahon, who has worked with me for ten years, rode one. If we can do the same again in ’24-25 I’ll be very pleased.
David: Did any stand out as potential stars of the future?
Derek: I rode a winner at the Bellharbour Point-to Point called That’s Nice, who has gone to Nicky Henderson to be trained. She was very, very special, always. She did something that was very rare in that she beat the geldings in a four-year-old maiden. That only happens once every few years. Thatsdwayimthinkin, a half-brother to Inothewayurthinkin, won a four-year-old maiden for us in Oldtown and is up there amongst the best horses I had last year. And Pure Steel, whom Eoin Mahon won on in Belclare, was a great improver throughout the year.
You would have to compliment the boss. He gives all the lads here the opportunities to ride his horses, both in work and at the races. They know if they get to a certain standard, they can wear the JP silks and have the chance of riding a winner for him. There’s great drive in that for them, as they all have their own career ambitions and these opportunities can advance their careers. Of the bunch of horses we had last year, I think we had seven different riders in the green and gold colours.
David: You train a few for yourself, also.
Derek: They say that you don’t make much money training horses, trading is what you need to do. For that reason, I have one third of the yard left for myself to train and trade. My first winner as a handler was a horse I owned myself called Southoftheborder. He sold well at public auction and has already won twice under rules for Nicky Henderson and owner Pat Hickey.
David: Was training a big transition from pretraining?
Derek: When you’re pre-training and breaking horses, you’re dealing with young horses and their traits, so that side of it was always very familiar to me. With training, you have to be on top of everything and that can be stressful, but I have good lads around me who know what they are doing and I have confidence in them so I’m in a good position.
“There was a lot of quantity in what I did before, there is a lot of quality in what I do now”
David: Do you have other trainers you can call upon for advice if needed?
Derek: I have worked for some of the best of men in the business and I have good relations with the majority of them. I could name ten people that I could ring right now for advice, and that’s very important.
David: Might you be tempted to train under Rules in the future?
Derek: No, I don’t want to train them for the track. I love this part of it. I love the education, seeing the horses progress, getting them to the races to show their ability and then to find their feet after that.
David: Coaching is another relatively new area of endeavour for you. What was the attraction?
David: What do you look for when assessing a horse’s suitability for those sales?
Derek: Track performance is the number one thing we look for. Then we analyse pedigrees, what the ground conditions were when a horse won, or performed well, the tracks they ran on –all these factors come into play, but performance is number one and pedigree is number two.
David: How has the point-to-point world changed since you began riding?
Derek: The industry in general has gotten much more professional and competitive across the board. Point-to-point committees do a great job providing consistently good jumping ground and they’re backed up by the IHRB track inspectors who provide information and advice to the Hunt members. These factors mean it’s very safe for handlers to run their horses anywhere in the country.
One time, people targeted specific tracks with their best horses, but because there’s such a volume of horses now you could find a good horse any day at any of the tracks. The result of all of this is that you will see horses from the point-topoint field racing at most of the big festivals these days. Point-to-point results stand up all the time.
“I love the education, seeing the horses progress, getting them to the races to show their ability”
Derek: There is great satisfaction in helping young riders. I try to give them pointers in all areas. It’s not just about what you do on the horse’s back – the feedback you give to an owner, and how you give it is just as vital.
Now that I am on the other side, as a trainer, I am asking jockeys what feel they get off the horses, what the horse’s mentality is. The information you give to a trainer can help a horse to win next time. Basically, I want to help jockeys to help the trainers to win races for the owners. It’s a big circle in which we all help each other. There is great satisfaction in all of that.
David: How do you weave agenting for Goffs UK into your overall workload?
Derek: I deal specifically with Goffs’ boutique national hunt sales, so I’m always looking for horses in training for the Aintree, Punchestown, Doncaster and Newbury sales. Workload-wise, it’s not difficult because I’m racing a lot and chatting to people I’ve been pally with for years. I just try to encourage them to bring their best horses to our sales. Goffs do a great job and the results are there to prove it. They consistently get wonderful prices and Grade 1 winners coming out of the boutique sales, so it’s a very satisfying and enjoyable job.
Point-to-pointing is big business, and again it’s a little bit of a circle – money comes into the owner of a good point-to-pointer, which feeds back into the store industry. The store industry feeds back into the pinhooker industry, which feeds back into the breeding industry and that in turn feeds back to the stallion man – and it starts all over again. The more money being generated and moving around, the better off the industry is. The more profi tability there is for everybody.
David: Were there other factors that contributed to point-to-point racing’s upswing?
Derek: There are two other major factors – the introduction of the point-to-point website (P2P.ie), which was the brainchild of Richard Pugh, and the introduction of the boutique sales.
The website brought all the relevant information out into the public domain. So, every time a pointer runs, it’s documented and the information is available to everybody. You also have the statistics that tell you exactly how those pointers did around Cheltenham etc. Everything you possibly need to know is there. The information is so accessible now.
The boutique sales brought the prices of the point-to-point horses out into the public domain, also. There were a lot of private sales before that and nobody really knew what horses were making. Once the boutique sales happened, people saw the prices and saw the opportunity to make money. Both factors are massive in terms of the Irish point-to-point industry becoming such a big industry.
O’Connor rode two winners for JP McManus at Cheltenham last March, including this man-of-the-match effort on Inothewayurthinkin in the Kim Muir (CN)
David: You have three young daughters, whose grandmother Jean O’Connor – your late mother –was a pioneering female jockey. Should they become riders, do you think that NH racing promises better opportunities for female jockeys now than when you began?
Derek: Absolutely, Rachael Blackmore… that girl has changed the industry. There are still factors that make it difficult for lady riders, but she has definitely cast a light with her exploits and encouraged and inspired female riders. She is absolutely incredible.
Funny thing, I do a jumping course in RACE for young riders who have a bit of experience under their belts. I get six riders a day and the courses are often split 50-50, male to female. The amount of female riders that outshine the male riders is incredible. Horses run for female riders – look at Hollie Doyle, who is an exceptional flat rider – they often run better if truth be told. But I do often wonder where all the young female riders I coach disappear to. Maybe some trainers are still not prepared to give them a chance, but that’s an old-fashioned mentality though, isn’t it?
It’s not as much a male dominated sport as it once was (but) I would like to see more female riders and more opportunities for them.
David: You are still riding at the peak of your powers and your festival winners last season were testament to that. Are festival winners a bigger buzz than point-to-point winners or just a different buzz?
Derek: Do you know, how successful you are seen to have been in your career is often dictated by the amount of winners you’ve had at the big festivals –Cheltenham, Aintree and Punchestown. With all the point-to-point winners you might have ridden, if you have had Cheltenham winners you are deemed to have had a successful career. That’s why they’re important. Personally, I enjoy every winner. I just love coming back to the winner’s enclosure to greet an owner, whether it be Mr McManus or a small owner/ breeder down the road, with just one horse. The enjoyment you get when you see their faces… it’s the same whether it’s a point-to-point or Cheltenham. The only difference is that you see a lot more people at Cheltenham!
David: You still travel all over Ireland to ride for different trainers. Why?
Derek: Sometimes the lads in the weigh room would be having a go at me, they’d be saying, ‘You’re the hungry fucker going to Tramore on a Sunday to ride a horse.’ But that’s just the way I am. If I’m asked to ride, I’ll ride it. If there is somebody spending good money getting a horse trained and staff working long hours to get that horse to the races, who am I to say to an owner or trainer, ‘I’m too good to go ride your horse?’ I’m honoured to do it.
But I’m sure somebody will read this now and say, ‘Oh I remember once I asked Derek to ride my horse…!’ But I am very sure, in the run of my career, I have very, very rarely turned down a ride on a horse, in any race.
DEREK O’CONNOR
“Sometimes the lads in the weigh room would be having a go at me, they’d be saying, ‘You’re the hungry fucker going to Tramore on a Sunday to ride a horse’ (DD)
IEVA Irish Equine Veterinary Association IEVA Conference
IEVA Irish Equine Veterinary Association IEVA Conference
The largest Equine Veterinary CPD Event of its kind in Ireland
The largest Equine Veterinary CPD Event of its kind in Ireland
Lyrath Estate, Co Kilkenny was the chosen venue for Ireland’s Equine Veterinary Industry; Practitioners & Stakeholders to gather from 7th – 10th November for four days of streams, lectures, speakers, workshops, wetlabs sponsors, exhibitors, case studies, clinical abstracts, posters, wellness sessions and business seminars.
Lyrath Estate, Co Kilkenny was the chosen venue for Ireland’s Equine Veterinary Industry; Practitioners & Stakeholders to gather from 7th – 10th November for four days of streams, lectures, speakers, workshops, wetlabs sponsors, exhibitors, case studies, clinical abstracts, posters, wellness sessions and business seminars.
This action-packed programme still made plenty of room for some serious networking opportunities in the Exhibitors Hall, which was officially opened by Pippa Hackett, Minister for State at the Department of Agriculture.
This action-packed programme still made plenty of room for some serious networking opportunities in the Exhibitors Hall, which was officially opened by Pippa Hackett, Minister for State at the Department of Agriculture.
IEVA Conference 2024 Gala Dinner was the social highlight of the four day Conference. The winners of the Case Awards were presented during the evening as was the raffle for the Irish Veterinary Benevolent Fund.
IEVA Conference 2024 Gala Dinner was the social highlight of the four day Conference. The winners of the Case Awards were presented during the evening as was the raffle for the Irish Veterinary Benevolent Fund.
Winner of the IEVA Case Awards 2024Graduate, sponsored IMV Imaging was Lucy Lamount for her study into “The long- term successful treatment of a nonhealing orosinus fistula with placement of a 16mm diameter titanium screw within the compromised alveolus”
Winner of the IEVA Case Awards 2024Graduate, sponsored IMV Imaging was Lucy Lamount for her study into “The long- term successful treatment of a nonhealing orosinus fistula with placement of a 16mm diameter titanium screw within the compromised alveolus”
Winner of the IECA Case Awards 2024 –Practitioners, sponsored by Connolly’s RED MILLS and Foran Equine is Andrea del Rincon for her study into “Fungal Sinusitis”
Winner of the IECA Case Awards 2024 –Practitioners, sponsored by Connolly’s RED MILLS and Foran Equine is Andrea del Rincon for her study into “Fungal Sinusitis”
IEVA was delighted to have Bernard Jackman as its guest, considering Ireland was playing New Zealand in a rugby test match the same night. The IEVA team really pulled out all the stops by having the game streaming during the evening. Following the end of the formal proceedings, the very glamourous crowd danced into the wee hours.
IEVA was delighted to have Bernard Jackman as its guest, considering Ireland was playing New Zealand in a rugby test match the same night. The IEVA team really pulled out all the stops by having the game streaming during the evening. Following the end of the formal proceedings, the very glamourous crowd danced into the wee hours.
Following the most successful IEVA Conference to date, the hard-working team at the IEVA are all ready makes plans for IEVA Conference 2025, which returns to the Lyrath Estate from 6th – 8th November 2025. For more information or to review the programme for this year visit www.irisheva.ie
Following the most successful IEVA Conference to date, the hard-working team at the IEVA are all ready makes plans for IEVA Conference 2025, which returns to the Lyrath Estate from 6th – 8th November 2025. For more information or to review the programme for this year visit www.irisheva.ie
Commenting on the Conference, IEVA President Sabrina Barnell said “I would like to thank everyone for participating at IEVA Conference 2024; Ireland’s largest equine veterinary event of its kind and the most successful to date. Without the exhibitors and sponsors commitment to the Irish
Commenting on the Conference, IEVA President Sabrina Barnell said “I would like to thank everyone for participating at IEVA Conference 2024; Ireland’s largest equine veterinary event of its kind and the most successful to date. Without the exhibitors and sponsors commitment to the Irish
Equine Veterinary Industry and support of IEVA, it would not be possible to host this ever- growing conference. For this, IEVA is very appreciative
Equine Veterinary Industry and support of IEVA, it would not be possible to host this ever- growing conference. For this, IEVA is very appreciative
IEVA’s STORY
IEVA’s STORY
IEVA was born out of a need for representation and support for equine veterinarians (encompassing mixed practice vets, equine specialists and those with an equine interest alike) and we strive to be inclusive and educational but moreover supportive to our colleagues.
IEVA was born out of a need for representation and support for equine veterinarians (encompassing mixed practice vets, equine specialists and those with an equine interest alike) and we strive to be inclusive and educational but moreover supportive to our colleagues.
IEVA MISSION
IEVA MISSION
• Supporting professional development and wellness of members
• Supporting professional development and wellness of members
• Promoting excellence in equine veterinary practice
• Promoting excellence in equine veterinary practice
• Providing evidence- based leadership
• Providing evidence- based leadership
IEVA MEMBERSHIP
IEVA MEMBERSHIP
• Special membership rates available for practices, students, new graduates, and retirees
• Special membership rates available for practices, students, new graduates, and retirees
• Overseas members also welcomed
• Overseas members also welcomed
IEVA RECRUITMENT
IEVA RECRUITMENT
IEVA provides an equine veterinary industry wide platform on its website, which is open to veterinary practitioners in full or partial equine practice to place an advertisement for an associate to join them or alternatively to seek employment in an equine position. This includes the facilitates veterinary practitioners in full or partial equine practice to place advertisements for graduate opportunities.
IEVA provides an equine veterinary industry wide platform on its website, which is open to veterinary practitioners in full or partial equine practice to place an advertisement for an associate to join them or alternatively to seek employment in an equine position. This includes the facilitates veterinary practitioners in full or partial equine practice to place advertisements for graduate opportunities.
Photos from IEVA Conference 2024, clockwise from top left: Louis Hassett in the saddle with an audience
Minister Pippa Hackett and Sabrina Barnwell IEVA President IEVA Case Award Practitioner winner (L) Andrea del Rincon with Sorcha O’Connor, Connollys RedMills
Minister Pippa Hackett and Sabrina Barnwell IEVA President IEVA Case Award Practitioner winner (L) Andrea del Rincon with Sorcha O’Connor, Connollys RedMills
Dominic Doyle and Tina O’Brien from The Donkey Sanctuary
President Sabrina Barnwell, Bernard Jackman Guest Speaker, Niamh Lewis V.P.
IMV Imaging trade stand, sponsors of the IEVA Case Awards 2024 - Graduate IEVA Case Award Graduate Winner Lucy Lamont with sponsor IMV Imaging’s Bryan Gee John Hyde Vet - Case Award Practitioners Candidate
Dominic Doyle and Tina O’Brien from The Donkey Sanctuary President Sabrina Barnwell, Bernard Jackman Guest Speaker, Niamh Lewis V.P. IMV Imaging trade stand, sponsors of the IEVA Case Awards 2024 - Graduate IEVA Case Award Graduate Winner Lucy Lamont with sponsor IMV Imaging’s Bryan Gee John Hyde Vet - Case Award Practitioners Candidate
Key Equine Veterinary 2025 Diary Dates
Key Equine Veterinary 2025 Diary Dates
30th January 2025
30th January 2025
IEVA Stud Medicine
The Curragh, Co Kildare
IEVA Stud Medicine The Curragh, Co Kildare
18th February 2025
18th February 2025
IEVA CPD Event
IEVA CPD Event
Glasson Lakehouse, Co Westmeath
Glasson Lakehouse, Co Westmeath
Details to follow
Details to follow
Spring / Autumn 2025 CDP Series
Spring / Autumn 2025 CDP Series
Details to follow – Stay tuned
Details to follow – Stay tuned
6th – 8th November 2025
6th – 8th November 2025
IEVA Conference 2025
IEVA Conference 2025
Lyrath Estate, Co. Kilkenny
Lyrath Estate, Co. Kilkenny IEVA Conference
IEVA Conference 2025
Save The Date
Save The Date
Lyrath Estate, Co Kilkenny 6th - 8th November 2025
Lyrath Estate, Co Kilkenny 6th - 8th November 2025
Photos from IEVA Conference 2024, clockwise from top left: Louis Hassett in the saddle with an audience
CONNA’S Tower
Jimmy Mangan thought his days on the big stage were behind him but thanks to a horse that could not be more suited to Curraheen’s old-school modus operandi, the fiire is back in the belly ofi the man who brought Dawn Run into the world, had a hand in three consecutive Grand National victors and bred this year’s Galway Plate winner
AJimmy with his wife Mary, a renowned horsewoman and partner in every sense of the operation, and the owner of Spillane’s Tower, JP McManus (PM)
ll through the summer and early autumn, the questions came at Jimmy Mangan in waves. All asking the same thing.
“How’s the horse, Jimmy?”
From Curragh Racecourse to the roads and boreens around the little corner of County Cork Mangan calls home, well-wishers greeted him at every turn. One day he was driving out of the village of Tallow when a man painting a wall laid down his brush and shouted across: “Is Spillane’s back yet?” Mangan gave him the thumbs-up and
drove on, a contented smile on his face.
Tallow is in the heartland of what Mangan calls the “home of racing” and he has saddled enough quality horses to know what it means to a rural area for a small trainer to have a good horse. Spillane’s Tower might race in the famous green and gold hoops of JP McManus but, in racing’s time-honoured tradition, the six-year-old has already assumed the role of public property and, in Jimmy’s warm abode, all are heartily welcome. “If you know the village of Conna,” he says,
Photos: PETER MOONEY & HEALY RACING • Words: JOHN O’BRIEN
referring to the racing-mad village a short hop from his Curraheen Stables, “you’ll still see the signs up for Monty’s Pass and that’s over 20 years ago. Conna is the home of Monty’s Pass. But you’d like to keep it going too and it’s nice to have another good one after all this time. I’d like to win another few good races if I can.”
In winning two Grade 1 chases and establishing himself as a legitimate Cheltenham Gold Cup contender, Spillane’s Tower has put Conna on the map again and relit the fire in Mangan’s belly. And, truth be told, there was a time he’d all but accepted his days dreaming of big-race glory were numbered. He remembers those addled days towards the end of 2021 when racing was still recovering from the aftershocks of the Covid pandemic and it seemed as good a time as any to take stock.
Mangan was 67 at the time, more good years than bad in the rear-view mirror. The children were all grown, forging their own paths in life. And he knew the yard would tick over, as it always did. There’d be broodmares to foal, point-to-pointers to race, stallion lists to mull over, the hope of a decent sale to keep the balance sheet tidy.
But the notion of going racing with a live prospect again, a Monty’s Pass or Conna Castle, of taking on the big stables when the power base had been relentlessly ebbing away from the small man? Even for an inveterate optimist like Mangan, it seemed an idle fancy.
“No doubt about it,” he says chuckling now. “I thought I was at the end of the road. Like, you’d keep racing away, 85-90 handicappers and all of that, and it’s a struggle all the way. Whenever you leave the yard with a horse, there might be something happening and there might not. But going to the races with this lad, you know you’re going to have a show.”
He recalls the day the show started, the bright early morning in 2022 when the homebred Spillane’s Tower stepped off the Martinstown lorry and took his first lungful of crisp, Conna air.
“He’d catch your eye immediately. Just a beautiful model of a horse. Great walk, very
athletic. Everything you look for in a horse, he had it. As soon as we started training him, you could see the potential.”
Mangan says he doesn’t know why he was chosen to train Spillane’s Tower and, in a way, it’s not a vital detail. It had been 15 years since he’d last saddled a horse in McManus’ colours but given the latter’s celebrated munificence and consistent support of racing’s lower orders, it was a decision underpinned by a certain logic and with a nod to the current of romance that still occasionally enriches the jumping business.
It matters too that in temperament and comportment – his sweet, relaxed nature; the raw talent that required time to be nurtured –Spillane’s Tower is assuredly his trainer’s horse. For a man who took three decades to become a Grade 1-winning trainer, precociousness is not the dominant gene and he figures McManus would never have dreamed of sending him such a horse anyway. It just thrilled him to chance upon one so aligned with his own values and, in a time of ever-increasing urgency to deliver results, an owner for whom patience and loyalty weren’t yet outdated concepts.
Mangan struggles to think of a good horse that has given him less anxiety to train.
“I said after one of the races that if he was human, you’d call him a gentleman and that’s how it is. He sleeps and eats, takes life nice and easy. We’ve an old hunter here and the two are great friends, they love being out in the paddock every day together. He’s very settled in his routine.”
You could call Mangan an old-school trainer, steeped in the ways and values of previous generations, and he would not take it as an insult. As a young man, he learned the trade from his father Paddy, who, in turn, had been a disciple of the old greats like Paddy Sleator and Tom Dreaper. Paddy bred the 1956 Champion Hurdle winner, Doorknocker, and Jimmy’s brother, Billy, still breeds from that line.
As Mangan sees it, the old threads coalesce and fragment into new, exciting patterns. Many years ago, he bought a mare, Hot Curry, from
Mangan would not hear of defeat in the WillowWarm Gold Cup at Fairyhouse and Spillane’s Tower duly obliged to bridge a 16-year gap between first and second Grade 1 triumphs, from when Conna Castle (nearside) won the same race (PM/HR)
“Whenever you leave the yard with a horse, there might be something happening and there might not but going to the races with this lad, you know you’re going to have a show”
JIMMY MANGAN
“I love those old Irish lines (that) can take years to rekindle and get going again”
Henry de Bromhead’s father, Harry, a horseman of similar traditional outlook and a man he loved conducting business with. Hot Curry gave him some nice horses, including a daughter, Mistress Pope. From Mistress Pope, Mangan bred Pinkerton and he leapt with joy when the horse landed the Galway Plate for Noel Meade in July. But for Spillane’s Tower, it would have been the highlight of his year.
“It was a good pedigree,” he says. “A real de Bromhead pedigree. I love those old Irish lines. They can take years to rekindle and get going again. The dam has had two runners so far and two winners. I love nothing more than to see horses we’ve sold go on to win for their new owners. Hopefully she stays healthy and delivers a few more foals. Pay a few bills for me.”
From a yard numbering no greater than 30 boxes, memories and history abound. He takes you back to 1978. Every year, they foaled a mare for a neighbour, John O’Riordan. Twilight Slave was by Arctic Slave and had been paired with Deep Run.
“A champion crossed with a champion.”
When Mangan laid eyes on the newly arrived foal, his anticipation was richly rewarded.
“You could see immediately the good genes had been passed on. She was up and suckling her mother very quickly. Full of life.”
Three years later he was at the sales in Ballsbridge when the filly came through the ring and he mused about acquiring a bargain. When the bidding passed 4,000 guineas and kept going, he knew it was too rich for his blood. Eventually, the horse was knocked down to a lady by the name of Charmian Hill and a second slice of the
Dawn Run legend eluded Jimmy’s grasp.
Still, the threads kept spinning and weaving. Mangan’s wife, Mary reminds you that the box they still refer to as The Dawn Run Box was where another legendary mare, the 1972 Gold Cup winner Glencarraig Lady, delivered her last foal. From another, the two-times Tingle Creek Chase winner, Waterloo Boy took his first tentative steps in life. The history teems from every pore.
As a trainer, Mangan’s first signature success came when Stroll Home landed the 1997 Galway Plate under Paul Carberry and, six years later, he was launched into the stratosphere when Barry Geraghty steered Monty’s Pass home to win the Aintree Grand National.
Even then, the threads kept spooling as Mangan had bought and sold Bindaree, the 2002 National winner, and also foaled the 2004 hero, Amberleigh House, for another neighbour, Bobby McCarthy. If anyone alive can boast of such a connection to three consecutive National winners, Mangan hasn’t heard of them.
He has especially fond memories of winning the 2010 Thyestes Chase with Whinstone Boy because it was a race his father had won 29 years earlier with June’s Friend. They raced the mare because they hadn’t been able to sell her due to her lack of size and, as it happened, something similar transpired almost two decades later when a heart murmur deterred buyers for a young Monty’s Pass. So it goes, he thinks. Sometimes the fates conspire in your favour.
All told, they have been kind. Around the yard, they say Mary is the glue that keeps everything in working order, allowing Jimmy scope to be himself
“Ifi
you know the village ofi Conna, you’ll still see the signs up fior Monty’s Pass and that’s over 20 years ago” (HR)
and cast sunlight over the place, even on the dullest days.
“It’s just the way he is,” says Mary laughing. “He’s glass-half-full all the time. I’d be more realistic. I don’t believe in getting anyone’s hopes up. I just try to keep him grounded, if I can.”
Some of that sunlight has fallen assuredly on their three children. Bryan is the one who helps out most at home and is a qualified farrier, an old-school trade that would gladden Jimmy’s heart. And because, by his own admission, he led an enjoyable but unfulfilled career in the saddle, it thrilled him that his other two children, Bryan’s twin Patrick, and their sister Jane, both rode lots of winners.
“Patrick was champion conditional in 2012 and I was never so proud in my life. That was a great achievement, something I could only have dreamed of myself. The funny thing about Jane is I never wanted her to start in the first place because I was afraid she might get hurt and then I didn’t want her to stop. You can’t please me sometimes.”
Unless, perhaps, your name is Spillane’s Tower and you are on course for a crack at jump racing’s biggest prizes. The way Mangan tells it, the day they took him to Fairyhouse for the WillowWarm Gold Cup, he would not hear of defeat. The gelding had finished behind the reopposing Blood Destiny on his previous outing in the Flyingbolt Chase at Navan, but had been conceding weight and, crucially, they now had an extra four furlongs to travel.
“I’d trained Conna Castle to win the race in 2008. He was a classy animal with the speed to
beat Big Zeb, who was the reigning Champion Chaser. So that gave me a fair indication of what I had. Over two miles it might be close, but this fella is not short of speed either and beyond two miles, it’s Spillane’s all the way. So I gave him a very big chance indeed.”
If the question of speed was settled, the next issue was stamina. The Champion Novice Chase at the Punchestown Festival offered a stern test of a young, developing horse stepping up to three miles and a furlong. Still Mangan didn’t doubt. And, again, Spillane’s Tower delivered with a steady round of slick jumping on favourable rain-softened conditions to hold off Henry de Bromhead’s Monty’s Star by a handy threequarters of a length.
It was Mary’s first time seeing the horse run in the flesh too – “someone has to be at home and that’s the way it is” – and the entire family being there to share in the achievement made it all the more special.
The day the Walk In The Park gelding won at Fairyhouse, Mullins trained seven winners across two meetings and, no offence to the top trainers, but Mangan understands the aching need in people’s bones for fresh narratives. If there’s pressure to deliver, it seems to rest easily on his mind. His faith in Spillane’s Tower is total, unshakeable.
“He’s going to have to contest the biggest races now and that’s how it is. There are no guarantees but I think he’s well up to it anyway.”
It feels good to be back in the big time.
“We’re dreaming a little bit again,” he says. “No doubt about it.”
“As soon as we started training him, you could see the potential” – a second Grade 1 novice victory at Punchestown, over a stacked field and stewarded as usual by Mark Walsh, has confirmed the early judgement but the sights are raised further now (PM)
SLOWand steady
JJ Slevin bounced back from the low of his Cheltenham Gold Cup unseat in the stoic fashion that has underpinned his entire career, delivering a second Irish Grand National, two Punchestown Grade 1s and the Galway Hurdle
Early afternoon and JJ Slevin is between lots. His day began on The Curragh, riding work for trainer Martin Brassil. The journey home to Piltown in County Kilkenny will take him along the coast for his father, Shay, to guide greener horses on the beach. This stage of JJ’s career, 32 since July and eight years a professional jockey, approaches like a busy junction. Slevin travels smoothly to make the trip.
“Daddy was always a big fan of getting a horse comfortable in a race,” he says. “Not having them on their head. Give them a chance to come home.”
From the age of 16, Slevin rode as an amateur, making little. His assessment of that time: “Not very good.”
He gave eight years without much notice. Only at 24, having graduated from Griffith College with a degree in journalism, came the decision to turn. Why go pro? Why then? Financially, at least, the switch made sense.
“The way it was at the time, I needed three rides a week. That would make me more than riding as an amateur. See what happens. I could always go back amateur.”
Logic also loves a case.
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: BRENDAN COFFEY
“I had a lot of experience. Almost 700 rides. I got to ride our horses at home. I got a massive leg-up from 16 and 17. You need those years to get going at it. With the point-to-points, you’d be doing all right. You’d have loads placed and you’d get your few winners. You’d be competitive a lot of the time. Then, going to the track, I’d try to get myself a ride in the bumpers.”
Unproven and largely unknown during these teenage years, persistence became his calling card. Initial requests relied on a simple matrix of reducing each field by putting a line through staple listings: the big yards, the top riders. Then he would start to follow remaining leads.
His enquiries had a familiar ring.
“Howya, I’m JJ Slevin. How are you fixed for your horse in the maiden?”
Going through one race might involve five or six phone calls.
“Rejection never bothered me,” Slevin insists. “My thinking behind it was: if I’m ringing all these lads, they know who I am. So, if I do get a winner, they’ll say, ‘That’s the lad who rang me the other day.’ That’s what I was thinking.”
But tacking is sometimes a matter of tact.
“I went to ring a lad one day,” JJ recalls. “Daddy says to me, ‘What are you doing ringing that lad?’ I says, ‘Sure he might give me a ride.’ He says, ‘He might give you a ride. What if you go out and make a balls of it? Then, when you can ride, he won’t give you another one. Wait until you get a bit more experience before you start ringing them lads.’ To be fair, for the first time in years, I listened to Dad. That did make sense when he said it to me.”
Shay and Liz Slevin still work hard to sustain their own modest operation of pointers and young prospects. Their place in Caim, County Wexford is typical of a racing scene where the action looks and feels more local. Pony marts were big when their two lads - Mark is five years older than JJ - were first getting keen. Picking what to buy always came with a catch.
“These were massive marts. 200 to 250 ponies. They’d be like cattle and most of them had been never caught. We’d buy them cheap. We could have five or six ponies in the horsebox going home. We used to try and catch them in the horsebox because they were so tight together. They couldn’t move.”
The Slevin boys fell quickly for the game.
“We loved that. You wanted to ride the hardiest pony. The wildest. It was a funny mindset. You’d find out straight away what was good to jump and what wasn’t. Because they either have it or they haven’t.”
Good riders depend on good jumpers. But their relationship over course and distance changes from fence to fence because neither one is ever fully in control. On the bridle is a natural beat, every jump a syncopation. Each race turns out a dance.
“Good horses do so much for you,” JJ explains. “If you make the wrong decision, it could still work out. The secret to becoming a better jockey is riding better horses, I think.”
No rider makes it alone and recent seasons have seen Slevin form his most notable partnership. The Brassil-trained Fastorslow, back-to-back champion of the Punchestown Gold Cup, has taken him to the front in the national hunt game. This winning pair have emerged from their division with quiet determination. Slevin speaks about his mount in awesome terms.
“He’s a machine. So much ability. So much speed. So much class. He’s very easy to ride. He gets into a great rhythm. Rolls down to fences. Strong horse. When you’re sitting against him, there’s a bit of a bite. You have to be strong.”
All ingredients matter. Success, last season, came after a fall. Slevin is naturally warm and engaging but there is an understandable strain in his demeanour when the conversation swings back to Cheltenham and that Gold Cup. The week had begun so well with a third career winner at the festival thanks to Lark In The Mornin for Fastorslow’s owners Sean and Bernardine Mulryan and his first cousin, the trainer Joseph O’Brien. But then, with Fastorslow cantering, disaster struck.
“I know what happened and why I fell off,” he reflects. “One of the worst unseats of all time, in a way. It would never happen to you in a normal race. So sickening. When that happens, especially at that level and in that situation, you just want to get out of there.
“It happened so quick. Jumped the fence fine. I think it was just a false step and then gone. That was it. When something like that happens, you can’t let it get in on you because it would drive you mental.”
Such a sudden drop in altitude takes your breath and your voice.
“I’m
usually getting dinner with Joseph... Joseph does the cooking. I just sit there watching. He’s very good. He seems to like it.”
“I remember the doctor saying to me that it was like my ribs were held together like chewing gum”
“I know what happened and why I fell off ”
“I came home with Joseph that day. He didn’t really mention it. There aren’t too many people you can talk to. I don’t know what my mother said. I know she’d just be sick for me.”
Gold Cup day is the pinnacle, where sentiment and sweet talk have no place.
“I couldn’t change it. I couldn’t get it back. Just get on to the next day.”
Form lines are punctuated by dashes, not full stops. And pain has only so much time to linger.
Championship season in Ireland culminates at Punchestown, summer coming in, ground good to yielding. What goes through the mind of a jockey with defeat fresh in the memory?
“I can’t really remember the build-up to Punchestown. Nothing really strikes me. I really enjoy riding the horse. He is so simple. He’s something else really. You would be apprehensive, often the night before. I usually sleep well and then the next morning you get out and do your thing. It’s just another race. You concentrate on your horse, the other horses, the other jockeys. Go out and ride it. Whatever happens, happens. That’s the way I’ve always approached it.”
his race note reads: ‘comfortably’.
“At Punchestown, it was ridiculously easy,” Slevin says without exaggeration. “He won so easy. He finds going fast so easy. That’s what makes him so good. To win at the highest level, speed is what you need.”
Managing that equine gift is the jockey’s brief. They must get to the line together, judging each obstacle, covering the field. The previous day, Slevin had galvanised Banbridge for a late thrust that landed the Champion Chase at the season-ending carnival for Joseph and Ronnie Bartlett, having secured a second Irish Grand National on Intense Raffles for Tom Gibney, Isaac Souede and Simon Munir at the beginning of April. Another significant box was ticked when Carriganóg-prepped Nurburgring was guided to a comfortable Galway Hurdle triumph in Bronsan Racing’s colours.
A chaser might get going at six and peak by ten. Slevin hopes to hit 40 still in the saddle.
“He’s a machine.
So much ability.
So much speed.
So much class.”
– Slevin on Fastorslow
The best in any sport can make success seem remarkably uncomplicated. Fastorslow, always prominent, went second before the fourth and led three out. Going clear, he was ridden briefly after the last and eased home in the final strides to deny Cheltenham hero Galopin Des Champs for the second year in succession. The final word in
“I hope to do another eight years. I dread to think about retirement. That would upset me a bit. I love riding. My biggest enemy is coming back too soon from injury. I’d say it’s a problem for a lot of jockeys.”
By way of example, he returns to 2017 and his first winner at the Cheltenham Festival, Champagne Classic in the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle. He winces.
“I broke my ribs at the Red Mills meeting in Gowran. That was sore. Spent ten days sleeping
on the couch at home. Couldn’t sleep in the bed. After 12 days, I was riding out. I had to stand on a blue barrel to get in on the horse. No one knew I was doing it. Eighteen days after breaking my ribs, I rode a winner at Cheltenham.
“Two days later, I rode at Thurles. Pulled up. I couldn’t breathe. My ribs were in bits. If I got another fall, God knows what would have happened. I wasn’t right. I remember the doctor saying to me that it was like my ribs were held together like chewing gum. I got away with it.”
Experience has permeated his mindset.
“I’m getting better at giving myself a bit of time. It is important to look after yourself as you get older for longevity.”
For a period during his early 20s, Slevin struggled with the physical dimensions of a sport that restricts normal proportions. Making weight is a constant in every jockey’s racing life. Although they all face the same numbers - 10st, minimum; 12st, top weight – getting there remains an individual battle.
Slevin started to feel unwanted gains in 2016 during his stint with British trainer Nigel TwistonDavies.
“I remember doing 10-3 on a horse. It took me a week to do it. The horse won. The next day, Nigel said, ‘I want you to do 10-4.’ I said, ‘I can’t do that.’ I was 11 stone. That was the way it was.
“I was heavy. Shocking. Felt terrible. I had led up Ballyandy to win the (Champion) Bumper at Cheltenham (in 2016). My mother rings me up. She says, ‘You’re quare heavy looking on the
television.’ I said, ‘I know I am.’ Came home in April. I went to The Hill.”
Owning Hill was by then the base for Carriganóg Racing, the operation now run by O’Brien. Reunited with his first cousin, Slevin regained control.
“My diet isn’t strict,” he maintains. “Usually don’t have time for breakfast. Sandwich in the afternoon. Dinner in the evening. I’m usually getting dinner with Joseph. He invites me over. I only live down the road from him. Joseph does the cooking. I just sit there watching. He’s very good. He seems to like it.”
JJ (born in 1992) and Joseph (born in 1993) are related on the O’Brien side: Liz is a sister of Joseph’s father and world-renowned trainer, Aidan. They share much in common with their grandfather Denis, who died in 2008 at the age of 87, having lived to see both grandsons inherit his lifelong passion.
“He rode until he was 40. He didn’t get married until his 40s. I’d say he just loved riding horses. Even later in life, when he was sick and that, they’d find broken ribs and crazy stuff that they didn’t even know he had. He just loved the game. He was buying and selling horses for the Army originally. He’d be getting horses that were spoiled or ruined and getting them going.”
Watching the racing with his grandfather proved a formative experience.
“He’d be commentating on the lads riding. He was in his 80s at that stage. We’d always be watching Aidan’s horses but he’d be watching
Within weeks of the Cheltenham disappointment, Slevin was guiding Intense Raffles to victory in the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse
“You’d be gone mad if riding was only about the winners”
jockeys. He loved jumps racing. He’d always go mad about lads riding too short, lads interfering with a horse going down to a fence. I’d say he was a real horseman, great hands. I’d say he just kind of had it. He had that natural horsemanship that Aidan has, just knowing what to do with horses, how to deal with horses, especially difficult horses.”
Elizabeth O’Brien retains a key influence even as her youngest son steals a yard.
“I don’t know what she done to us when we were younger, but discipline was never an issue!”
His playfulness quickly gives way to plain admiration.
“She’s tough. She was very good to us. She would do anything for you. Any sort of trouble you were in, she’d always be on your side. We were never wrong, in fairness to her. I think my father was more, ‘You’ll ride the ponies now and you’ll be grand.’ We would do whatever she wanted us to do. She was mad into the horses. Wouldn’t miss a trick.”
JJ’s career owes much to maternal insistence. Liz pushed him to turn professional at a time when he considered himself too pedestrian as an
amateur. Her instincts have prevailed. These days, he has the luxury of looking ahead. Fastorslow will come with another challenge this season, still carrying ultimate possibilities.
Slevin, also, advances with ambition.
“I like chasing numbers, small winners counting up there towards a nice total at the end of the year. Good winners are important, but they’re hard come by, realistically. I’m lucky to be in the position I’m in. I’m riding for good people. That’s the long and the short of it.”
His measure of success? “30 to 35 winners, all going well. That’s a good year. If I could get one decent ride a day, one decent shot at a winner, I’d be happy with that.”
Before he goes, one final reflection. The day before took him to Laytown aboard a 125/1 shot.
“He was seventh, beaten a short head for sixth. I was thinking after, ‘This thing could do something.’ And that keeps you going a lot of the time. Racing is a big wheel and it keeps turning. You need to keep yourself going forward getting winners and getting rides. You’d be gone mad if riding was only about the winners.”
Nurburgring was a facile winner of the Galway Hurdle in August
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: ENDA MCEVOY
MAN
you don’t meet every day
He may not be the number one jockey at Closutton but Danny Mullins delivers at the highest level time and again, at home and abroad
“Keep riding to win, that’s the main thing, rather than trying to keep the trainer or owner happy by sticking to the original plan”
Let’s ignore Julie Andrews and start not at the very beginning but near the very end of the 2023-24 national hunt season. Ayr on Scottish Grand National day. WP Mullins, striving to be the first Irishman in 70 years to take the British trainers’ title, is mob-handed in the feature event. All hooves on deck. Among his six runners is Macdermott, with Danny Mullins in the plate.
Now Macdermott is only six and by definition inexperienced, having had just the five outings over fences. But all of this is fine with Danny, who has a theory about younger horses and handicaps. Their callowness, he reckons, is not automatically a disadvantage; sometimes it can be quite the reverse. Being six years old, Macdermott is unexposed and may well be a few pounds ahead of the handicapper. And he doesn’t know the bookies have him pegged at 18/1.
Belying his age, Macdermott jumps like a pro, takes up the running four fences from home and fights out a desperate finish with Surrey Quest. Fifty yards from the post he’s in front. Hitting the line, Danny has no idea whether they’ve won or not. After a couple of minutes that feel like an hour it transpires they have. By a nose. Phew.
The fact that the victory has all but wrapped up the title for Willie is neither here nor there. The champagne will remain on ice. Danny, for one, would have insisted.
“No. Until it’s done numerically, you haven’t won. A lot of people pre-empt things in sport and get it handed back to them on a plate.”
Seven days later, it’s done numerically. Willie has surpassed the quota and is British champion. The Bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown will provide the sprinkles on the cherries on the icing on the cake. Again, Danny is the rainmaker.
The Whitbread, as it was and always will be to the oldsters, starts badly, with Minella Cocooner kicking off “just a little bit slowly”. Plan A, as painstakingly drawn up beforehand with the trainer, is out the window. Come on down, Plan B.
And hey, Plan B is absolutely fine because earlier in the season, Minella Cocooner had been a little too prominent in a novice chase at Navan and wound up burning too much petrol early on. Here, at Sandown, he’s nice and relaxed, takes his time, comes with his challenge approaching the secondlast, hits the front after the last and wins narrowly.
Successive Saturdays, successive big-race triumphs. The champagne is no longer on ice. Not, as is well established, that Danny Mullins will be partaking. No matter. He gets his kicks, and plenty of them, in other ways.
It’s the day after the Munster National, which he’s won. The sun is shining and all is well in Danny Mullins’s world. He arrives in windcheater, shorts and runners. Portrait of the Athlete on Gym Day. You get the impression all would be well in his world even if the sun wasn’t shining or he hadn’t won the Munster National.
But Real Steel - not young and not ahead of the handicapper, which mattered not a whit in the circumstances - did the business for him and Eric
DANNY MULLINS
Another big pot (€60,000 to the winning connections), another day to remember.
Come nightfall, Danny was back home on his sofa in Kilkenny, dug into the US Grand Prix on TV from Texas and texting Paul Townend – friend, rival, runner-up in the Limerick feature a few hours earlier and now a fellow petrolhead again – about Lando Norris and Max Verstappen fighting it out at the first bend. One can almost hear the voice of Ruby Walsh instructing the two drivers to “close the door”.
Danny is a Lewis Hamilton fan, always has been. He went to the Spanish GP in Barcelona one year and when he saw Hamilton hopping out of a car a few metres away his heart skipped a beat or two. And he’s never admired Hamilton more than in recent times, when he’s been obliged to make do in a car that’s not particularly fast yet has still managed to register victories. The parallel with the realities of a jockey’s existence is easily sketched.
In 2025, Hamilton will be driving for Ferrari, which equates to partnering Galopin Des Champs, and the earth will be restored to its axis.
It’s been a good 18 months for our friend, in any case. Before Ayr and Sandown, there were the opening three races on the Saturday of the Dublin Racing Festival back in February. Three shots, three goals, all in Grade 1 events.
“It was one of those days you hope will happen and given the class of horse Willie has, it will happen at some stage.”
Townend may be the number one stable jockey but that doesn’t mean that when Willie fields a small armada of runners, the champion will be on the winner. The Mullins favourite doesn’t always come in first. Closutton houses so many horses, so many of them top-drawer types. In good times the cake is large and there’s a slice for everyone.
“Willie won’t always know which is the stable’s best horse in a particular race. He doesn’t mind, he just wants to win the race. Owners want to have horses with him to compete on the big stage and
Etait Temps at the last on the way to a third Grade 1 together in the Barberstown Castle Novice Chase at Punchestown, defeating stablemate and Arkle hero, Gaelic Warrior, who is ridden by Paul Townend: “When he was younger, Paul often reaped the rewards behind Ruby… I’m reaping the rewards behind Paul”
McNamara.
Firing Il
In purple and black on the inside, making his challenge on Minella Cocooner at the penultimate obstacle before going on to deny the pace-setting Annual Invictus by a neck in the bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown
Willie is happy to let them all have a crack. That can make it hard for Paul early in the season, before the pecking order is established among the novices. When he was younger, Paul often reaped the rewards behind Ruby. I’m reaping the rewards behind Paul.”
How often in a race does Plan A go out the window? Definitely over 40% of the time, he responds. Maybe even 50% of the time.
“When you’re riding against top-class horses and top-class jockeys in the best races, they’re going to try something to beat you. You have to have a couple of plans, know what the other guys will do and adjust accordingly. Keep riding to win, that’s the main thing, rather than trying to keep the trainer or owner happy by sticking to the original plan. The owners will allow me to adjust. They’d probably give out if I didn’t adjust to get the job done.”
Improvisation is not so much important as essential, in other words.
If part of the job entails war-gaming the big races beforehand, what about war-gaming the smaller races? Does he bring the same attention to detail to them? More detail if anything, it transpires.
“In some ways, the big races are easy to plan for because you’ve been watching those horses and jockeys for years. You have to do more research for the smaller races. If you don’t you’ll get left behind.”
The calendar year just passing saw the loss of Maureen Mullins. The family matriarch; indeed, the matriarch of Irish racing. Or Granny, as she was known to Danny and his generation of the clan. He’s well aware he was blessed to have had this remarkable woman in his life for as long as he did. Her knowledge of existence, both human and equine, served as a pole star for him.
“There was nothing about life or racing she
didn’t know. She had experienced it all and if she hadn’t experienced it, she had seen it happen around her.”
That made her a terrific sounding board and comfort in any hour of need.
“So many people fixate about why something can’t be done. She was always about how things can be done. Try and find an angle that you haven’t seen and what’s looking like failure can be turned into success.”
He is conscious – how could he not be? - of the family heritage. Everything that Maureen and Paddy Mullins built up.
“From nothing. Farmers.”
Tony and Mags are his parents, Willie is his uncle. The Mullins name opened doors for him in his younger days that may not have been opened for others; he’s clear-eyed about this. But…
“As a Mullins there’s a certain perception that you’re born to achieve. I think that’s a privilege. But at the end of the day, whichever Mullins it might be still has to walk through the door. Pressure because of our name? In sport, pressure is a privilege. You’re where you dreamed of being when you were a little boy.”
Not that he and his cousins – there are ten Mullinses in this generation - should be regarded as a single, big, horse-obsessed entity. Many of them are involved in the game; some are not. Danny’s brother Anthony, for instance, is a mechanic. Anthony has an interest in racing but it’s not his life. And why should it be?
Meanwhile, Danny is a better jockey than he was five years ago. The accumulation of good days and bad days does that. Is he – and this is hardly less relevant an issue - a better athlete than he was five years ago? He’d like to think so, not least because he’s spent time trying to truffle out the little angles that yield the extra 1%.
The importance of recovery, for instance.
Now that he’s “north of 30” he’s increasingly aware of the tick of the clock. NH jockeys usually make it to 40 or so before calling it a day. Tipping his hat to the usual caveat that it “could all finish tomorrow,” he likes to think of making it to 45.
Media work is one path he’s exploring while still riding. One career ambition is to win the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris, with its huge old fences. His grandfather, in myriad ways a man ahead of his time, sent Herring Gull to compete in the race in 1970, in an era when Paris was much farther away from Goresbridge than it is now. Herring Gull, who provided Paddy Mullins with his first Cheltenham triumph in what is now the Brown Advisory Chase before winning the Irish Grand National, and was also sent to South Carolina by his intrepid trainer only to refuse to jump off, did score in Auteuil in the Prix de Drags a few weeks after disappointing in the Grand Steep. More Mullins heritage.
The not infrequent references to Danny’s teetotal status, as though someone needs to have drink taken to render him the life and soul of the party, don’t irk him. He can go out with his friends and watch them imbibe while sticking to water or sparkling water himself: all very straightforward. What he does enjoy is eating out and on that score, living in Kilkenny city, the San Sebastian of the south east, is a major plus.
“You could eat a different style of food every night of the week if you wanted.”
To conclude, a few other bits and bobs. Interview questions do not have to explore uniformly earnest subjects.
Most recent holiday?
New York during the summer. So much to see, so much to do. Even if time spent in the city that never sleeps “does leave a hole in your pocket”.
Dream holiday? Perhaps he’s already had it. A horseback safari in South Africa a few years ago. Absolutely fascinating. He thought he’d known a lot about equine quadrupeds; it turned out he had a lot more to learn. Their reaction to the presence of predators, for instance. The scent of a lion nearby, say. Muscles stiffening, every sense on high alert. A wonderful insight into the horsey mind.
A lesson too in what he’ll ever do if the animal he’s riding in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham gets spooked in the parade ring by the wall of sound and the size of the crowd.
“So important to make the environment safe and calm the horse down.”
If Willie played chess would he be a grandmaster or close to it? Pause for thought.
“Yes. Everything he does it three or four moves ahead.”
Those braids sported at Listowel a few months back. Very rapper-y. Straight Outta Gowran. With the helmet going on and coming off the whole time, they lasted a fortnight. It was, he accepts, a hairstyle that that conservative and conventional milieu, the horse racing world, was not yet ready for, but what’s wrong with being a little different every now and then? With, to put it another way, being Danny Mullins?
“It caused controversy without offending
DANNY MULLINS
anyone,” is how he phrases it.
Equally importantly his performance level didn’t drop off while he was rocking the braids. Human nature being what it is, any sub-par displays on his part would inevitably have been ascribed to his hairstyle and what the hell did he think he was at anyway? On which point, he made sure he walked the course in the rain. With a ‘do’ like that, he couldn’t afford to leave any stone unturned lest it be hurled at him. That thing about the pressure again and why it should be welcomed. Bring. It. On.
Audio books while in the car to race meetings? Yes.
Netflix? Of course, the much praised Michael Jordan documentary series obviously included, plus the new basketball show Starting 5
The need to make race meetings more attractive to the floating voter, a topic he raises himself. All that dead air in the 30-minute intervals between races is an issue worth tackling, he insists.
At 5’11” and with a fighting weight of just over 10 stone, are there any items he’s jettisoned from his diet over the years?
“I’m constantly trying to cut down on sugar, although I do love it. I probably eat more protein the more I learn what fuels me. I love good beef.”
The philosophy of Danny Mullins in two sentences.
“In a jockey’s life the quantity of bad days outweigh the good days. But the quality of the good days outweigh the bad days.”
And there we are. Everything asked and answered. Being - as we’ve pretty much established by now - an impeccably well-bred individual, Mr Mullins attempts to take care of the bill on the way out. Thanks, but unnecessary, we inform him. The Irish Racing Yearbook will get it. (This will come as news to them.)
In hindsight we should, while we were at it, have ordered a bottle of their very finest champagne and offered to share it with him. As he might say himself regarding his constant striving for improvement – live and learn.
The braids lasted a fortnight and were the characteristic Danny Mullins stunt – causing a stir, ruffling a few feathers but ultimately, not offending anyone he would ever care about offending
“Try and find an angle that you haven’t seen and what’s looking like failure can be turned into success”
Istabraq ((Charlie Swan) coming home in splendid isolation to win a record-equalling third consecutive Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham in March 2000, and Limestone Lad (Paul Carberry) claiming the Lismullen Hurdle in November 2002, the 31st of an astounding 35 career triumphs, the final five arriving in a remarkable eight weeks
When we were KINGS
Born within two months of one another and living long, happy lives until their deaths this year, aged 32, Istabraq and Limestone Lad came from very different worlds but shared many battles and became by ratings and achievement, among the greatest hurdlers that ever lived
Punchestown Champion Hurdle, Punchestown, April 1999, the memory lives long. Limestone Lad leads, as he usually does. This is different though, up in grade, a Grade 1 race, the Punchestown Champion Hurdle, AP McCoy on board and racing over two miles on good ground. Premier League.
James Bowe’s horse has earned his shot though. You could run in handicaps all your life, but why would you? Limestone Lad had run in three of them in the space of 15 days,
Leopardstown in early March, Naas in the middle of March, Leopardstown again in late March, and he had won all three. Add those to the three handicaps that he had won before Christmas, and the one that he had won in February. That’s seven wins in handicap hurdles in the space of exactly four months, and that’s remarkable.
The handicapper said that he had improved by 50lb since November. A Grade 1 race was the obvious move.
He was stalked by Istabraq this time though,
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: DONN MCCLEAN
ISTABRAQ & LIMESTONE LAD
and that was new. While Limestone Lad was busy being rated 99 and winning 0-132 handicaps at Naas and at Navan, Istabraq was winning the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle and the December Festival Hurdle and the Irish Champion Hurdle. Two days after Limestone Lad won a handicap hurdle at Naas the previous month off a mark of 137, Istabraq won the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham.
Istabraq creeps forward, as he usually does, Charlie Swan motionless on his back, as he usually is. Limestone Lad comes under a ride at the third-last flight, but not even McCoy, on his only time in the saddle, can conjure a defence to Istabraq’s class. JP McManus’ horse breezes past at the second-last flight and eases his way to victory. Limestone Lad cedes the runner-up spot too to Decoupage, but sticks to his task bravely to finish third. It’s another sublime performance by Istabraq, but it’s an admirable performance too by Limestone Lad on his first go in a Grade 1 race.
These two were never likely to meet, their paths pointing in disparate directions from the start. They could never converge.
Istabraq was bred to win a Derby, a three-parts brother to Derby winner Secreto, by the peerless Sadler’s Wells, sire of Galileo and Montjeu and High Chaparral and Salsabil. He was owned and bred by Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum and he was trained in Newmarket by John Gosden, along with Presenting and Flemensfirth and Shantou and Benny The Dip.
Limestone Lad was bred to win a bumper, a full-brother to Miss Lime, winner of two bumpers and a novices’ hurdle, by Aristocracy, sire of Lord Transcend and Light On The Broom and Art Prince and Imperial Vintage. He was owned by James Bowe and he was trained in Gathabawn by James and his son Michael, along with 60 cattle and 150 sheep.
Istabraq made his racecourse debut as a two-year-old in a seven-furlong maiden at Doncaster at the back-end of the 1994 flat season, and he finished eighth. He won his maiden in August 1995 under Willie Carson on his fourth run as a three-year-old, a Class 4 contest run over a mile and six furlongs at Salisbury, and he won a handicap the following month at Ayr off a flat handicap mark of 75, ridden to victory by Pat Eddery.
He didn’t win again in three more runs as a three-year-old, and he was beaten in his only run at four in June 1996. After that, he went to the sales.
John Durkan was assistant trainer to Gosden at the time, and he always liked Istabraq. He saw the fight in him, the courage, the tenacity. He told JP McManus that hurdles would bring out the best in him, that you wouldn’t see the depth of his talent until he got into a battle.
Signed for by Durkan’s father-in-law Timmy Hyde for 38,000 guineas at the 1996 July Sale, the intention was that Durkan would train the son of Sadler’s Wells. It was only a couple of months
later that he was diagnosed with leukaemia. He recommended that Aidan O’Brien train the horse, the intention being that John would take him over as soon as he had recovered. Sadly, that never came to pass, but Istabraq is synonymous with John Durkan, the person who spotted his innate talent always remembered every time Istabraq raced.
Istabraq made his debut over hurdles at Punchestown in November 1996, his first run for Aidan O’Brien and JP McManus and, sent off the 6/4 second favourite behind Noble Thyne, he ran a big race to go down by just a head to Paddy Mullins’ horse. After that, he just won. Every time he raced as a novice, he won. The Royal Bond Hurdle at Fairyhouse, the Deloitte and Touche Hurdle at Leopardstown, the Royal and SunAlliance Hurdle at Cheltenham, the Champion Novice Hurdle at Punchestown - he won them all.
He continued winning the following season too. The Hatton’s Grace Hurdle, the December Festival Hurdle, the Irish Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown. Then he went back to Cheltenham and won his first Champion Hurdle. He wasn’t beaten again until he went to Aintree in April 1998 and, in the Aintree Hurdle, over two and a half miles and on soft ground that blunted his speed, he went down by a head to Pridwell, who was the beneficiary of a masterful ride from AP McCoy.
John James McManus Memorial Hurdle, Tipperary, October 1999, and Limestone Lad is bowling along in front again. Istabraq is making his seasonal debut, his first run since he beat Decoupage and Limestone Lad in that Punchestown Champion Hurdle the previous April. Limestone Lad has already had a run this season, he was impressive in beating Notcomplainingbut in the Ravensdale Hurdle at Dundalk 11 days ago. Paul Carberry kicks the Aristocracy gelding on as they round the home turn, tries to make his race fitness tell, tries to draw the finish out of Istabraq.
Not easy.
Istabraq closes the gap easily under a motionless Charlie Swan. He joins his toiling rival at the final flight and he clears away on the run-in. By the time he reaches the winning line, he has put seven lengths between them.
That’s two-nil in their private duel.
Limestone Lad made his racecourse debut in a bumper at Naas in February 1997 with Michael Bowe in the saddle and, sent off at 20/1, he finished ninth, miles behind the winner.
He won his first bumper on his fifth attempt, in a lady riders’ race run on heavy ground at Limerick’s Christmas Festival in 1997 when, sent to the front a half a mile from home by his rider Aileen Sloane Lee, he stayed on well to come away from his rivals.
He won another bumper at Naas too the following February, a second win in his eighth bumper, before making his debut over hurdles at Navan three weeks later. And, as with bumpers, it
“Swan stops riding, stands up in the irons, accepts defeat, and Limestone Lad powers away to win by five and a half lengths in the end in one of the great matches of the modern hurdling era”
ISTABRAQ & LIMESTONE LAD
took him five goes before he got off the mark, in a maiden at Clonmel in April 1998, when he made all the running and came home nine lengths clear of his rivals.
Istabraq and Charlie Swan greeted with delirium, as was the case on each of the four occasions he scored at the Cheltenham Festival
Limestone Lad was busy and he was sound. At his happiest when he was racing, said Michael Bowe. The evidence bears testimony to his (assistant) trainer’s view. Limestone Lad raced 13 times in the 1997/98 national hunt season, his first full season racing, seven times in bumpers and six times over hurdles. He raced at least once every month between November and May inclusive, twice most months and three times in December, on all types of ground between good and heavy, and he thrived. And his best performance was in winning that maiden hurdle at Clonmel, on his 12th run in five months and his second run in nine days.
The following season was his breakout season though. It started fairly innocuously with victory in that handicap hurdle at Naas in November 1998
off a handicap rating of 99, but it rolled on from there. His record through that campaign reads like a piece of binary code, if binary code was written in 1s and 2s instead of 1s and 0s: 111212111, culminating in that big run to finish third behind Istabraq in the 1999 Punchestown Champion Hurdle.
Hatton’s Grace Hurdle, Fairyhouse, November 1999, and Limestone Lad is into his racing rhythm quickly, 10 or 12 lengths clear by the time he jumps the third flight of hurdles and races up past the stands with a circuit to go.
Down the back straight, and Limestone Lad is about 20 lengths clear, as Istabraq moves away from Nomadic and Master Beveled and into a clear second. Over the fourth-last flight and still the gap is about 20 lengths.
“He’s going to have to work,” says Tony O’Hehir in commentary.
The five-furlong marker goes past and Istabraq
Michael (middle) and James Bowe handled their star’s career supremely well, while Paul Carberry was the second most successful of the 11 jockeys that rode Limestone Lad to victory, his tally of 10 just one behind Shane McGovern’s
closes a little. About 12 or 14 lengths between the two old rivals as they jump the third-last flight.
Around the home turn and Shane McGovern crouches lower on Limestone Lad, asks him for a little bit more. Charlie Swan is squeezing Istabraq along in behind and, if he is closing at all, he’s closing gradually. Into the straight and onto the second-last, and the gap is definitely getting narrower. Limestone Lad gets in a little tight to the obstacle, Istabraq takes it in his stride and suddenly, as McGovern steals an anxious peek behind on the leader, the gap is down to five or six lengths.
They rise to the final flight and the gap is just four lengths. This one has an air of inevitability about it. Istabraq closes to three lengths as they start off up the run-in, no more hurdles to jump. Two lengths. Limestone Lad digs deep on the far side, sticks his neck out and stalls the diminishing margin. Halfway up the run-in and the gap is still two lengths. Istabraq is not getting any closer. A few strides later, and Limestone Lad is moving away again. Swan stops riding, stands up in the irons, accepts defeat, and Limestone Lad powers away to win by five and a half lengths in the end in one of the great matches of the modern hurdling era.
These two lit up the hurdling scene of the late 1990s and early 2000s. While Istabraq took the score in their private duel to 3-1 when he won the Irish Champion Hurdle the following January, Limestone Lad went on to win the Christmas
Hurdle and the Boyne Hurdle later that season. He won four of his six chases the following season too, before reverting to hurdles in 2001 and winning another Morgiana Hurdle and another Hatton’s Grace Hurdle and a Champion Stayers’ Hurdle at the Punchestown Festival.
By the end of his racing career, the Bowes’ horse had won the Morgiana Hurdle three times (a record equalled only by Hurricane Fly, though State Man was heavily fancied to join them at the time of going to press), the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle three times (no horse has won it more), the Christmas Hurdle twice, and the Boyne Hurdle twice.
Istabraq won the Champion Hurdle three times, of course, joining fellow hurdling legends Hatton’s Grace, Sir Ken, Persian War and See You Then as three-time winners, and he probably would have been out on his own with four had Foot and Mouth not intervened in 2001. No horse has won the Champion Hurdle three times since Istabraq completed his hat-trick in 2000.
JP McManus’ horse also won the Irish Champion Hurdle four times, the December Festival Hurdle four times and the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle twice.
Born within two months of each other in 1992, it was never likely that their respective careers would intertwine, but they did, and racing was the beneficiary. It was sad but fitting too that these two stars of the hurdling scene should both leave us within four months of each other, both well into their 30s.
The memories live long.
“Istabraq was bred to win a Derby… Limestone Lad was bred to win a bumper”
Photos: PETER MOONEY • Words: PATRICK MULLINS
Smiling ASSASSIN
Marrying instinct with pragmatism has spawned a trademark Jody Townend ride, resulting in one of the most stellar CVs ever compiled by a female amateur jockey
Panic is a five-letter word. Jody Townend wouldn’t know. Two hands higher than a duck and with a mane of red hair, she bounces rather than walks into places, her laugh normally preceding her, although I can vouch that you don’t hear it when she passes you on the track. There is a typical Jody ride, as there is a Jamie Spencer or was a Richard Hughes ride. Her preferred tactics are dropped out and settled, wide and out of trouble and come with a run like a cork out of a champagne bottle. They work with huge success.
Willie Mullins has been heard to say he has given up giving Jody instructions as she just goes out and does what she wants anyway. He hasn’t given up using her though, and that is the important detail. She has a 30% strike rate when riding for him and in the past five years her rides have brought about a €70-or-so profit to a €1 bet on each. The secret is out, yet it’s not.
But it’s not just numbers, it’s quality too. Great White Shark (Waited with, towards rear) was her first summit when claiming the Connacht Hotel QR
Handicap at the Galway Festival and she has continued to collect prestigious prizes ever since that 2019 breakthrough.
Princess Zoe (In rear of midfield) gave her a Ladies’ Derby triumph at the Curragh, while Grangee (Raced wide, held up in rear) landed the Grade 2 Mares’ Bumper at DRF. She has been victorious in both six-figure sales’ races, the Goffs Land Rover at Punchestown and the Tattersalls George Mernagh at Fairyhouse, with Adamantly Chosen (Towards rear) and Icare Desbois (In rear early)
Junta Marvel (Towards rear of midfield) also won the Grade 3 Mares’ Bumper at the Punchestown Festival, while she was head-hunted again by Princess Zoe’s trainer, Tony Mullins for Fox Watch (Chased clear leader) to win the Ladies’ National at Fairyhouse and by Adrian Keatley for Kihavah (Dwelt, in rear) in the Queen Mother’s Cup at York.
But this year brought about two new high points from three major victories.
Fleur Au Fusil (Held up towards rear) gave her a second Grade 2 Mares’ Bumper at the DRF, a standout in the vast majority of amateurs’ seasons. But Captain Cody (Held up) was piloted to win the Grade 2 Novice Hurdle at the Fairyhouse Easter Festival, over obstacles and against the pros. And Redemption Day (Held up in last) in the Punchestown Champion Bumper. A first Grade 1. To my eye, that was a ride that if Derek O’Connor or Nina Carberry had given, it would be talked about for years. Stone cold.
We’re in Brian Hayes’s kitchen in Leighlinbridge, on breakfast between second and third lot in Closutton. Jody and I are sitting on two stools at the island, drinking tea (both one sugar, dash of milk), while Hayes is eating a bowl of cereal (Special K) sitting at the kitchen table. It’s bright outside and the tiles are cold inside.
Patrick: Your preferred way of riding is to drop out. (Jamie) Spencer would ride like that, Derek is known for it too. Is there a reason you do it? Was it something you set out to do, or did you just happen?
Jody: I suppose when I’m riding for Willie, I’m usually on the second string and I’m told to ride them to run well a lot of the time. So, have them coming home rather than dying a death at the finish.
Patrick: Do you enjoy riding them like that?
Jody: Yeah, I do I suppose. Picking them up…. You can watch everything that’s going on in front of you. I suppose it doesn’t always work out, if they crawl they can get away from you. Yeah, no, I suppose it works for me anyways.
Hayes: Do you drop them in so they won’t be keen?
Jody: Well that too! Like on Fleur Au Fusil in Leopardstown, I dropped her out wide in case she did get a run on me, I didn’t want to run into the back of someone else! (Laughs)
Patrick: It’s interesting watching you on a keen one. You don’t fight them and demand them to “Stay Here”. Even when they’re running keen with you, they’re…
Jody: … enjoying themselves as well. They’re doing it without realising.
Patrick: In Leopardstown you’re after dropping Fleur Au Fusil out but around halfway she’s starting to go forward. What’s your thinking there?
Jody : Sure, just, there was no point the two of us pulling. (Laughs) I just sat against her. I did the same in Naas with her. She gradually got to the front and kept galloping for me. And she’s enjoying herself. I’m not physically strong enough to win a fight with her.
Patrick: What height are you?
Jody: Five foot, two inches. You measured me with a measuring tape once, do you not remember?! (Giggles)
Patrick: I forgot that! Do you find with your height and light weight, is it a negative? is it a positive? Is it neither?
Jody: Sure, I never knew any different. I wouldn’t say it’s a negative anyways. The lead doesn’t seem
Winning the Grade 1 Punchestown Champion Bumper on Redemption Day earns the following observation from Patrick Mullins, who knows a thing or two about these things: “To my eye, that was a ride that if Derek O’Connor or Nina Carberry had given, it would be talked about for years”
JODY TOWNEND
to stop them. I wouldn’t say it’s a positive …… well, it could be a positive. (Thinks) Like, the size of me up on them, half the time they probably think they’re loose. I’m not physically strong enough to pull off them, I just kinda have my own old knack of holding them and it seems to work so…. It could be a positive. (Pauses) Can’t interfere with them too much, I suppose.
Patrick: Let’s talk about Redemption Day. First Grade 1. (Jody nods) Punchestown Champion Bumper. You’d won on him in Fairyhouse a few weeks before. Dropped him right out, went to Punchestown with the same plan. But down the back straight, you’re four or five lengths detached. Last. What are you thinking?
Patrick: Which gave you the best kick?
Jody: I suppose, Captain Cody is probably the biggest winner I’ve ever ridden over hurdles. Hayes: Yeah, even in the weigh room we were all like, “That was good out of Jody.”
Jody: But obviously Redemption Day, first Grade 1. That was very special. I’d Timmy (her dad) told to come up and all! (Giggles)
Hayes: You flirted with the flat, didn’t you?
Jody: I did. I did. I actually did the whole course then Willie told me it was a bad idea, after him telling me to do it! He said he had too many good horses for me to ride where I was, whereas if I’d have gone on the flat I’d have had to have gone somewhere else. I’d probably be stuck in Dundalk doing light weights that no one else could do! It was something that when I was growing up, I never said,” Jeez I’d love to be a flat jockey,” whereas I’d have watched Liz Lalor and said, “Jeez, I’d love to be riding point-to-point winners.”
Patrick: You’ve won pretty much every big amateur race there is in Ireland. You even had your first Laytown winner this year, once again beating me (rolls eyes). What race would you like to win next?
Jody: Sure, obviously any winner in Cheltenham really.
Hayes: Would you get a kick out of beating Paddy?
Jody: Yeah (Giggles) until I come in and see the board the next day! I did get a good kick out of beating Paul with Captain Cody, until I seen that he’d taken a fall.
“The size of me up on them, half the time they probably think they’re loose”
Jody: It did cross my mind. What’s he going to do? But the same happened at Fairyhouse, he just went completely to sleep with me so I just had to trust that when I gave him the squeeze he was going to do what he did at Fairyhouse. He comes alive. I got there too soon in Fairyhouse and Punchestown but he just fools you, he’s completely dead underneath you and you’re wondering at what point do I give him a squeeze? He did give me a little fright now and that’s why I came wide rather than trying to find a little path through.
Patrick: And what about Captain Cody, a Grade 2 winner over hurdles against the pros?
Jody: The owners of him are something else. (Vincent Caldwell) texted me to say that if Paul (her brother) didn’t want to ride him then I could. And to be fair, he was going to give me the ride on him in Punchestown too (afterwards), except Paul wanted the ride for the Championship or something. (Giggles) And he gave me my first ride in Cheltenham in the Champion Bumper last year (2023, when sixth beaten just six lengths by A Dream To Share at 50/1).
Patrick: Do you ever worry about getting it wrong?
Jody: Ammmm…
Hayes: You don’t ride like you do.
Jody: So obviously there’s a bit of extra pressure riding for Willie that you don’t want to get it wrong. Yeah. (Pauses) Just ‘cos I have to see him in the morning. (Laughs) I can come in and put my hands up to Willie and say I got it wrong, but I’d rather take a risk nearly than... although I do take risks riding for Willie if I think it’s… but I’d have to be confident myself that I think it’s going to work I suppose.
Our time is up. We must head back and tack up for third lot. Up she hops and bounces out the door with a giggle and a laugh. The gravity of failure doesn’t seem to weigh on Jody Townend. She has a certain magic, that is difficult to explain, as all magic is.
For some it’s hard to see her true ability as her finish doesn’t fit the traditional standard of “strong”, but what’s gained in a race before the two-furlong marker has more of a bearing than what’s gained after it. What’s the rush?
Panic? Don’t ask Jody Townend how to spell it.
Scoring in a Grade 2 on Captain Cody over hurdles against the professionals at Fairyhouse in March is a standout achievement
Raffles Winner
Tom Gibney’s fiirst Irish Grand National victory was not a precursor to the big time but it may well be that second time’s a charm fior the Capranny Stud trainer
How do these things happen? Once in a blue moon, it goes something like this.
In February 2023 the bloodstock agent Anthony Bromley called Tom Gibney, enquiring about a horse in the yard that he liked. Simon Munir and Issac Souede were his clients. Doublegreen silks. You’ve seen them. Everywhere.
“The deal ended up getting a bit complicated,” says Gibney, “and Simon got involved. So I ended up talking to Simon, and we hit it off.”
The dialogue went on for a week until that trail went cold. Then, in September, Munir called again, unannounced. “He said they had kept an eye on us, liked what they saw, and would we be interested in training a horse for them?”
The significance of what Munir said next could not have been clear to either of them at the time. It depended on Gibney’s answer, though Gibney didn’t know that either. Remotely, they were filling in a crossword together.
“Simon asked me what kind of horses did I think I did well with? I said – without being big-headed
– that we had done well with bumper horses when we had bumper horses, novice hurdlers when we had novice hurdlers, flat horses going jumping. There nearly wasn’t a section we hadn’t done well with.
“Anyway, I went away and thought about it and got back to him and I said, ‘Look, if you were to ask me, I think I do particularly well with chasers.’
We probably had always done well with horses going chasing.”
In Munir’s mind, they had made a match. Intense Raffles was a young chaser who had lost his way in France. Unbeaten in three runs over hurdles as a three-year-old, he had failed to win in five attempts over fences. For his last run in France, they reverted to hurdles, desperately searching for a spark, and he bombed out, beaten by 23 lengths. He needed a change.
By the end of November, he had landed in Gibney’s yard. On Easter Monday, just over four months later, he won the Irish Grand National. In the life of a jumps horse, it was a whirlwind.
Photos: PETER MOONEY & HEALY RACING • Words: DENIS WALSH
In 17 years as a trainer, Gibney had never enjoyed the patronage of racing’s big spenders. He had an owner once with the resources to spend over €100,000 in the sales ring, and he had horses in the yard, on and off, for ten years. But he was gone and an owner like that is hard to replace. Intense Raffles opened the possibility of a new relationship. How did that feel?
“I don’t know if pressure is the right word. If we didn’t realise early on that it was a really nice horse there might have been. But the fact that we knew quite early on that we had a really nice horse on our hands, it didn’t seem to be such a factor, because the good horses will deliver for you.
“I’m not saying we knew he was going to turn out as good as he did, but I know when I got him I contacted the two lads to tell them I was thrilled with the horse I got. They probably thought this is just another trainer after getting a horse and telling us how great he’s going to be – which, as we all know, happens quite a bit. We see the good in them all when we get them to start with.”
In the Irish National, Intense Raffles was the only six-year-old in the field. Only four horses had more weight on their backs. For the trends experts, those two stats would have scuppered his chance. Daryl Jacob had been in the saddle for his two wins since arriving in Ireland, also at Fairyhouse, but he was injured, so JJ Slevin was on board for the first time. None of that made a difference. He was backed with infectious confidence. Two fences from home he had the race under control. Every bit as good as they had dreamed.
“Oh God, yeah. Ah Jesus, yeah. To win – I know we had done it before – but it’s still an Irish National and it was absolutely fantastic. It couldn’t have gone any better bar Daryl getting injured beforehand. That was the only real hiccup. JJ was a
TOM GIBNEY
fantastic sub and did a brilliant job on the day.”
The trainer’s art is made up of indefinable parts. One way or another, they need to work out what they have. Sometimes that fog is slow to clear. With Intense Raffles, Gibney knew within weeks. In January he won a rated novice chase at Fairyhouse, and five weeks later he won another novice at the same track. By then a picture had crystalised in Gibney’s mind.
“After his second run for me the Irish National came into my head. I’d stepped up him up in trip, and even though it was a very suitable race – the conditions of it really suited very, very well – I ran him in the race with the intention that if this went according to plan, we could be seriously considering an Irish National. Without a shadow of a doubt that was the intention going there.
“Even I didn’t see him putting in the performance he did that day (winning by 43 lengths). I was like, ‘Jesus, this is even a level above what I thought.’”
In the era of Galactico trainers it was extraordinary for a yard of Gibney’s size to win the Irish National for a second time. He says his numbers now would oscillate between 35 and 45 horses in training. When Lion Na Bearnai won in 2012, ridden by Andrew Thornton, his string was just a fraction of those numbers.
“Honestly, I think I had seven horses riding out when Lion Na Bearnai won the Irish National. It might even have been six. I think I used to have to stick a couple of extras on it because you’re supposed to have a certain number to have the full licence at the time and not be a restricted trainer. So I could have had a few that were in the field down as being in training as well. It was six or seven we had riding out.
“Before we went chasing with Lion Na Bearnai,
The trainer knew within weeks that he had been provided with a talented perfiormer in Intense Raffles and his commanding triumph in the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse under JJ Slevin confiirmed that assessment (PM)
TOM GIBNEY
“Before we went chasing with Lion Na Bearnai, he was handicap hurdling and I used to run him every few weeks just to keep my name in the paper and make it look like we had a few in training –or that I was a trainer”
he was handicap hurdling and I used to run him every few weeks just to keep my name in the paper and make it look like we had a few in training – or that I was a trainer. That people would realise you were still there and had a licence. Looking back I don’t know how we stayed going. I really don’t. Honestly, I don’t know. Drive I think kept me going.”
Gibney applied for his trainer’s licence in 2007, just before the sky fell in. The global banking crisis and the devastating recession that followed swept through every business, but it cut a swathe through the leisure industry. Horses that had been bought as playthings during the Celtic Tiger were abandoned in yards all over the country. In that hostile trading climate, Gibney’s yard was a small start-up business.
Lion Na Bearnai was either the first or second horse Gibney bought, he can’t remember which. He parted with €8,800 at the sales and called to an old schoolmate, wondering if he wanted to get involved. They pulled together a syndicate. Small money. No other business model had a chance.
“We literally got in as the recession kicked off. The economy was just turning. Literally, the shit was just about to hit the fan. Did that give me second thoughts? No, because I didn’t have a whole pile of choice in the matter. My skillset was limited. We never had the benefits of the boom to lose because we were just literally getting in as the recession was kicking off.
“Were there times when I thought it mightn’t be viable? Oh yeah, more so than not. You don’t think about that for too long or you might act on it. Or at least, that was my modus operandi. Did that work? Yeah, it did, it did. I can’t believe it myself, but it did.
“But we’ve always been very, very lucky actually. Even though, for years, we only had a handful of horses we’ve always had one or two
good ones who would keep us going for a period of time. From Lion Na Bearnai to Orpheus Valley and, you know, horses like To Choose and Little Luck and The Nutcracker and Agent Boru. There was always a good horse there, always. We consider that we’ve been very lucky that way, that we’ve always had one or two of those horses that kept the show on the road.”
Once upon a time, Gibney wanted to be a jockey. He went to England for a while and then spent four years with John Fowler. In 1993, though, he suffered a bad fall in Sligo. His hip was “smashed and dislocated”. For a time, it made him stop and look around and wonder what else he could do.
“That put me out of racing completely for a few years. So, I went back to school and did my leaving cert in a school in Navan. I was 20 doing my leaving. I didn’t mind it. I’m glad I did it. I was quite happy with myself. Then I partied for a year, and messed around, but between the jigs and the reels I ended up back in horses. That’s when I went to Noel Meade’s (in 1995).
“There were two surgeons who operated on me at the time. Dr McGarr, God rest him, said to me, ‘Don’t come back to me if you go back riding horses.’ God knows, I did get a few injuries after that, later on in years. I never had any intention of training horses. I just wanted to be a jockey. I’d say I did it for ten years, on and off. I’m around longer than you think. Ted Walsh was still riding in bumpers when I rode in my first few races. I was an amateur for the most part of it and had a professional licence for a while, but at the end of the day, I just wasn’t good enough.”
Smaller trainers are often asked if a good horse brings other owners to their yard. After Lion Na Bearnai won the Irish National, Gibney said his string doubled to about 14 horses by the start of the following season. But that year they were “wiped out” by a virus in the yard, and some of the new owners took flight.
“I think I had seven horses riding out when Lion Na Bearnai won the Irish National in 2013” (HR)
“There was stuff coming out of horses that I never saw in my life. They just got really sick and we ended up starting the following season nearly back to where we had been, with six or seven.”
Gibney has built his string steadily over the years. Mostly jumps horses, but flat horses too. In 2023 he had ten winners on the flat, which was only three fewer than his tally over jumps. This summer, he won a €100,000 handicap at the Curragh. Every opportunity is precious. Everyone knows the odds.
“As I know, as plenty of people involved in the game know, there are some very, very good trainers and horsemen out there and they can’t compete because they don’t have the horses. There definitely is a very unbalanced situation where all these big, powerful people with the money seem to go to the same three or four places. There are a lot of very good trainers who feel like if they got the same ammunition, they would do an equally good job.
“It’s frustrating sometimes because as Noel Meade said to me, if you can’t compete in the sales ring you can’t compete at the track. There’s a whole different level to be able to walk in and just buy a horse for 300 grand. The big four yards that we talk about (Mullins, Elliott, de Bromhead, Cromwell) don’t just have one or two horses that cost that amount, they also have a 100 horses that cost over 100 grand, or more. That’s it, that’s the way it’s gone. I don’t know why and I don’t know what the answer is. I’m not crying about it. Fair play to those lads for getting there.”
Intense Raffles is at that exhilarating stage in his career where he could still be anything. At the end of last season every option was open. They decided to dedicate this season to the Aintree Grand National. Good horses simplify everything. The magic carpet ride has just begun.
Never give up
The death of his mother when he was just five and breaking his neck while pony racing highlighted a resilience in Johnny Burke that has been a hallmark of his riding career
It was the late Paul Barber, owner of countless great horses, including the mighty Denman, who was the unlikely motivation for Johnny Burke.
Burke’s father, Liam trained horses for Barber, prior to them running under Rules, and the owner was in the family kitchen at the yard in Cork, when he approached a 12-year-old Johnny.
“He came up to me and said, ‘Well young man, what do you want to be when you’re older?’ Burke recalls. “I told him I wanted to be a jockey and he said, ‘Oh you won’t be a jockey, you’re obese.’
“I wasn’t offended in the slightest. I’d always wanted to be a jockey but had never once thought about getting on the scales. My mum died when I was five and I received lots of attention from neighbours and the staff at the yard. In other words, I was being fed very well!
“But it was a wake-up call to say the least. I was about 10st6lb and I got stuck in and the weight fell off. A few years later I got down to ride at 8st12lb in Qatar.”
Burke was obsessed by horses from a young age, not surprising given his bloodline.
His father Liam was a jockey – finally retiring when famously bowing out with a winner in a Limerick bumper aged 66 in March 2023 – and trainer, whose CV includes Grade 1 wins, and a Galway Plate in 2007 courtesy of Sir Frederick.
He also pre-trained point-to-pointers for Paul Nicholls’ main owners, the likes of Barber, Harry Findlay, John Hales and Graham Roach.
“My father has been a huge influence on me. I look back and I can’t believe how he kept the show on the road when my mum died.
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: SEB VANCE
Recording a cherished first Cheltenham Festival success on Love Envoi in the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle in 2022
“My sister, who currently works for Ciaron Maher in Australia, was nine at the time and took over that motherly role, while Davy Condon’s mother, my godmother, Susan was a massive help and still is.
“I don’t really remember my mum, just a few bits. I’ll aways be grateful for all that support I had when she passed, but it was Dad who kept it all going. He never left us wanting for anything.”
Burke’s journey to becoming a jockey wasn’t smooth sailing, breaking his neck in a pony race in 2011.
“It in no way put me off,” he insists and through his next-door neighbour Condon, and Condon’s cousin Paul Townend, he started riding out for Wille Mullins.
Aged 14, he accompanied the superpower’s string to the Cheltenham Festival, leading up Briar Hill to win the 2013 Champion Bumper.
Aged 16, Burke rode his first winner on just his second ride. It came in a mares’ bumper at Cork on Easter Monday in 2012, courtesy of Trendy Gift, trained by his father. His first ride under Rules, Why Surrender, also trained by his father, finished 11th earlier on the card.
“The ground was soft, and we didn’t think she’d handle it. Dad said, ‘Go and enjoy yourself,’ and she won. I was wearing Dad’s colours and it was very special.”
He continued to show his potential in point-topoints for his father and in bumpers for Tom Hogan – a big supporter of Burke’s – and he was soon picking up more and more rides as an amateur in professional races. The turning point was the 2014 Punchestown Festival.
“Willie ended up giving me a ride on Very Much So in the Land Rover Bumper,” he recounts. “He went and won, which was a big deal. I ended up having 13 rides at the festival.”
A couple of weeks later Burke turned conditional and caught the eye of Henry de Bromhead, who requested his presence every Monday. By September of the same year, he had been offered the prized job of riding for de Bromhead’s leading owners, Alan and Ann Potts.
“I was 18, claiming five and had ridden just 22 winners. I’d only had one ride for the Pottses, it finished second at Downpatrick. It was all a bit surreal but I didn’t have a fear of failure and went for it.”
He enjoyed a fruitful start to the partnership with the likes of Sizing John, who gave him his first Grade 1 winner in the 2014 Future Champions Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown, Sizing Granite and Sizing Europe. He rode more than 50 winners in the season, was crowned champion conditional and lost his claim. He also won the 2015 Galway Plate to boot.
“In one year, I had all this success – I was only 19. It was surreal, I was living the dream,” he says.
“But I suppose it then started to go wrong in the second year. I lost my instincts as a rider. I was riding the horses how they wanted them ridden, rather than what might have suited the individual horse or the individual race. They liked their horses ridden handy, in the first couple, and I treated every horse the same. I rode them a bit like robots in a way.
“I was too young to try things differently. I’d have made a different fist of it now.”
“My father has been a huge influence on me. I look back and I can’t believe how he kept the show on the road when my mum died”
“Dad said, ‘Go and enjoy yourself,’ and she won. I was wearing Dad’s colours and it was very special”
He enjoyed a fruitful start to the Potts partnership, booting the legendary Sizing Europe to victory at Gowran Park (above), winning a first Grade 1 on future Gold Cup hero Sizing John, and becoming champion conditional
It wasn’t just being on autopilot which curtailed Burke’s second year in the role. He broke his back in a fall at Thurles in January 2016. He was back for Cheltenham but drew a blank and after finishing fifth in the Grand National at Aintree, he broke his back again.
The Pottses’ horses were moved from de Bromhead’s care, and the new arrangements didn’t suit Burke.
“I’d had a great time with Henry and am very grateful for all he did for me. But, while some of the horses stayed with Jim Dreaper, who, along with his family have been brilliant to me - I rode his Goonyella to win the Midlands Grand National –the other horses were split between Jessie Harrington and Colin Tizzard. It was a whole new dynamic, the horses weren’t running great, and I wasn’t enjoying it. I was getting it in the neck from Alan,” he recalls.
Having sought counsel from Richard Hughes and Ruby Walsh, he walked away from the job “amicably,” and went freelance, picking up rides for Sandra Hughes and former boss Mullins, before misfortune struck again when he broke his leg in December. Having recovered and only just returned to the saddle he “did all the tendons and ligaments in my shoulder”.
As he was preparing to ride again, super-agent, Dave Roberts texted Burke, asking whether he’d consider a spell in Britain. Charlie Longsdon was looking for a stable jockey.
“I was only 21 and I thought, ‘Why not?’ If it doesn’t work, I always had the time on my side to move back home again,” he reasons.
Jockey Will Kennedy messaged via Twitter offering a room for a month and Burke ended up staying there four years.
“He was brilliant and probably a big part in why I’m still here,” he says.
He “tipped away” with Longsdon without ever really clicking but his contacts grew, and he built relationships with the likes of the now-retired Oliver Sherwood, Tom George, Jamie Snowden and Harry Fry.
Associations with George’s Sir Valentino, Black Op, Clondaw Castle and Somerville Boy got things going, and a win in the 2021 Fighting Fifth when the Hughie Morrison-trained Not So Sleepy dead-heated with Epatante, saw Burke’s stock grow.
But it was Fry’s Love Envoi, winner of the Ryanair Mares Novices’ Hurdle at the 2022 Cheltenham Festival, and Boothill, whom he partnered to five wins, which really gave him momentum. He also bagged the 2022 Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham on Snowden’s Ga Law.
“A lot of the time I was in the right place at the right time. With Tom, there were lots of opportunities as Adrian Heskin had been retained by the McNeill family, and then Noel Fehily’s retirement at Harry Fry’s opened the door there, as did Leighton Aspell’s at Oliver Sherwood’s.”
And then last season, another sliding door moment.
“Paddy Brennan rang me up and asked if I’d ride out at Fergal O’Brien’s once a week, which I was more than happy to do. I didn’t actually ride in many races for Fergal, but I’d be lying if I said that I
didn’t think there was an opportunity there, should Paddy call it a day.
“Then the ride on Crambo in last season’s Long Walk came up – and fortunately he won. It all gathered speed and the rumours were rolling that this could be the start of something, but I was very content with Harry, and no one knew when Paddy was going to retire.
“I loved riding for Harry – and hopefully I can continue – but when the offer from Fergal did materialise in April, I knew I had to take it. There are 100 horses there, including some lovely prospects like Dysart Enos and Tripoli Flyer, and I could potentially be riding 100 winners a season.
“I’ve always had huge respect for Fergal, he’s got a great bunch of staff. He keeps it very simple and his attention to detail is second to none. The horses are trained very competitively, they’re very easy to ride in races, and they all travel well.
“Owners like having horses there. It’s a very welcoming place, every day is an open day and there are always owners around – it’s a very fun place to be. It’s only a half hour from Broadway, where I live, so it allows me to spend lots of time there.”
Burke is optimistic that O’Brien can compete with the likes of Nicholls, Dan Skelton and Nicky Henderson in Britain – not to mention Willie Mullins’ raiders – but it might take time.
“Fergal’s got the owners, the facilities and definitely the drive for it. But to win championships you need quality, given it’s decided on prizemoney. All these things take time.
“A lot of the summer horses this year had been around for a couple of years, so I’d imagine they’d be looking to restock for the summer and they’d be ready to roll for next season. Paddy has now gone down the bloodstock route, so you’d imagine he’d be an integral part of that process.”
JOHNNY BURKE
Talking of Brennan, Burke is quick to pay tribute to the former jockey.
“Yeah, he’s obviously a character,” Burke says. “We sat at the opposite ends of the weighing room, but we have always got on well. He rode for Tom George too, and I was able to bounce ideas off him. I looked up to him tactically – there was no one better.
“This is all a learning curve for me now, so being able to chat to Paddy about this new role will be a massive help.”
As well as Dysart Enos and Tripoli Flyer, Burke picks out two unknown quantities to keep an eye on.
“Is This For Real is a nice young horse, who won an English point-of-point,” he explains. “And there’s a horse bought at the store sales in Ireland called Espresso Milan, he’s quite nice as well.”
And what if it doesn’t work out for Burke, now 28? Well, for a jockey, he has an unusual Plan B.
“I’d love to get into commentating,” he says with real enthusiasm. “It all stems from my younger days, when I was putting those famous colours on, and sitting on the mechanical horse, riding out finishes to my commentaries.
“I’ve commentated on pony races, point-topoints, and ended up calling a race at Cork when I was injured. I’ve had good feedback. I model myself on Dessie Scahill and Jerry Hannon. I see it as painting a picture for the person that can’t see the race.
“I was actually going to commentate at Exeter last year, when commentator Richard Hoiles was stuck in traffic, but they wouldn’t let me do it because of health and safety. Apparently, I wasn’t cleared to walk up the steps to the commentary box, which was clearly more dangerous than riding in the upcoming handicap chase!”
The way things are going, it’s a career that will have to wait.
“I lost my instincts as a rider. I was riding the horses how they wanted them ridden, rather than what might have suited the individual horse or the individual race”
Delivering the Long Walk Hurdle on Crambo earned a job offer from trainer Fergal O’Brien that Burke could not turn down
The PHOENIX
At his lowest ebb, Philip Rothwell had to work nights to keep his training business aflloat but while 2024 wasn’t all plain sailing, it continued a stunning rise flrom the ashes flor the Cheltenham Festival winner
“I want to give owners the time they deserve... That’s my niche and that’s where I want to be”
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: ROBERT CATTERSON
When it comes to values, there’s no question that Philip Rothwell knows his North Star. Money can buy good horses but good owners? That’s top of the Christmas tree territory.
It’s nine years since Rothwell spoke on RTÉ radio about the ups and downs of horse racing during a season when he trained just one winner. And having tasted Cheltenham Festival success up to that point – providing none other than Davy Russell with his first triumph at the March carnival with Native Jack in the Cross-Country Chase in 2006 - along with regularly heading to the festival with strong chances, Rothwell had come full circle.
“It’s down to pig ignorance and working really hard that I’ve come back from that,” admits the Tinahely trainer now.
At the end of last season, Philip finished seventh in the Irish national hunt trainers’ title (€538,050) and was fifth in the number of winners trained (42). But did he ever come close to packing it in?
“No. I was down to 15 horses in training and had a mortgage to pay, with a very young family, so I did other things and I got involved in other businesses. I worked at night just to keep the racing yard afloat. I just worked hard to find ways to make training racehorses work.
“I learned a huge amount about ways to survive and rebuilding and reinventing myself on a very small budget. When I was young, I made a lot of mistakes but I learned from them. I probably had it too good too early in my career so when I got an opportunity to rebuild, I made far less mistakes.”
The first major sign of Rothwell’s revival came at Cheltenham’s 2021 Open meeting when McAlpine won. This was a victory that brought mixed emotions.
“I found it really upsetting more than anything. One year after another, I was heading over with an expectation of winning at the festival to having no horses going to Cheltenham. No horse even related to something good enough to go to Cheltenham and if you put the 15 horses together that I had, I still wouldn’t have had the makings of a runner at Cheltenham. I just didn’t believe it was going to take ten years, even if it was at the November meeting, to get back there. It felt great but horrible.”
2024 has been a ‘solid year’ on the track for Philip. But off the track, things haven’t been as straightforward.
“I was appalled by the RTÉ Investigates documentary in which I was featured. I think our Irish Trainers’ Association (IRTA), that we have at the moment, is very poor. I was disappointed by them and the likes of the IHRB in that situation. I perhaps naively expected that someone from at least one of those organisations might have reached out to me in that scenario. Nobody called to ask any details about what involvement I might have had in it or if I was okay or needed support in handling that matter. I felt let down.
“Regarding the programme, nobody was ever in my yard. Nobody to this day has ever said to me why I was linked to the programme. Loads of horses from loads of different trainers’ yards went to the abattoir, which was disgustingly badly run and we all feel the same about that. But why use my name? Why not use the hundreds of other trainers who used that same facility? I was sitting down on my couch and it came at a stage in my life when I had other personal issues. I was really saddened by it. I was horrified. It was very upsetting at the time.
“Did it have an effect on my business? How can I ever know? I met some guys a couple of days later and I explained my involvement and they were grateful to me for mentioning the elephant in the room and addressing it directly. I didn’t realise there was an elephant in the room but there obviously was. That was one syndicate. If they felt like that, I’m sure there were others who may have been considering getting involved with me and thought twice about it. I don’t know. I can’t quantify it.
“I do believe there is an abattoir needed. It obviously needs to be properly run though. We haven’t heard the Irish Government and the Department of Agriculture taking any responsibility for what went on. None of the vets’ names were mentioned and obviously they were directly linked to it. I wasn’t directly involved, and my name was mentioned.”
Earlier this year, Horse Racing Ireland revealed their intention to introduce 60 races aimed at trainers outside the top four in the country. And while records would indicate that Rothwell would be one of the chief beneficiaries of this new plan, he doesn’t see it that way.
“I applaud HRI for what they are doing. I think they are making a huge effort to support trainers and improve racing in Ireland. However, I thought isolating four trainers from 60 races was a bad idea.
Galon De Vauzelle, seen here winning under Paddy O’Hanlon for owner Tom Doran at Leopardstown in December 2023 and a more recent victor at Listowel’s Harvest Festival, “might be a Topham horse later in the season”
PHILIP ROTHWELL
“I was the first one who would be in the line to benefit from it but I don’t think anyone wants to be recognised for being unsuccessful. And I don’t think anybody should be penalised for being successful either.
“I thought if the 60 races were turned into conditions’ races that suited 0-109 hurdlers instead of maiden hurdlers, and the same in the beginners’ chases, then ultimately those bigger trainers wouldn’t have horses of that standard to run. The rest of us would have a better chance of winning those races then.
“I think Willie Mullins has brought national hunt racing to a new level in Ireland and Gordon (Elliott) has made Willie even better by putting a level of pressure on him. Looking at Willie as a peer helps make me better. We can learn from them. But I want to be recognised as being successful.”
From having 15 horses less than a decade ago, Philip now has a team of 60 in his care and plenty to look forward to.
“Prince Zaltar is back in full work. I hope that we’ll see him this side of Christmas in a handicap chase. I think there’s an opportunity for our above average horses in those big Saturday handicaps in Britain so we’ll be looking at that with him.
“Galon De Vauzelle won at Listowel and he might be a Topham horse later in the season. That’s About Right has won three of his last five races and there’s the two JP (McManus) horses, Duffys Getaway and Weihnachts, who’ve been with me for the last eight years and both won last season. I’d be hoping we’d get that again for him.”
As for a stable star and one to follow?
“Captains Nephew is the highest rated horse we have and I hope he has improved over the summer. I’m looking at going for a handicap chase with him at Fairyhouse in early December before going for the Dan Moore Handicap Chase. That’s his big target this season.
“The Busy Fool (who reappeared in victorious fashion in Naas on November 10) is one I’m looking forward to. I’ve chosen to keep him over hurdles this season, which I hope works out for his owners. Hopefully he can get them a decent prize before the year is out.”
Now that Philip has made it back from near breaking point, does he have any ambitions going forward?
“I’d love to be in a position to give the staff the excitement of having a horse going back to the Cheltenham Festival. That’s something I’m really striving for. I’d also love to repay the owners who’ve stuck by me. Tom Doran has been great to me. JP has been a huge supporter, and I love being involved with him. I just feel his colours are so special. Oliver Barden is also a huge supporter of the yard and the year I had one winner, it was in his colours and he’s stuck with me the whole way through. I’ll be bending over backwards to get a big winner for Oliver going forward. But honestly, I could list 30 or 40 people who I owe.
“I love building a relationship with owners and that’s the reason I don’t want to get bigger. The top guys want to be at the top but that comes at a cost. I want to offer a better and more personable service. I want to give owners the time they deserve. That’s my niche and that’s where I want to be.”
A proud Niamh Rothwell with her husband, who was presented with the leading trainer award flrom the Adare Manor Series at the Punchestown Festival at the beginning ofl May by sponsor JP McManus
Sat 18th Jan NH Navan Trials Day
Sun 9th Feb NH William Hill Boyne Hurdle Day
Sat 1st Mar NH Cheltenham Preview Race Meeting
Sat 22nd Mar NH Welcoming the Heroes National Hunt Meeting
Tues 8th Apr F Opening Flat Fixture
Sat 26th Apr F Super Saturday ft The Vintage Crop Stakes
Sat 17th May F Summer Saturday Flat Fixture
Sat 7th June F Summer Saturday Flat Fixture
Sun 13th Jul F Cusack Hotel Group Family Day
Thur 28th Aug F Afternoon Flat Racing
Sat 6th Sept F Flat Fixture
Sat 20th Sept NH September National Hunt Racing
Wed 8th Oct F Active Retirement Race Day
Wed 22nd Oct F Flat Fixture ft Schools Race Day
Sat 15th Nov NH Navan Racing Festival
Sun 16th Nov NH Navan Racing Festival
Sat 6th Dec NH Christmas Party Raceday
Sun 14th Dec NH Christmas Party Raceday
Carm and Collected
At the end of the current NH season, Tommy Carmody will celebrate the 30th anniversary of his first champion jockey title, while the future Classic-winning trainer will always be remembered for rescuing the Irish at a time when the current Cheltenham domination was just a pipedream
“People ask me if I ever rode a Derby winner. ‘Yes,’ I say, ‘I rode three Derby winners –Dingle Derby winners!’ ”
Four-time champion apprentice and twice champion jockey over jumps, Tommy Carmody has long since lost count of the winners he rode. Irish Cheltenham Festival regulars will be indebted to him forever for one – Galmoy. Not once, but twice did Galmoy and Tommy Carmody save the Irish from a Cheltenham Festival whitewash, successful in the Waterford Crystal Stayers’ Hurdle in 1987 and 1988.
Bred by the late PJ ‘Darkie’ Prendergast and owned by glamorous Deborah Threadwell, Galmoy was trained by John Mulhern.
Despite justifying favouritism with a clearcut win in 1988, Galmoy’s racing style worried Tommy Carmody sufficiently for him to observe to the trainer: “Run him in blinkers next year. Then I won’t even have to hit him.”
Suitably taken aback on the foot of an apparently facile win, Mulhern riposted that “None of mine ever wear blinkers!”
Favourite to complete his Stayers’ Hurdle hat-trick in 1989, Galmoy came under pressure a long way out. Driven by Tommy, he made up some of the leeway, though eventually a well-beaten
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: GUY WILLIAMS
second, 12 lengths adrift. For the first and only time since World War II, the Irish left Cheltenham winnerless.
Tommy Carmody was born on July 10, 1956, the year of the Suez Crisis. A native of Limerick city, he is one of two boys and six girls. One of those six – Betty – had a pony that Tommy taught himself to ride upon, being home from school earlier that his big sis. From there he became involved in pony racing.
“Of course it was flapping, but if you mentioned flapping nowadays people would look at you. They wouldn’t have a clue!
“You’ve heard of Tommy Walker? Well, we hit it off. He had these two unbeaten ponies. Like little thoroughbreds they were. People ask me if I ever rode a Derby winner. ‘Yes,’ I say, ‘I rode three Derby winners – Dingle Derby winners!’”
It was Tommy’s treble for Tommy Walker at a meeting in County Kildare that caught the eye of jockey-turned-trainer, Liam Browne in 1971. Would Tommy come and work for him as an apprentice jockey?
“I hated school. My mother gave her blessing. I signed indentures for six years. It’s a very long time when you’re only 16. But off I went to Maddenstown. Digs were paid for. And there was a few bob for sweets. Of course ‘The Guy’, as everyone called my master, knew I was getting money from owners for riding flapping winners for them. The work was hard. I was Liam’s first apprentice. Then came Stephen Craine - ‘The Manxman’ - in 1973, Eddie Downey (1974), Mick Kinane, Pat Gilson and Steve McCormack, God bless him. He was killed in a racecourse fall.”
That all-important, crucial, unforgettable first winner came for Tommy Carmody via Tameric at Sligo in June 1972. Owned by Mrs PJ Conlon and trained by Liam Browne, Tameric won the first division of the Sligo Maiden Plate by six lengths at 8/1. Tameric went on to win an Irish Lincoln and a JT Rogers Memorial at the Curragh, albeit ridden by others.
It was at the Rose of Tralee festival meeting that Tommy doubled his score, doing 7st on 5/1 favourite Bunclody Tiger, owned by Andy Redmond and trained by Kevin Bell. The first signs of weight problems that would dictate a change of codes probably cost Tameric and Tommy the Naas November Handicap, narrowly beaten with 4lb overweight at 7st 7lb.
In 1973 Tommy divided the Irish apprentice honours with Declan Gillespie. Having set a new Irish record with 36 winners in 1974, Tommy completed his outright hat-trick in 1976. His success, augmented by Mick Kinane, Stephen Craine and Pat Gilson, saw Liam Browne acknowledged as the master craftsman in producing successful apprentices, the Irish equivalent to ‘Frenchie’ Nicholson and Reg Hollinshead in England as supreme mentors. While Liam did not set out to train jumpers, Mr Kildare, ridden by Tommy to win consecutive Leopardstown November Handicaps, was put to hurdling. That bore fruit at the 1978 Cheltenham
TOMMY CARMODY
Festival, where Tommy rode him to victory in the Champion Novices’ Hurdle. Tommy had already opened his Cheltenham scoresheet on Hilly Way, successful in the Champion Chase for Clane trainer Peter McCreery. The fact that Tommy had made no concession to his change of codes in continuing to ride at flat-race length caused criticism, at least until success justified that defiance of the perceived laws of gravity.
That same year, legendary gambler, Barney Curley persuaded Tommy to transfer to north Yorkshire to ride his horses trained by Tony Dickinson. Tommy recalls being well received by the Dickinson family, if not by his new colleagues in the weigh room. Describing the Dickinson horses as “simply different class,” Tommy adopted the policy of winning by the minimum margins, a tactic much easier to exercise when one’s horses are so superior.
Gay Spartan provided a belated Christmas present when carrying off the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park. Tommy repeated that Christmas feat in 1979 on Silver Buck, a “spooky bastard”. Ridden out every day by Tony Dickinson’s wife Monica, Silver Buck would shy at every opportunity. For all that, he and Tommy went through that 1979-80 season unbeaten in seven races in the colours of Mrs C Feather. Tommy remembers her under her earlier married name, as the mother of successful Newmarket trainer William Haggas.
Silver Buck may have dodged Cheltenham in March, but Slaney Idol, trained by Tommy’s old master Liam Browne, provided him with a narrow victory in the opening Waterford Crystal Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, by a neck from Daring Run and Ted Walsh.
For the 1980-81 campaign Tony Dickinson stood down in favour of his son Michael, for whom Tommy rode Silver Buck to complete a personal hat-trick of King George VI Chase successes. The partnership went on to finish third in the Cheltenham Gold Cup to Little Owl and Night Nurse. At the season’s end Tommy returned to County Kildare to take his chances as a
Run (left, with Tony Mullins in the saddle) defeating Buck House and Carmody over the Champion Chase winner’s favourite two-mile trip in the famous match at Punchestown in 1986 convinced the beaten jockey that ‘The Mare’ was the greatest NH horse he had seen, and will ever see
Dawn
TOMMY CARMODY
Not once, but twice did Galmoy and Tommy Carmody save the Irish from a Cheltenham Festival whitewash, successful in the Stayers’ Hurdle in 1987 – he is pictured here being led into the winner’s enclosure afterwards - and 1988
Royal Diamond and Niall McCullagh beating eight rivals in the 2012 Irish St Leger was a fitting highlight to Carmody’s training career before Johnny Murtagh eventually retired from riding and took over the licence
freelance. That strategy paid dividends. He rode Strathline to win the Galway Hurdle for Dermot Weld in 1985 en route to being crowned Irish champion NH jockey with 58 winners.
The following year, Tommy was successful on Buck House in the Champion Chase for Tipperary trainer Mouse Morris. Twenty-four hours later Cheltenham witnessed scenes of jubilation and hysteria when Dawn Run rallied with indomitable character to justify favouritism in the Gold Cup under Jonjo O’Neill for trainer Paddy Mullins. In doing so Dawn Run became the only animal ever to complete the Champion Hurdle – Gold Cup double.
A match was arranged for both Cheltenham stars at Punchestown. Tommy reckons Buck House the best he ever rode over fences. At two miles and at level weights he really fancied his chances. Reunited with Tony Mullins, Dawn Run held Buck House at bay by two lengths.
Tommy has no hesitation: “She was the best I have ever seen. There will not be better in my lifetime.”
Within weeks both Buck House and Dawn Run were dead.
Tommy headed the Irish jump jockeys’ table again in 1988. Among his 42 winners was notably Haepenny Well in the Power Gold Cup at Fairyhouse for trainer Gillian O’Brien. The following year brought tragedy.
“I was off riding in the north. When I got home there were cars everywhere. I was met by John Mulhern. ‘Is it Tina?’ I asked.” No, Tommy’s wife was unharmed. But their nine-year-old son, Thomas, had been killed instantly when the boy and the pony he was riding had been struck by a truck on the road.
“He had God-given hands on a pony,” was Tommy’s wistful tribute to his only son and brother to Joanne, now mother of Tommy’s granddaughter, Elsie.
Tommy’s riding career was halted by a fall off Monks Delight in a novice chase at Naas on January 4, 1992, that left him with little or no use of his left arm. In 1998 he took out his trainer’s licence, based in Pollardstown.
“Good owners, but never more than ten horses…”
Boosted by a filly that won twice at a Galway meeting, Tommy persevered until 2005. Persuaded to come back into harness by Johnny Murtagh, who was still in the forefront of Irish jockeys, Tommy held the licence on Johnny’s behalf for two years.
In 2012 they had recruited a new owner in Andrew Tinkler. He had transferred a draught of horses from England to the new Curragh establishment. Starting early, the team opened their score at Dundalk in February as Johnny rode Miss Mediator to win a maiden. Ursa Major did likewise at the same venue in April, the first of the son of Galileo’s four wins that year. Royal Diamond won at Leopardstown. King of Dudes won twice. All That Rules won up the north. Seventh Sign ran up his hat-trick, as did Hartside. Spirituality signed off that year with two wins. Eighteen winners, all down to Andrew Tinkler.
In that role Tommy became accredited as trainer of the Irish St Leger winner in 2012. Royal Diamond was a six-year-old gelding by King’s Best that had been beaten a neck in the rich Ebor Handicap at York by Frankie Dettori on Willing Foe.
For all that, Royal Diamond and Niall McCullagh went off at 16/1 to beat eight rivals in the Gain Feeds Irish St Leger. It was a fitting highlight before Murtagh eventually retired from riding and took over the licence.
Living nowadays in Monasterevan, Tommy and I often meet in Fitzpatrick’s service station. He still smiles at the memory of Balgaddy. He rode him to win the Greenlands over five at the Curragh and then the Huzzar Hurdle at Fairyhouse in the late ‘70s for trainer Eddie Harty.
Different times but great memories.
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Ostraka, trained by Danny Murphy, ridden by James Ryan
BLUEThunder
After making a splash last year, Rossa Ryan took his career to another level in 2024
If anyone harboured any doubts about it, another spectacular campaign in 2024 underlined that Rossa Ryan’s time has arrived. What a year he had.
Ryan maintained the relentless pace that had seen him notch up 202 winners in his first full season unshackled from his retainer with Kia Joorabchian and Amo Racing.
The breakthrough first Group 1 win he’d enjoyed on spare ride Shaquille in the July Cup in 2023, was added to not just once, but no fewer than four times, including in what many recognise as the world’s most prestigious flat race, and then, just a few weeks later, on a rank outsider at the Breeders’ Cup.
He confirmed himself a genuine contender for a jockeys’ title dominated in recent years by Oisín Murphy and William Buick, and moved even higher up the ‘go-to’ list of just about every owner and trainer who might need a rider in a big race.
At just 24, it has all come together for him splendidly. The hard graft that came with the territory in a hard-working and down-to-earth
farming and racing family, the skills honed in the course of some 150 or so winners on the pony racing circuit, and the apprenticeship served with Richard Hannon provided a terrific foundation for an aspiring jockey.
Finishing second to a runaway winner in his bid for the apprentice title turned out a positive, not a negative, and so too did the eye-opening experience gained in nearly two heady seasons with Amo, notwithstanding its abrupt end.
And now there’s the burgeoning association with Ralph Beckett, arguably the most upwardly mobile trainer in the business and the provider, not only of the vehicles for 2024’s four Group 1 wins in the wonderful Juddmonte filly Bluestocking and the hard-as-nails sprinter Starlust, but also a yard chock-full of exciting prospects for 2025.
Ryan’s year got off to a brilliant start when he won a Saudi handicap worth nearly £1m on Annaf, and weeks later he was crowned the easy winner of Britain’s All-Weather Jockeys’ Championship. But the best was still to come.
Photos: HEALY RACING & CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: GRAHAM DENCH
The Galwegian is still struggling to believe his good fortune. Not that the Arc win was one he hadn’t seen coming. Far from it. He had gone into the race probably more confident than anyone, but this was the Arc. To win in such commanding fashion was hard to believe, even for the man in the saddle.
“I went in there with confidence,” he recalls, “but I still couldn’t believe it when it happened. It was surreal.
“I’d gone through the race from every angle and I kept coming back to Sunway and Ambiente Friendly and what they told me about the level of the three-year-old form. I checked out the Japanese form and felt that while Shin Emperor was bred to go on soft ground he’d never been on it, and he didn’t look like he bent his knee.
“There were lots of little things like that and I thought that unless I was reading it wrong, they could make the difference. It all tied in for me, and Bluestocking had the draw and the ground. I don’t think I’ve ridden a smoother race on a filly with a chance. It couldn’t have gone better.”
Although composed and thoughtful when interviewed just minutes later, Ryan celebrated success like never before.
“I wouldn’t usually be one for celebrating but I thought that if I was ever going to do it this was the time, with lots of family and friends there,” he explains.
He admits to being “a bit starstruck” afterwards, scarcely believing he had actually won the race, but he was not alone in that.
“We were all starstruck to be honest, and even Ralph was caught on the telly with a tear in his eye,” he points out. “It brought out so many new emotions in all of us, and my dad said that from the 200-metre mark and walking down the stands into the parade ring, he couldn’t remember any of it.
“It was a feeling none of us had ever encountered before. In Galway, I think there are about four trainers and we aren’t near any big yards. We had a brilliant childhood, but everything we got we had to work for. This was a new emotion.”
Success at ParisLongchamp elevated Ryan to elite company, as he joined Pat Eddery (four Arc wins), Mick Kinane (three), Kieren Fallon (two), John Reid, Walter Swinburn and Johnny Murtagh
among Irish jockeys to have won in the modern era. He was the first to do so since Kinane on Sea The Stars in 2009, and that win had been inspirational to him.
“What Mick Kinane did on Sea The Stars in the Arc was one of the greatest rides ever, and it made me think about the flat for the first time. My family was always all about jumping and Sea The Stars was the first horse that made me think that if my weight didn’t go I could manage the flat.
“I think it’s only now that I’ve ridden in some of those races that I can really appreciate what (Sea The Stars) did. He wasn’t flashy like Frankel, but he did the impossible and nothing has come close to doing what he did since. Bluestocking isn’t flashy either, but she danced every dance and all credit to Ralph because he ran her every month for six months, just as John Oxx did with Sea The Stars.”
Bluestocking’s Pretty Polly win had been even more emotional from Ryan’s personal point of view.
“Although winning the Arc was incredible and absolutely unbelievable, for its sentiment value, winning the Pretty Polly with my grandparents there topped it all.
“For some mad reason my dad had encouraged them along. They’d been present for some of my cousin, John Fahy’s wins, and for some of my uncle, Tommy Ryan’s big wins, but it was definitely the first time since my pony racing days that they had been there for me. It’s a day I’ll never, ever forget.
“It was lashing rain and Amo Racing let them use their box. I’d only had one winner in Ireland before I left for Richard Hannon’s at 16, and only a handful more since, so a first Group 1 on home soil was special anyway. But I remember coming in and my granny was crying.”
The race itself was dramatic and Bluestocking only snatched success close home after Emily Upjohn had looked sure to win.
“Bluestocking had shown gears we hadn’t expected when winning the Middleton and so she was a hot favourite for the Pretty Polly, but when Kieran Shoemark made that mid-race move and Emily Upjohn went clear I thought she was gone.
“But it can be a long way home in heavy ground at the Curragh and I knew my filly wanted a mile and a half and that she’d love the ground. I felt awfully sorry for Kieran, as he got a lot of slating, but I think if he’d sat for another half a furlong I’d just have got to him earlier and still beaten him.”
Ryan’s win on Starlust in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint was rather less expected, but it was arguably his best ride of the year and almost certainly his most daring. The 34/1 chance was just his third ride ever in the States, yet he was ice cool, going for a daredevil run from last place up the inside rail and between rivals in a dramatic, final surge.
“I thought other Breeders’ Cup tracks would have suited Starlust better, but that if he could run to his Nunthorpe form, he could be in the first three. I never dreamed he would win.
“Although we jumped well, he didn’t have the pace to be forward, but I’d seen how Colin Keane had won the night before (on Magnum Force) and so I wasn’t too worried about him being last. Nine
“The big winners are brilliant, but the day-to-day is just as important because if you are riding winners every day, it keeps your confidence up, and in this sport it’s all about confidence and belief”
“I wouldn’t usually be one for celebrating but I thought that if I was ever going to do it this was the time, with lots of family and friends there” (HR)
times out of ten, if you rode him that way you probably wouldn’t get through, but luckily, it happened on the right day for us. Two out, he came right underneath me and was back on the bridle and then the gaps came.”
Ryan would have been delighted if Juddmonte had pressed on with Bluestocking as a five-yearold, as they did with Enable, but he hopes to have Starlust to look forward to again, plus no end of exciting younger horses at Beckett’s Kimpton Down Stables. Without having to think about it too hard he reels off some names he has particularly high hopes of.
“I think they are a nicer batch of two-year-olds than last year, when some of them didn’t go on to achieve what we hoped,” he says. “They seem to be a finer make and model this time.
“What Mick Kinane did on Sea The Stars in the Arc was one of the greatest rides ever, and it made me think about the flat for the first time”
“I really like Stanhope Gardens. He just didn’t like the ground at Newmarket when second to Delacroix, and I think he’ll be very nice when he gets back on quicker ground. Starzintheireyes looks good too. The only thing that worries me there is that he’s by Starspangledbanner yet he’s probably going to want a mile and a half or a mile and six, which makes no sense.
“The Newmarket maiden winner Seacruiser is going to make up into a lovely horse, and a colt by New Bay called Pride Of Arras impressed me when winning first time out at Sandown.”
Turning to the fillies, he adds: “I knew Tabiti was beat after a furlong of the Fillies’ Mile, but she’ll be fine back on decent ground. Then there are two who surprised me quite a bit in Smoken, who won first time out at Nottingham and followed up at Newmarket, and Chantilly Lace, who won at Salisbury and is a fine filly with plenty of untapped potential.”
Some of them, perhaps even most of them, will be plying their trade at a high level in 2025, but Ryan is just as happy with the sport’s everyday grind. That will stand him in good stead when he
bids to take the next big step forward on a championship trajectory which has seen him vault from seventeenth and fifteenth places in the Amo years, to third in 2023 and second in 2024.
“The big winners are brilliant obviously, but the day-to-day is just as important because if you are riding winners every day, it keeps your confidence up, and in this sport it’s all about confidence and belief.
“Shaquille brought pressure for me, as he was favourite for the July Cup, but I was able to show to the world there that if I was given the ride I could get the job done. You need that breakthrough Group 1 winner but then you need to be able to back it up. Luckily for me, I got on Bluestocking and she just cemented things. Now when there are Group 1 rides going I’ve managed to get on them, and that’s the biggest thing.”
A week into November, Ryan is eight wins ahead of his 2023 schedule and so firmly on course for another double century, despite the campaign not going quite as it might have done at times.
“Whereas last year I went on runs and had a couple of four-timers I think, there haven’t been any of those this year. There haven’t been as many doubles and trebles either. It’s just been steady, month by month.”
He knows what he has to do if he is to beat Murphy, Buick and his fellow wannabe, Tom Marquand in 2025 and he is very much up for the challenge.
“The three things at the top of my list were the championship, the Arc and the Derby. I’ve done the Arc now, and if I won the championship, I could live without the Derby. I’d love to win the championship and it will happen for me one year hopefully. Even if it’s only one year that’s fine, but it’s on the bucket list and if I don’t do it, I won’t feel complete.
“That’s not because I have so much selfconfidence in myself, or anything like that, but more because it’s looked more realistic in the last couple of years. If I was only banging out 60 or 70 winners a year I’d accept that there’s not a chance, but with a great agent in Steve Croft and such good yards behind me, I’ve now been close enough to say it might happen one day.
“It’s the same for Tom, who is gunning for a title too, but it all depends on who hits the ground running, because under the one-meeting-a-day rule, that’s where I’ve seen the title won and lost in the last couple of years. With a great first half of the year, it’s easier to keep the second half going, otherwise it can rather fizzle itself out.”
Ryan adds: “This year I bettered my 2023 championship tally by six I think, which was great, but Oisín was unstoppable and finished more than 50 clear of me. He and Andrew (Balding) hit the ground running, and then all year he’d be having books of rides where nothing was bigger than about 5/1, whereas I was on 10/1 chances.
“Oisín did so well from Donny to Ascot, and that’s the hardest part of the year I think as it’s when you are finding out about horses. Ralph tends not to be such a quick starter, and my other
ROSSA RYAN
main yards like Alan King and Clive Cox took a few weeks to get going too, but perhaps it will be different next year.”
The statistics bear him out. Murphy outscored him in every month bar one during the artificially condensed championship and by the end of July, his fellow Irishman was 31 clear and not for catching. He is already a hot favourite for 2025, but it remains to be seen if he will be quite so hungry.
It famously took Frankie Dettori 15 goes to win the Derby, so Ryan recognises that it might never happen for him. The championship is another matter though, and you wouldn’t want to bet against it.
“Although winning the Arc was incredible and absolutely unbelievable, for its sentiment value, winning the Pretty Polly with my grandparents there topped it all” (CN)
“You need that breakthrough Group 1 winner (Shaquille in the July Cup in 2023) but then you need to be able to back it up” (HR)
MASTERMIND The
Dermot Weld explains his training philosophy, argues for less racing and cheaper admission prices, and reminisces about the day he got a horse up on the line to land a monumental gamble for Mick O’Toole
Alengthy chat with Dermot Weld could take you almost anywhere in the world. It commences in the most unlikely setting of Costa Coffee on the outskirts of Naas - cappuccino is his beverage of choice FYIand he brings you on a tour to all kinds of far-flung racing regions.
There’s Camden in South Carolina, where he
was victorious in the prestigious Bright Hour Amateur Hurdle while balancing his fruitful career as a jockey alongside his veterinary studies in UCD. Work took him to South Africa, where the inaugural Freight Services Champion Hurdle would go his way in 1972,as he left an indelible print on the history of the turf in Pietermaritzburg.
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS & HEALY RACING • Words: MICHAEL VERNEY
Then, there’s Flemington. They said it couldn’t be done; they said it wouldn’t be done but Weld broke the Australian mould to famously plunder the 1993 Melbourne Cup.
Mick Kinane did the steering as Vintage Crop, ‘internationalised’ the race that stops a nation. As if that weren’t enough, Weld returned nine years later and repeated the trick with Media Puzzle. If he was ever on Mastermind, his own career would surely be his specialist subject. He has trained nearly 4,500 winners and there’s a fair chance that he remembers every one of them.
He can give you the in-running comments on horses he trained and rode to victory, as well as many of the races that slipped through his grasp, as if he has just returned to the parade ring.
“The game I’m in, you have to remember and learn,” the 76-year-old says matter-of-factly, and all signs suggest that he is every bit as sharp as when he took out his licence 52 years ago.
He succeeded his father Charlie (“a very good trainer”) as Master of Rosewell House in 1972 and so much has changed in the racing world since then. This is a time remembered for historical events like the Watergate scandal and Bloody Sunday, but Weld’s methods largely remain the same and he has great trust in what he does.
“The core of training never, ever changes. Consistency, stability and a couple of elements that come into that. The best environment for the horse, the best feed and top-class staff,” Weld says.
“Consistency has to be the word and it has to be a happy and pleasant working environment for man and beast, that’s my belief.”
His studies more than half a century ago underpin everything that has made him one of the most successful trainers in the world and his veterinary skills are utilised every day.
“The big thing you’ve got to understand with horses is how they adapt to stress and why I enjoy training a smaller number of horses is because you can learn so much about each one.
“Each horse adapts differently to stress and how you treat that stress is the whole secret, especially
DERMOT
training two and three-year-old fillies. You’d be surprised just how much they differ.
“It’s not one treatment fits all and it’s not a question of nowadays with modern medication, that all you have to do is put them on medication and let it take care of itself. Not at all.
“Medication should be your last resort; your first should be what caused that stress and eliminate it. You’ve also got to do something very different with that horse to get the best out of them.”
Despite all of the technological advancements, he still relies on his eye as much, if not more than he did at the outset, and he admits that he is “oldfashioned” in many ways.
He possesses a larger staff than most establishments to ensure an “attention to detail” that involves hand-grazing each of the three/four training lots every day. It is laborious but he is “not a fan of horse walkers” and is adamant that the personal touch of a work rider leading their horse on their cool down “will always be the best”.
Training thoroughbreds is as much physical as psychological and patience has always been his virtue. Take the brilliant Tarnawa, for example. The daughter of Shamardal finished her juvenile career without a win in three starts - albeit they were creditable efforts in defeat - before becoming the joint-highest rated older filly in Europe two years later.
“There is too much emphasis on two-year-old racing. I prefer letting horses develop and I’m always looking more at the three-year-old career than the two-year-old career.
“I do have a lot of patience, it’s something that you learn over time. If you’re fortunate enough to have a good horse, a good two-year-old, you look after them. As a three-year-old and a four-year-old, that’s when they’re really going to make their name. I’m always one who will err on the side of caution.
“You see down through the years so many two-year-olds who don’t train on. My horses tend to last and there’s no point in running them for the sake of running them in these major races. You’re going be hard on your horses and Group 1s
“Each horse adapts differently to stress and how you treat that stress is the whole secret –medication should be your last resort; your first should be what caused that stress and eliminate it”
Weld’s endurance as a trainer of high-class horses was showcased once more as Ezeliya galloped clear of her rivals to win the Oaks, 43 years after the Curragh legend had prepared Blue Wind to scale the Epsom heights (HR)
The Smullen legacy lives on at Rosewell House, as Weld provided Pat’s eldest daughter, Hannah with a ride in the 2023 Punchestown Kidney Research Charity race, cheered on by her mother, Frances and siblings, Paddy (who rides out at the yard every morning before school) and Sarah, as well as the trainer’s son, Kris (CN)
are tough races. Horses only have a limited racing time so you’ve got to try and place them correctly.”
Weld has bagged major races on four different continents, 29 European Classic wins, 25 Irish and English Classic successes and 19 Royal Ascot winners but the fire still burns bright.
“Every bit, every bit,” he says when asked if he still gets the same buzz out of racing. “That’s why I do it, it’s for the challenge and the enjoyment.”
It’s “quality rather than quantity” nowadays, with this year’s Epsom Oaks glory for Ezeliya - 43 years after Blue Wind landed his maiden success in the English Classic under Lester Piggott - the highlight of his season.
Weld, who also has a decorated CV of Ireland’s most illustrious national hunt honours from a small but select jumps team over the years, is an encyclopaedia of knowledge but there’s a hint of rogue to him as well.
He was one of the youngest vets to qualify at the age of 21 and his college days, during which he played plenty of rugby, provided ample opportunities to work on his inscrutability.
“When I was going through college, we used to play a lot of poker. We didn’t have very much money so I probably learned to be a very good poker player,” he chuckles.
Speaking of having a flutter, a question about how he likes to have his horses ridden in a certain manner delivers a glorious segue that shows a side of Weld the public rarely see.
He loves when his horses “get into a rhythm and gradually build,” so his riders must buy into that, with stable jockey Chris Hayes, who gave Ezeliya such a wonderful ride in the Oaks, the latest he has forged a successful partnership with.
Despite his preference, Weld acknowledges that “it’s totally up to the rider to ride whatever race he sees in front of him,” and concedes that he often did “the exact opposite to what trainers suggested” during a riding career that saw him crowned champion amateur three times by the time he was 21.
That leads us nicely to Cheltenham Gold Cup-winning trainer Mick O’Toole, and a story about a Clonmel bumper many moons ago that involved unusually large sums of money.
The men at the centre of it were legendary boxing promoter Barney Eastwood and his lifelong friend and ally Alfie McLean, men who both owned horses trained by O’Toole, and were not having a good day at the races.
“I remember the late Dessie Hughes came in and got the saddle from me. He said, ‘We’re not having a very good day.’ They had three or four favourites, and they all got beat,” Weld recalls.
“‘You’re riding the one in the last and it’s odds-on and they’re going to back it,’ he said. ‘You don’t want to know how much they are having on it.’ And I said, ‘Well, you’ve given me a fair idea.’
“I’ll always remember I went into the parade ring and over to them. Mick O’Toole just told me, ‘If you get beat on this, don’t fucking come back.’ They were the instructions.
“They asked Micko what instructions he gave me and he said, ‘I never give the fucking long lad any instructions because he always does his fucking own thing anyway.’ He never did give me instructions.”
Hughes provided the inside track on the five-year-old mare he was partnering. That she “had the ability to win but she’s not totally genuine, so you’ll have to coax her home,” were his words of wisdom.
Luckily, “they didn’t count strikes in those days,” and Weld arrived on the scene as late as could be after a vigorous finishing effort before a photo finish was called to the dramatic finale.
“To this day I like to go into the second enclosure because in life, it’s easier to come up than down,” Weld remarks. “I rode into the second enclosure much to the utter shock of Micko’s entourage.
“In my own head, I thought I just got up. In those days, they went for a print and it came out over the tannoy that, ‘The judge is now gone for a print.’ I wasn’t sure, but I thought I’d won. About
“The party that evening will go down on record as one of the best nights ever had by any racing fraternity that ever raced a horse in Ireland … I don’t know what time the curtain came down”
five minutes later, the result came out and her number was announced and the roars went up.
“The party that evening in The Hazel Hotel in Monasterevin will go down on record as one of the best nights ever had by any racing fraternity that ever raced a horse in Ireland. I don’t know what time the curtain came down.”
When it becomes apparent that this writer is from Offaly, talk immediately turns to one of the Faithful’s finest. Pat Smullen and Weld were an unbreakable partnership before the nine-time champion flat jockey lost his brave battle with cancer in September of 2020.
Indeed, Weld’s son Kris had visited Smullen’s grave in Rhode earlier on the day of our conversation. It’s a place they usually stop by on the way home on the first evening of the Galway Festival.
If Weld is the King of Ballybrit, then Smullen was his prince and the Monday was particularly special as they plundered the two-year-old maiden numerous times together.
The Smullen legacy lives on at his Curragh base with Pat’s son, Paddy riding out every morning before he heads for secondary school in Newbridge. He had a ride for Weld in the Amateur Derby around Headquarters in October, while his sister Hannah, Pat’s eldest daughter, represented the team in the 2023 Punchestown Kidney Research charity race.
Weld gets “a great kick out of it,” as the next generation follow in their father’s footsteps. That type of thing energises him and there are still some bridges he wishes to cross before he eventually calls it a day.
The circumstances around Tarnawa’s defeat in the 2021 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe still frustrate him, as she narrowly failed to overcome a low draw, and bog-like conditions that were “nearly unraceable”.
“You get little chances in life, sometimes you’re lucky and sometimes you’re not. It wasn’t to be and we went very, very close.”
He reveals that “it’s within the bounds of possibility that I might write another book fairly shortly,” and a chapter documenting success in the French showpiece is one he would dearly love to pen. It would be remiss to not ask a doyen of racing about what changes he would make to the sport, were he given the keys to the kingdom. The response is typically thoughtful.
“We’re racing too much and too many days, especially during the summer time. The authorities have to look at better planning of fixtures, it’s very important. There’s not enough downtime and it’s putting too much pressure on staff. The volume of racing, more care needs to be taken with that, most definitely.
“I honestly think there should be no racing on Mondays. The Americans call it a dark day but we race all week. When we’re racing weekends, they should not be racing on Mondays to be fair to staff.”
The number of meetings is not the only thing that needs to be reduced either.
“It’s important with the cost of living at the minute that we don’t price ourselves out of the market. We need to look very keenly at the cost of going racing.
“It is a vital ingredient that they must respect and watch for the future. I understand the cost of going to festival meetings but ordinary, lesser meetings are too expensive to attend. If you want to get more people going racing, charge them less to get in. The ordinary race day midweek with an ordinary card should either be free entry or only a cover charge.”
He won’t commit to naming the best horse that he has trained as “they’re all over different distances,” but names like Committed, Tahiyra, Tarnawa, Rite Of Passage and Harzand quickly roll off the tongue.
As for one to watch out for next season, there’s definitely at least one inmate that really excites him.
“I’ve a filly that I like very much for next season called Swelter. She’s a two-year-old filly by Kingman. She ran once at Leopardstown, and she won very easy. She’s a big filly, she’s 16.1.
“I was going to run her in the autumn but she went through a growth phase and I decided to leave her until next spring. She has the potential to be a very high-class filly next year.”
Don’t say you weren’t told. You heard it here first from the master himself.
Swelter, getting a pick of grass from her attentive trainer after winning on debut at Leopardstown, is a very promising prospect for 2025, having been treated with customary patience by Weld in her juvenile season (CN)
White Lightning
There is more to come from the father-and-son duo among the Group 1 winners in 2024
Whether one views their glass as half-full or half-empty can be a state of mind, a reflection of how you see the world. Cork trainer John Murphy and his assistant son George choose to view the world in a positive light as they reflect on a year in which the yard focused more on quality rather than quantity, an approach that saw them win more prizemoney than ever before.
“I’d say it was a very good year, having our first Group 1 winner,” says George. “We’ve had less runners, we sold a lot of horses last year, a lot of older horses, so we have a very young team at the moment. The types we hone in on at the sales are three-year-old mile-and-a-quarter horses that will take a bit of time so it’s just been a bit of a transition waiting for those horses to come to their time but there’s some very nice
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: DARREN NORRIS
JOHN & GEORGE MURPHY
ones there and we’re looking forward to them.”
The Murphys began 2024 with high hopes for White Birch and the Chantal Regalado-Gonzalezowned son of Ulysses started the year in flying form.
Getting the better of Maxux by a neck in the Group 3 Alleged Stakes at the Curragh in April was a positive start to his four-year-old campaign and White Birch took a step forward from that effort when finishing three and three quarter lengths in front of Lord Massusus in the Group 2 Mooresbridge Stakes on his return to the home of Irish flat racing in early May.
After that, connections pondered making a trip to Epsom for the Coronation Cup but instead opted to try and complete a quick-fire Curragh hat-trick by winning the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup.
Waiting for them was a familiar foe. Auguste Rodin had finished five and a quarter lengths in front of third-placed White Birch in the 2023 Epsom Derby before extending his margin of superiority when the pair renewed their rivalry in the Irish Derby.
Round three would be a very different story, as jockey Colin Keane tracked Ryan Moore and Auguste Rodin throughout the contest before hitting the front a furlong out. He extended his advantage from there, crossing the line three lengths clear of a rival who would quickly show the form in a terrific light by winning the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot a month later.
For the Murphys, it was a landmark moment, John surmising that he may well be the first Cork-based trainer to saddle a Group 1 winner.
“It was a great thrill, we were delighted,” John reflects.
“He was very impressive that day,” George adds. “Two furlongs down, Colin looked like he was nearly taking a pull and he quickened away, he couldn’t have done a whole lot more on the day to be fair. It was a super performance.”
That it was. But it wasn’t a performance that surprised the assistant trainer.
“His form was top-class,” George reminds us. “He was probably unlucky not to win a Dante. He came from very far back in the Derby, from last basically, to finish third in what looked a very good Derby. He had top-class form and probably matured with time, got stronger, and matured mentally as well.
“It’s great to have a horse like him. You’re a long time waiting to find one like him and he’s been brilliant.”
In his post-race interview with Racing TV’s Gary O’Brien, champion jockey Keane was quick to salute the Murphys.
“They’ve been very good to me since I was an apprentice, they’ve given me a lot of opportunities and they’re very deserving of a horse like this. Usually when they have a nice horse they have to sell it to keep the wheels rolling so to get a good owner into the yard and prove they can produce the goods when they have a good horse is very important.”
The appreciation is mutual.
“He’s a very professional guy, a super guy to deal with and I don’t think anyone can question his ability on the track,” George states. “He’s one of the best out there, he’s a top-class rider.
“Shane Foley also rides a lot for us. He’s also a very good rider and he’s a big part of our team as well.”
After the Tattersalls Gold Cup, White Birch looked destined to be a major player in all the big middle-distance Group 1s for the rest of the season. However, his bloods were wrong for Royal Ascot and the same issue denied him the chance of lowering the colours of another Epsom Derby hero in the shape of City Of Troy in the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown in July.
“He had a little break after the Tattersalls Gold Cup and he picked up an infection,” George explains. “His bloods weren’t right so we had to ease off him again. The plan was to go for the Irish Champion Stakes and move forward from there. But he did something very small that required a few weeks of box rest, he had a little strain in a hock, and it was just timing basically. The fact we had to stop, we were running out of road.”
Auguste Rodin did run in the Irish Champion, going down by a neck to British raider Economics, a result that suggests a fully-fit White Birch would have been a big player in that Leopardstown contest.
One suspects that race was a hard watch for the Murphys. The Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe certainly was, given the rain-softened ground would undoubtedly have played to White Birch’s strengths.
“It would have been a big plan in the back of our minds throughout the year and conditions
“The types we hone in on at the sales are three-yearold mileand-aquarter horses that will take a bit of time”
“You’re a long time waiting to find one like White Birch and he’s been brilliant”
JOHN & GEORGE MURPHY
“Colin is a very professional guy, a super guy to deal with and I don’t think anyone can question his ability on the track”
would definitely have suited,” George agrees. “Who knows what would have happened but it would have been very nice to be there and compete but hopefully we’ll be there next year.”
John’s may be the name on the licence but Highfort Stud is now very much a partnership between father and son. It was George who found White Birch.
He recalls: “We were looking for a horse, thinking about buying a breeze-up horse and I spoke to Roger O’Callaghan from Tally-Ho Stud and he recommended him and that’s how we came to doing a deal.”
Paying tribute to his son’s contribution, John says: “He’s running things now, he’s a great help.”
For his part, George is grateful to be able to call on his father’s experience and wisdom.
“Absolutely, it’s brilliant. I’m very lucky to have his advice and we work well together.”
For John, Group 1 success on the flat came 18 years after a Grade 1 double over jumps.
Newmill geared up for the 2006 Cheltenham Festival by winning the Kinloch Brae Chase (now the Horse & Jockey Hotel Chase) at Thurles but was sent off a 16/1 outsider in what was to prove an incident-packed Champion Chase.
Of the 12 that faced the starter, only six finished with 2/1 favourite, Kauto Star one of the first to exit the stage after a fall at the third fence. Amid the bedlam, Newmill was in the safest place he could be, out in front and out of danger. He would prove uncatchable under Andrew McNamara, crossing the line nine lengths clear of Fota Island.
Asked now how top-level success in one code compares with the other, John replies: “Either are a great thrill. Both are hugely satisfying and exciting. I don’t think you can differentiate.”
Despite his odds, John was quietly confident ahead of the Champion Chase. He knew Newmill was in a good place.
“He was in great form beforehand. He did a piece of work the week before and it was really, really impressive.”
John’s satisfaction at a brilliant success was further enhanced when Newmill rocked up at Punchestown a month later the red-hot 5/4 favourite and backed up his Cheltenham win with another spectacular display. Fota Island was again his closest pursuer but the gap between the pair was increased to 15 lengths.
“Winning the Champion Chase was a great thrill, it was a super time, winning at Punchestown as well. It was great to back up Cheltenham, he was a proper good horse.”
Then just 13, George admits now that he didn’t fully realise the enormity of it all.
“It was a big buzz, I was a kid in school but it was a great thrill. I probably didn’t appreciate how big a deal it was at the time really. I see how hard it is now that I’m trying to get to that level but it was a great time for sure.”
Given his experience of both the flat and the jumps, John is better placed than most to assess the overall current health of racing.
He believes that the phenomenal, sustained success enjoyed by Aidan O’Brien on the flat and Willie Mullins over jumps shows the sport in the best positive light.
“The brilliant part of it is that both national hunt and flat racing are at the highest standard. The champion flat trainer in England is Irish-based and the champion jumps trainer in England is Irishbased so that speaks for itself about the standards that are here and the levels of excellence.
“You must commend brilliance. They’re top of their game for a reason so getting to that level should be the goal. They have the power and that’s what everyone should aspire to.”
And as John and George Murphy proved in the Tattersalls Gold Cup, when they have the ammunition, they can beat the best.
Should White Birch make a similar improvement from four to five as he did from three to four, they may be able to do so again in 2025.
Crystal clear
Balancing domestic domination with an increasing if belated acknowledgement of his talents on the international stage should be no problem to the unflappable champion jockey
Colin Keane is competitive anyway, but a new target is never any harm, and Ireland’s champion jockey already has one for 2025. This year’s riders’ title was Keane’s fifth in a row, and a sixth in all. It means he has a certain MJ Kinane in his sights.
Perhaps the finest Irish jockey of all was champion 12 times and completed a singular feat by winning the title six years in-a-row between 1984 and 1989.
By the end of that streak, ‘Mickey Joe’ had the broader racing world at his feet. At the age of 30, he landed the 1989 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe on Carroll House and began two decades of hoovering up the greatest international prizes the sport has to offer.
Keane was 30 in September. He cheerfully admits to targeting six titles in succession like Kinane – “It would be nice to be beside that man
“It’s the most emotional I’ve felt about riding a winner” – With father Gerry, who trained Crystal Black to score in the Duke Of Edinburgh Stakes at Royal Ascot, and mother, Esther (HR)
Photos: HEALY RACING & CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: BRIAN O’CONNOR
in history” – but opts for what in polo might be described as a cautious ‘check and turn’ when it comes to the international angle.
It can be great fun getting behind a cause but less so actually being that cause. Almost everyone within Irish racing is convinced Keane is as good a rider as there is anywhere. His own boss, Ger Lyons, made the point in the aftermath of Magnum Force’s superb triumph in November’s Breeders’ Cup Turf Juvenile Sprint.
Keane made light of the unfamiliar terrain to plot a copybook navigation around Del Mar’s turns and slalom Magnum Force through to success in the $1million contest. In the most frantic of environments, it was a notably unflappable performance.
“He’s probably the most underrated champion jockey in the world,” announced Lyons immediately afterwards.
“He’s a bit too much like his trainer sometimes, he likes to stay at home on the farm and walk his dogs. He’s had four rides at the Breeders’ Cup, and he’s won two. I know I can’t feed him with the ammunition he needs. I need the world to wake up to him,” the trainer added.
Certainly, if, as so many believe, Ryan Moore is the global benchmark, then the Meath jockey more than holds his own with him on a weekly basis in Ireland. But doubters haven’t been in short supply across the Irish Sea.
Trend wonks have thrown statistical darts at his strike rate in Britain, as well as the infrequency of his visits there compared to when Kinane and another Irish champion, Johnny Murtagh, were go-to men for big-race spares.
COLIN KEANE
Those making the case for Keane argue passionately it’s a blunder leaving him in Ireland when inferior talents are strutting their stuff on Europe’s biggest stages. It’s well-meaning indignation, but Keane is the sort of low-key operator that’s just as likely to wince at the attention.
Nevertheless, it was a sweet moment when he got the call from David Menusier for Tamfana in Newmarket’s Sun Chariot Stakes in October. With others on duty in Paris for Arc weekend, the Irishman took full advantage of the opportunity to land his first British Group 1.
Rarely one for playing to the gallery, there was no ‘told-you-so’ attitude after. Keane’s equable nature doesn’t lend itself to that. But a sense of a monkey off his back would only naturally have mixed in with the satisfaction of another big-race success.
There were four Group 1 victories in all in 2024. As well as Magnum Force, Babouche topped an impressive bunch of Lyons two-year-old fillies by landing the Phoenix Stakes while something of a
“The crowd and the atmosphere at the Breeders’ Cup this year was a different level to anything I’ve experienced, just like nothing else”
Keane was at his brilliant best in securing a second Breeders’ Cup success on Magnum Force, after which his boss, trainer Ger Lyons insisted that his man should be used far more on the international stage (HR)
White Birch missed the entire second half of the season after beating Auguste Rodin in the Tattersalls Gold Cup, leaving Keane with a hint of what might have been, but John Murphy’s charge stays in training next year (CN)
forgotten horse, White Birch, swept Auguste Rodin aside in May’s Tattersalls Gold Cup.
It added to a Group 1 tally that also includes the 2021 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud as well as Breeders’ Cup glory on Tarnawa the year before. In 2017 there was top-flight success in Italy on board Laganore. There’s been Classic success at home in the Derby, Oaks and 2000 Guineas.
It’s easy to see then why Lyons points to Keane’s adaptability as assets that should put him at the top of any tree anywhere in the world. That Lyons’ own interests are best served by keeping such an asset to himself only makes it more noteworthy how ready he is to bang the drum for a rider he made his No 1 in 2014.
All of which makes it curiouser and curiouser for a lot of people that Ireland’s best hasn’t already embarked on the same sort of career trajectory as Kinane or Murtagh. If much of it is barstool stuff, the man himself is happy for it to stay in the pub.
“It’s something I don’t really pay too much attention to. England has been a hard place to win but usually it’s been for Ger, riding in good races and maybe the horses haven’t performed on the day, or maybe they’re stepping up a level when they leave Ireland to run in Group 1s, and maybe they’re just not good enough,” he says.
It’s a typical restrained, no-nonsense public position for Keane to take. But it comes with a straightforward addendum to not mistake it for a lack of ambition.
“The aim is to ride nice horses, wherever that takes us. But I’m very lucky the position I’m in with Ger and Juddmonte.”
It’s a position that underlines how astute the Irishman is out of the saddle as well as in it. Keeping owners and trainers happy may be an impossible task but making sure they’re not unhappy with you is a valuable skill. It also smacks of Keane’s sense of perspective.
Another century of winners at home, champion jockey again, the aforementioned quartet of Group/Grade 1s, and perhaps the most emotional success of all at Royal Ascot in June represents an impressive body of work by any standards in any year.
In fact, come the end of his career, that Royal Ascot success might still rank top in terms of enjoyment too.
The images of Gerry Keane embracing his son after Crystal Black’s success in the Duke of
Edinburgh Handicap, and the riotous Cheltenhamlike scenes in Ascot’s very proper winner’s enclosure, were among the most memorable of the year.
“It’s the most emotional I’ve felt about riding a winner,” Keane admitted.
It’s not hard to see why. An apparently nondescript fall while riding out in 2021 had left Gerry Keane with bruising to his spinal cord. Only for the now 68-year-old being so physically fit, he could easily have been left paralysed.
“I still walk with a limp but I’m lucky not to be in a wheelchair from it. It was one of those stupid falls, where a horse ducked off the gallop, but I landed on my back and ended up bruising my spinal cord. If I had fractured it, I was gone,” Keane Snr later admitted.
It meant all hands to the pumps for his family, who kept running a yard that mainly concentrates on breaking and pre-training. In 2022, though, an unexpected morale booster came when the 35,000gns purchase out of a horses-in-training sale, Crystal Black, arrived at the stables.
Formerly trained by Dermot Weld, he had won one of nine starts for his Moyglare breeders. He hadn’t been ridden by the champion jockey, whose brief link-up with Weld at that time did however mean he had partnered him on a couple of occasions in workouts.
“He was in the yard when I was riding for Dermot. He was a fine, big horse but seemed to lose his way. If you ever see him in the flesh, he’s massive. For one reason or another it just didn’t work out for him,” Keane recalls.
He recommended Crystal Black to the Wear A Pink Ribbon Syndicate, for whom he’d previously ridden the smart mare, True Self. Bought to go jumping, Crystal Black instead became a transformed proposition on the flat.
Ending up 2023 with success in the Northfields Handicap at Irish Champions Festival, he won two more Curragh handicaps this spring before scoring at Ascot and then graduating to Group 3 success in Leopardstown’s Ballyroan Stakes.
In the latter he made no less than The Euphrates, subsequent winner of the Irish Cesarewitch, look ordinary. Ambitious plans for a tilt at the Melbourne Cup had to be abandoned after a setback but the world could still be his oyster in 2025.
“When you’re trying to source these horses for
COLIN KEANE
syndicates and small yards, win a premier handicap at the Curragh and you’d say, ‘Box ticked, well done.’ But to go on and win two or three premiers in a row, go to Royal Ascot, win a Group 3, it was fairytale stuff,” Keane considers.
At one point of the season, it was pretty fantasy stuff for the Lyons-Keane team as a succession of talented two-year-old fillies emerged. Babouche was the headline act but another Juddmonte juvenile, Red Letter, was described by Lyons as his idea of the best of them. That bold shout followed Chantez’s impressive success in the Ingabelle Stakes.
So, does Keane go along with his boss’ verdict on Red Letter?
“I wouldn’t disagree with him!” is a typically sure-footed response. “In a normal year if you had one of those fillies, you’d be pinching yourself. But this year, one seemed to be better than the other. If you thought you had a nice one, another would pop her head up.”
If there was one frustration in 2024 it was that after White Birch beat Auguste Rodin to the tune of three lengths in May, various reasons meant he wasn’t seen again.
Setbacks prevented John Murphy’s star from proving himself abroad and Keane was hardly alone in watching the rain-sodden Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe wondering what might have been, especially since he’d ridden the winner, Bluestocking, into second in the 2023 Irish Oaks.
“The way it turned out you’d love to have seen him take his chance. The way the ground turned up you’d like to think the horse that turned up for the Tattersalls Gold Cup would have run a massive race.
“Not to take away from the filly, she’s very smart. I was probably a little unlucky on her in the Oaks. Looking back, I didn’t know enough about her. But he’d have been a great ride to have in it all the same,” Keane says ruefully.
There’s still no bigger international shop window though than the Breeders’ Cup, and no better statistical record in it than Keane’s. And this time he got to fully enjoy Magnum Force’s success.
“When I won my first Breeders’ Cup it was during Covid,” he details. “The crowd and the atmosphere here was a different level to anything I’ve experienced, just like nothing else.”
Something perhaps that might encourage a home bird to try and spread his wings further afield. Not many can say they have a boss actively encouraging others to use his prize asset. And there is the history of how both Kinane and Murtagh honed their talents domestically until aged 30, they started to hit their peak years.
Increasingly, Keane’s task may be to balance overseas ambitions and opportunities with a pull for home. Magnum Force’s Breeders’ Cup success underlined his capacity for steeping onto the biggest stage. But continuing his reign as Ireland’s champion jockey is no mean ambition either. And as balancing acts go, it an enviable one to have.
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Getting the call-up from David Menusier to ride Tamfana in the Sun Chariot Stakes resulted in a maiden British Group 1 (HR)
SHANE FOLEY
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: DONNCHADH BOYLE
BIONIC Man
Being a late starter and getting a titanium prosthetic hip have proven no handicap to Shane Foley, whose matching commitment to off-Broadway events and centre stage affairs brought him past a signifiicant landmark in April and has him dreaming ofi fiurther Classic glory next year
Racing has a way of keeping you humble. Shane Foley can bear witness to that. When we speak on the Bank Holiday Monday in late October, he’s less than 48 hours after what he describes as one of the biggest days of his career.
In Doncaster on the previous Saturday, he was on board Hotazhell as they squeezed out Ryan Moore and the Aidan O’Brien-trained Delacroix to take the £127,000 first prize in the Futurity Trophy Stakes. As we speak, he’s in the bath to help shift any excess weight before heading to Galway where he’s booked for five rides, with the most valuable of the races he is involved in worth less than €9,000 to the winner.
Hotazhell showed tremendous guts in responding to the trademark Foley drive to deny Delacroix by a nose in the Futurity Trophy Stakes at Doncaster in October
None of those mounts would go close to the winner’s enclosure. But for both the biggest days and the more off-Broadway race meetings, the demands remain the same.
That is the life he has chosen and the life he loves, though it is fair to say that racing found Foley rather than the other way around. Growing up in Graiguenamanagh in Kilkenny, he could see both the GAA field and the soccer pitch from his house. Those were his “first loves” as he puts it. By the time he went to secondary school across the border in Wexford, he hadn’t so much as sat on a horse, let alone considered a career in the industry.
But it was in Good Counsel in New Ross that he had his Sliding Doors moment as the universe put the scaffolding in place to guide him towards a career in racing.
First he fell in with the likes of Matthew O’Connor, MJ Doran and Seán Flanagan. “Horsey men,” as he describes them. He also came under the tutelage of racing-mad English teacher and former Wexford GAA football manager Aidan O’Brien. Between them all, they ensured Foley was bitten by the racing bug.
“I’ll never forget we went to Aintree on a school tour in first year,” Foley remembers. “And we were in Ballydoyle on another school tour. Our English teacher - I call him the real Aidan O’Brien! - he would be a big horsey man and keeps in contact. He text me after the race the other day and would be a big follower. It’s a horsey school and a very sporty school.”
As a mid-teen, Doran and O’Connor threw him up on “a big hunter called Stroller” for his first proper ride. He’s 36 now and hasn’t been away from horses since.
“We went around the gallops in Wexford. I’d been on ponies before but that was my first taste of it properly. I’d say I was 15.
“At that age you don’t think of fear, and I don’t think he was fast enough to put fear into you and the lads had a racing background - Matt’s parents
bred horses and MJ’s sister was training at the time and things like that. So I suppose I was lucky enough I met them and got with them.”
All throughout his journey, Foley acknowledges that there was always someone willing to give him a chance. Someone would open a door and he would walk through it. In the early days he rode ponies for Aidan Browne and then served an apprenticeship under Mick Halford. He’s now number one jockey to Jessica Harrington.
“Mick was very busy and would have been more handicap horses at that time so I was lucky to come into him at the right time. And then he got the Aga Khan and Godolphin (horses) so there were some wonderful times there. He put me on the straight and narrow, he’s a very good boss that way, he gets you lined up for the real world.”
The fact that he was a late bloomer – in relative terms - worked in his favour.
“I actually didn’t get my licence until I was 19, which was probably a good thing in a way, because I was a bit older and a bit stronger by then. Sometimes now I think kids are only 16 years of age and they are thrown in at the deep end, and they have to deal with adults and owners and everything. I think that stood to me that I was a bit older and a bit more mature.
“But yeah I’ve a lot of people to thank on the way, people who gave me a start.”
He hit his stride quickly in his riding career, finishing second to Joseph O’Brien as an apprentice. He’s taken a global approach to his career too and it has paid off. He spent three winters in Japan where he rode the best part of 30 winners. In 2013, he was first past the post for Halford at the Dubai Carnival. He also won the jockeys’ championship in Saudi Arabia and had notable wins in Santa Anita as well as on the Continent.
There are nuances to racing in different countries but at the top end the game is similar the world over.
Recording his 1000th career winner with the Ger O’Learytrained Action Plan on a humdrum card at Gowran Park in April was fiitting fior a rider who is never saving himselfi fior the bright lights
“I actually didn’t get my licence until I was 19, which was probably a good thing … I think now kids are only 16 years of age and they are thrown in at the deep end, and they have to deal with adults and owners and everything”
“It’s funny. Usually in the good races, you’re in against the good jockeys and good horses and those good races I think are easier to ride in than some of the other races because you have an idea of what lads are going to do and where they are going to be placed.”
Foley’s keen on his health and fitness and sits comfortably enough at 8st10lb, with the ability to trim a little more if needs be, though he had a hiccup of sorts a couple of years ago when a troublesome hip needed surgical intervention.
“I had a hip replacement done. I think I needed it because it’s a hereditary thing and there was a bit of arthritis there and it was giving me grief for a while. I kept putting it off and putting it off. I wasn’t sure if I was allowed ride with a prosthetic hip to be honest at the time. It was sort of in the unknown.
“But I spoke to the doctors about it and said it to Jennifer (Pugh, Chief Medical Officer of the IHRB) that I was thinking of getting it done and that I couldn’t keep going the way I was going. She said, ‘Look, you’d be taking a chance if you ever got a fall on it but we’re happy enough if you can ride on with it, if you do get it done.’ So I didn’t think twice about it and haven’t looked back since.”
Earlier this year he passed a significant milestone, riding his 1000th winner when 22/1 shot Action Plan won in Gowran.
“I didn’t even know I was getting close to that but it was nice to do, a nice achievement because Ireland is very competitive.”
At season’s end, he’ll take some time to indulge one of his favourite pastimes of hunting and he’ll help out with wife Lorraine’s Ironhills Equestrian business. Then he’ll head to Australia for a “working holiday” to ride for Ciaron Maher. It’s
THREE OF THE BEST
Hotazhell, Futurity Stakes, Doncaster 2024
“I actually couldn’t believe the price he ended up being to be honest because his fiorm was rock solid and he’s been running well, so it wasn’t that much ofi a surprise (that he won). I would have been disappointed ifi he wasn’t in the shake-up. I got a good kick out ofi that.”
Jet Setting (top), Irish 1000 Guineas 2016
“ That was my first Group 1. Jet Setting fior Adrian Keatley at the Curragh. She was a bit ofi an outsider (9/1) so that was a phenomenal buzz and experience.”
Lucky Vega, Keeneland Phoenix Stakes 2020
“He was Mr Zhang’s first European Group 1 winner. I’ve had a good association with him fior the last six or seven years and to repay him with a Group 1 was brilliant.”
one part of the racing world he hasn’t explored before but with Harrington not known for sending many runners to the all-weather in Dundalk, the opportunity has presented itself.
It’s a busy life and one that comes with no guarantees. After winning the Futurity in Doncaster he caught a train to London and jumped on the Eurostar to Paris before making his way to Saint-Cloud for two rides. Both of them finished last-but-one.
Still, he wouldn’t change a thing. Racing found Foley. He’s delighted that it did.
HATS OFF
Brian Meehan unearthed some real gems this year to return him to the big time
It is a good job that Brian Meehan’s racing office at his historic Manton stables is huge – he needs the wall space.
Pictures of memorable winners from around the globe are a galloping wallpaper recording the achievements of a man who left County Limerick as a teenager in the 1980s with hopes and aspirations but a mountain to climb to get anywhere near to them being fulfilled.
They compete for a visitor’s attention with garlands, horse blankets and caps from forays to the Breeders’ Cup in America, including his two memorable victories in the mile-and-a-half Turf with Red Rocks and Dangerous Midge in 2006 and 2010 respectively.
The picture-hanger will need to find a few more square inches to squeeze in images of the Meehan heroes of 2024, Jayarebe and Rashabar.
Wins for Jayarebe in the Hampton Court Stakes and Rashabar in the Coventry Stakes made it a special Royal Ascot week in June for Meehan and it was no flash in the pan. Four months later, Jayarebe, who had finished runner-up to Irish Champion Stakes winner Economics in the Prix Guillaume d’Ornano at Deauville in August, followed up with victory in the Prix Dollar at Longchamp’s Arc meeting.
There was almost another memorable meeting double when Rashabar, who had finished second to Aidan O’Brien’s Whistlejacket when trying to give
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: MARCUS TOWNEND
Meehan a third victory in Deauville’s Prix Morny, again narrowly missed out on a Group 1 prize when beaten a neck by O’Brien’s Camille Pissaro in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère.
The tragic epilogue to Meehan’s season came when Jayarebe collapsed and died moments after finishing unplaced in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Del Mar in November, the colt suffering a suspected heart attack. It was a bitter blow but one which should not be allowed to colour a season in which the trainer had once again showed his prowess by unearthing another pair of equine gems.
Sadly, his achievements can seem to fly under the radar in Britain, partly because of how his stable has evolved and how he now manages his ammunition. If you added the thick end of €800,000 from prizemoney and premiums that Meehan’s runners earned in France during the summer to his British earnings, he would still be punching close to the top 20 in the trainers’ championship.
That figure would have been even better if Kathmandu had not been collared in the dying strides of the French 1000 Guineas at ParisLongchamp in May and been beaten a neck by Rouhiya.
The days Meehan trained almost 200 horses at Manton are history now. He is more comfortable concentrating on quality over quantity but there is no reduction in his drive.
“I would hate anyone to think that just because we are not trying to have 150-plus horses that we lack ambition. That is not the case at all. We are comfortable with the numbers but ambitious with the horses. I would see our operation as more of a boutique-type one nowadays. We don’t want a huge amount of horses; we just want to train nice horses.
“I wouldn’t have said that training close to 200 horses brought the best out of me. I would not want to go back there. I am not saying we couldn’t do it, we could and we were successful but it wasn’t as enjoyable. Plus, what is important each year is to find good horses. It doesn’t matter how many you have, if you don’t have good horses, it is difficult.
“We have 80 boxes here but we have started the last few years with around 70 horses. The method has evolved but that is natural, you can’t stay the same. It is a cliche but the reality is you never stop learning about the horses. There is a new group every year and they are all very different. Having a smaller number means knowing them more and understanding them better.
“I like evolving hence going to Royal Ascot and winning a two-year-old race and a three-year-old middle-distance race. It gives me more satisfaction.”
Reflecting on how his philosophy has changed, Meehan adds: “When you are younger you want to train a thousand horses and be in the top five every year but we don’t care about that. It’s about winning nice races, enjoying it and keeping the business going.
BRIAN MEEHAN
“There are more and more young trainers starting every year now which is good and competitive but the people I train for have horses with me because they like having horses here. When you have that relationship, you are going to operate much better. It is great trust between trainer and client. It makes for a successful relationship.”
A key ally for Meehan is Sam Sangster, the bloodstock agent whose late father, Robert was one of the most influential breeders and owners in modern racing history through his association with Coolmore Stud and Vincent O’Brien as well as resurrecting the Manton racing estate.
Sangster bought both Jayarebe and Rashabar as yearlings at Arqana in Deauville with the latter running for the Manton Thoroughbreds syndicates he manages. The horses, all trained by Meehan, run in his late father’s instantly recognisable emerald green and blue silks.
“We do the sales together. He is my agent and it has been working very well. He wanted to go in that direction and I thought it was a good move for me to line up with him. It is a strong friendship, a great association. Both of us probably have a piece of every horse in the yard. Then you have a little skin in the game because you are not going to make anything out of prizemoney in the UK (sic) even at the higher level.
“Hence why we are doing a lot in France and buying a lot at Arqana. It makes good sense because you can take them back there for the prizemoney premiums and the prizemoney there is strong anyway.”
The 2024 returns for Meehan are even more gratifying given he had ended last season on the back foot when Isaac Shelby suffered a careerending injury after being runner-up in the Prix Daniel Wildenstein at the Arc meeting.
The 2023 French 2000 Guineas runner-up, who had been bought by the increasingly influential Qatar operation, Wathnan Racing, was supposed to be the Meehan flagbearer as he again set his sights on prizes around the world. It is a modus operandi which again probably contributes to
“I would see our operation as more of a boutiquetype one nowadays … I wouldn’t have said that training close to 200 horses brought the best out of me (though) we were successful”
Coventry Stakes victor, Rashabar will have Group 1 aspirations next year, with a Guineas tilt defiinitely in the pipeline
Red Rocks, pictured here defeating Curlin in the Man O’War Stakes in 2008 with Javier Castellano riding, provided the Limerick native with his first Breeders’ Cup Turf victory at Churchill Downs two years later, when ridden by Frankie Dettori, who earned a huge bearhug after propelling Dangerous Midge to a second at the same venue in 2010
Meehan being less heralded at home than his achievements deserve.
The first of his 15 Group/Grade 1 wins was with the Kieren Fallon-ridden Tomba in the 1998 Prix de la Foret at Longchamp and eight of that tally have been overseas.
As well as his two Breeders’ Cup Turf wins, Meehan won the 2003 Gazelle Stakes on Belmont Park’s dirt track with Pat Day-ridden Buy The Sport, the 2006 Dubai Duty Free with the Jamie Spencer-ridden David Junior and the 2008 Man O’War Stakes at Belmont with Red Rocks in the hands of Javier Castellano. Meehan also became the first European trainer to win a race in Qatar when the Spencer-ridden Perkunas landed the 2015 Al Rayyan Stakes.
“It was Dermot Weld who was probably the first one to try to harvest the races abroad, especially America, winning the Belmont Stake as well as the Melbourne Cup. I always admired that and it appealed to me and my owners.”
It was Frankie Dettori who rode Meehan’s two Breeders’ Cup winners, memorably using
exaggerated hold-up tactics on Red Rocks, but beyond that, the jockeys to ride for him are a who’s who of the weigh room, some of the best the sport has ever seen, including Cash Asmussen, Hugh Bowman, Willie Carson, Ray Cochrane, Kevin Darley, George Duffield, Martin Dwyer, Jimmy Fortune, Richard Hughes, Kerrin McEvoy, Ryan Moore, Johnny Murtagh, Gerald Mosse, Pat Smullen, Gary Stevens, Walter Swinburn and Johnny Velasquez.
Mick Kinane, who Meehan still works closely with in the training of a crop of two-year-olds annually which are then shipped to Hong Kong for their racing careers, partnered Meehan’s first big winner, the 1995 Listed National Stakes at Sandown on Amaretto Bay. Pat Eddery won 98 races for him and he even got to use the great Lester Piggott.
It is a list which adds context and significance to the praise Meehan showers on his current No 1 choice, Sean Levey (featured elsewhere in this publication).
“You have to go for the best if you can. Although Lester didn’t ride a winner for me, he was really helpful with his feedback. Sean is our go-to man now and rides with incredible confidence and understanding of what he intends to do in each race.
“I think a lot of Sean as a jockey and a guy. It is a good relationship and you have to have that with your jockey. You have to find ways of making them confident and not put them under too much pressure.”
It was 2006 when, having been approached by Ben and Guy Sangster, Meehan succeeded John Gosden at Manton, the secluded, private estate just outside Marlborough in Wiltshire. His predecessors included Peter Chapple-Hyam, Michael Dickinson, Barry Hills and, further back, Alec Taylor, the 12-time champion trainer known as the Wizard of Manton with his 21 Classic successes, and George Todd, who trained Sodium to win the 1966 Irish Derby and English St Leger.
Meehan has since bought his corner of Manton with his stable having rights to the gallops which
are maintained by estate owner Martyn Meade. It has been quite a journey for the son of an orthopedic surgeon, whose family were interested in horse racing but had no connection to it.
“Growing up in Ireland it was very hard to avoid it. There were ponies, hunting and summer jobs riding out for trainers. Racing was what I always wanted to do. I finished school and went to the Irish National Stud, which was great grounding for two years, and then Richard Hannon’s and you couldn’t get a better education than there.
“I had written to him, Robert Armstrong and Dick Hern and nobody replied. It was pre-mobile phones so I came home for the weekend from the stud and my father said to call them. The first one I called was Hannon and I said, ‘It is Brian Meehan from the Irish National Stud, can I speak to Mr Hannon?’ I think he thought I was interested in looking at Don’t Forget Me, who had just won the (1987) 2000 Guineas, for the stud. He wouldn’t have taken the call otherwise! I came over and stayed nearly six years and my first winner –Connect, ridden by Brian Rouse at Brighton in May 1993 - was owned by his wife Jo.”
But going solo was far from smooth sailing at the start as Meehan, whose aspiring trainer son Frank will start work for Francis Graffard in France in 2025 after a spell in the US with Brendan Walsh, recalls.
“In that first year training at Folly House in Lambourn we got to six winners. I couldn’t believe it but we were struggling and at one stage were kept going when my holiday pay and pool money from Hannon’s turned up.
“I remember going to the bank manager and asking for an overdraft and he turned me down. But Brendan Powell introduced me to a lovely man called Mick Donovan, who ran the Allied Irish Bank
BRIAN MEEHAN
leave the rest to me.’ There is always a way – you have to try to work it out.”
By the time he got the invitation to Manton, Meehan had bought Newlands Stables in Lambourn and expanded it from 50 to 90 boxes. There was also an offer to return home.
“I was offered the opportunity once to train for a large owner in Ireland but I declined it because things were getting going here.”
The momentum had developed thanks to horses like seven-furlong specialist Tumbledown Ridge, a three-time winner of the Ballycorus Stakes at Leopardstown, 2000 Prix Morny winner Bad As I Wanna Be, 2005 Cheveley Park Stakes winner Donna Blini and David Junior, arguably his best ever horse with domestic wins in the 2005 Champion Stakes and 2006 Eclipse Stakes.
But for fine margins, it could have been even better. The talented Delegator had the misfortune to run into Sea The Stars in the 2009 2000 Guineas while there might have been a third Breeders’ Cup win if Shumoos, ridden by the late Garrett Gomez, had not missed the break when runner-up in 2011 Juvenile Sprint.
While the Meehan conveyor belt may have slowed a little, the 2024 flat season has shown it continues to deliver quality racehorses. The cruel blow of losing Jayarebe has robbed him of a colt who would have had some of the world’s biggest middle-distance prizes on his agenda in 2025 but as he surveys the pictures on his office wall, he has realistic Classic aspirations for Rashabar. After the Group 1 near-misses, the goal will be a first top-level victory since Most Improved won the 2012 St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot.
The contrasting emotions Meehan must have faced during the 2024 campaign make it all the more poignant when he says: “I am an optimist by nature. It is all very well to look at the wall and
“I was offered the opportunity once to train for a large owner in Ireland but I declined it because things were getting going here”
David Junior was arguably Meehan’s best ever horse, winning among other top prizes, the Champion Stakes at Newmarket with Jamie Spencer steering in 2005
Thunderstruck
An eye for a bargain has fuelled Jack Davison’s best season so far in the training ranks
was a Group 3 winner last year in Newbury and
“At the end of the day these are big bets, these horses we are buying... It is gambling”
He greyed before his time but, learning along the way, remains one of Ireland’s youngest trainers and one of its hungriest – along with the team he built in his yard.
Just over a year ago, Jack Davison and the Benson brothers – Danny and Jordan – were trying to break a yearling that was testing their ample horsemanship. I remembered the youngster’s dam – Speronella – as she had been bought by Mary Davison and I recall Mary, such a shrewd judge, talking about her before she left this world all too soon five years ago this January.
Mary’s nephew, Jack was intimate with the colt’s family: his folks’ Killarkin Stud bred him and
half-brother Thunderbear, who Jack trained, won four races – including a Newbury Group 3 in 2023 under Sean Levey. A full-brother, Scorchio, had won three races for Jack, and two other halfsiblings won too.
There are many hints in the names and this youngster would be called Lightning Bear. Despite hailing from a family of speed, class and winners, he was bought for €5,000 – by Jack off his father Johnny at a public auction. Moreover, they paid up the €5,000 needed to qualify for the Goffs bonus scheme.
“Nobody wanted him,” Jack recalls. “Anyway, we were breaking him, and he was very tricky. He
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: JOHNNY WARD
Thunderbear
returned to the winner’s enclosure in Navan in June under Colin Keane
wanted to do everything at one million miles an hour and was very nervous.”
Jack knew that the horse would be eligible for a nice bonus – little thinking he might achieve it but nevertheless hopeful that good things happen if you believe they will. So he told the Benson brothers: “If this lad wins the bonus I’m bringing you to Las Vegas.”
Fast-forward to last September. Yours truly was on duty at Down Royal, interviewing Jack before the first about a lively each-way hope called Lighting Bear – about which he was very sweet. As the horse was led in by Danny Benson to the number one spot, one was struck by how wide his smile was. The lads were off to Vegas.
“The funny thing is,” Jack recalls in his gorgeous yard that straddles the Meath-Kildare border, “Thunderbear had won a Group 3 two weeks previous to the sale but the horse was unwanted. He was small and weak but his athleticism and quality was obvious to me so I was happy to take the punt. It really paid off. He was sold in October for £58,000.”
Jack is very much bred for the game and behaves accordingly. Now seven years with a licence, he is based at Killarkin, which was purchased by Jack’s grandfather, Walton in the late 1950s. It bred numerous notable racehorses, including Group 1 winners Hot Spark and Steel Heart. Walton also was instrumental in syndicating the US-bred stallion Habitat, who went on to become one of the most influential sires in recent history.
When Jack’s parents’ homebred filly Mooneista took the Group 2 Sapphire Stakes on Oaks Weekend in the Curragh in 2021, it helped put him on the map, but by any metric this year has been a revelation. Nineteen winners for the flat year up to the middle of November – and a further 30 placed – from just over 150 runs represented excellent going, with total earnings not far off half a million.
He has shown an eye for horses bought at a small price. “I would say I am (a good judge). The last couple of years we bought well and, for what we paid for them, the return was very good.”
Take Me To Church, as Jack says, is an obvious example. The strapping ground-versatile Churchill colt followed the route of Awtaad and Paddington in winning the Madrid and running in the Guineas. “He was a €38,000 breeze-up purchase who finished fifth in the Irish Guineas (before being sold to America); we got a great return off him.
“We also bought Glenderry for €48,000 at the breeze-up sales. He won at Dundalk at the end of the season and was sold to Hong Kong. Bergamasco was a €12,000 yearling purchase and fetched £145,000 at Goffs London this year, sold to Hong Kong, along with €50,000 in prizemoney.
“In terms of other yearlings, She’s Quality has been our biggest outlay at €195,000 but she is a very good and valuable filly now. Hopefully, she can win a couple of group races next year and increase her value.”
JACK DAVISON
By that proven source of speed Acclamation, She’s Quality won thrice this season, including the Listed Abergwaun Stakes in an away-and-gone manner in September under Billy Lee.
“She had promised me the world as a twoyear-old: she had shown speed I’d never seen. I had Mooneista, who was a very good sprinter, but always felt She’s Quality had more raw speed than her.
“It was great to be able to get that tune out of her at Tipperary; we put on the blinkers and let her run away over the fast five at Tipperary – let her roll. It was a big pressure off, given what we paid for her. For her to be worth that, she really had to win a stakes race. It was great from a training and business point of view. It was great for the lads in the yard to have a flagbearer like that. Let’s hope she can become a high-level sprinter as a four-year-old.”
Davison does not shy away from the pressure of getting it right at the sales, but training sprinters is an art in itself and for whatever reason, Ireland rarely has much renown. He has his own views on that.
“I’ll get to our prizemoney issue but the reason we don’t have sprinters here is that we are still a selling market. We have the trainers to do it. Sprinters’ main thing is speed, so they have it or they don’t. When they have it, you can build on it and build on it but you have to be careful. They might not be physically developed to withstand that training.
“You have to balance the horse and the training routine the whole time, trying to lean on the horse a little bit but not too much. It’s a week-by-week thing but, if I think they are ready for the fast, fast work, I am more than happy to facilitate them. A lot of it is confidence – as well as breaking. We do a lot of work with the stalls, that is a big help.”
Davison, Ronan Whelan and Danny Benson after Take Me To Church made it three-in-a-row in Naas but a huge gap in prizemoney meant the colt’s sale to America was inevitable
JACK DAVISON
An electric performance in winning the Listed Irish Stallion Farms EBF Abergwaun Stakes at Tipperary, when Billy Lee was in the saddle, has raised hopes that She’s Quality can be a group winner next season
Beauty lies in beholders’ eyes. Aidan O’Brien’s simple assessment is that your first impression is invariably your last one. Jack does not disagree.
“When I am looking at a horse, overall athleticism is an absolute essential. Everyone talks about the walk; yes, they have to walk well, they have to be light on their feet, but they don’t necessarily have to have a big over-step which a lot of people look for – a common misconception that this means a big walk.
“All that is not the main thing in my view. I like to see a horse light on his feet. Everyone’s different but overall athleticism is my biggest thing and I’ve different markers on what athleticism is compared to other people.
“A horse will catch your attention pretty much straight away when he comes out of the box, which is a hard thing to explain to people. It’s just something I am refining each year: the more I practise, the more I learn; the more they work and do not work, I am all the while honing my eye, buying more than I ever have.
“At the end of the day these are big bets, these horses we are buying – there is no sugarcoating here. I’m taking a share to try and reach a return. It is gambling. The stakes are very high. I really try to focus on what I am trying to buy and think ahead: can this win a maiden, seven furlongs or a mile, and be more valuable a few months down the road? It takes a fair degree of guts but you also need experience and I have gotten it right a few times, enough to get the confidence of potential investors or new owners up.”
He has been consistently critical of the levels of prizemoney in Ireland. “It is the lifeblood of racing and we need to do better. The yearlings we are producing are really good but there is no real incentive for the owner to keep them here
by means of purses so that’s very disappointing for Irish trainers.
“We only want to get better horses the whole time but it’s a very difficult sell: you buy a horse for €200,000 and it wins a listed race but makes a mere fraction of what it cost. But winning a stakes race in Ireland takes a lot of doing. We need to reward the owners better who have invested a lot of money to buy it and then have it in training — around €25,000 per year, with the costs going up. With the better horses, we need to be breaking even, that is the least we should be doing.
“Take Me To Church could have potentially stayed with me and my American owner is very positive about having a horse in Europe but he could not justify keeping him here when he could go straight to Saratoga off the plane and race for five to ten times what he could in Ireland.”
Davison loves speed and the gallop he is setting will be difficult to maintain – let alone better, which is his plan next year. Standing still in racing ensures regression, especially given the pressures on the financial side and taking on Coolmore week after week.
When we spoke, he was fresh from the Newmarket sales, having bought two yearlings and sold Lightning Bear. He’d spent €80,000 on a Sioux Nation colt at Goffs.
“In terms of 2025, I very much want to continue where we’ve left off in 2024. We are always so excited about working with the young horses to see where we can get them because we have a strong belief in the yard that we can maximise every horse’s potential, and, with the yearlings, the dreams are well and truly alive.
“Winning a group race or two with She’s Quality would be high on our agenda to improve her value. Mooneista was sold in the end for 850,000 guineas. You have to think ahead.”
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SEÁN BOWEN
Photos: HEALY RACING & CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: FRANK KEOGH
Bowen Winner
Having been reared in the jumps game and worked on future Gold Cup winner Minella Indo, Seán Bowen always seemed destined for stardom but few would have predicted he would become British champion apprentice five months after arriving in England
There were double-takes among racing fans around Britain when a new rider emerged on the flat with the same name as a leading jump jockey.
Now Sean D Bowen, with the initial of his middle name Dylan inserted on racecards, is making headlines in his own right.
The teenager, brought up in a world of jump racing, left his family in Ireland and five months later was crowned the 2024 champion apprentice on the level in Britain.
“It was probably a big move at the time, but it felt like the right decision,” says Bowen, the 19-year-old nephew of renowned point-to-point producer, John Nallen.
“It was a great achievement. I didn’t think I’d get as far as I did in the first season. I thought it would take a bit longer to get into the swing of things.”
Bowen was brought up around horses in Clonmel, County Tipperary. He first sat on a pony aged two and a racehorse three years later.
His uncle produced Minella Indo and Minella
Times through the point-to-points, having bought both as foals. They would go on to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup and Grand National in the space of three weeks in 2021, the latter as Rachael Blackmore – whose father Charles supplies the feed on which all Nallen’s horses are reared - became the first female jockey to land the big race at Aintree.
John runs the four-star Minella Hotel - from which the horses get their names and indeed, where Blackmore’s parents got married - with his sister and Seán’s mother Liz, and Bowen can count himself a rarity as a flat jockey who has ridden a Cheltenham Gold Cup winner.
“I cantered Minella Indo before he won a point-to-point. Everyone knew from his pieces of work that he had a fair engine on him,” he says.
After competing on the pony racing circuit, where he rode ten winners, a career on the flat beckoned for the young rider, although he has not ruled out going over jumps further down the line.
“I did want to go jumping at the start but all I would have done in Ireland is schooling the point-to-pointers.”
He was aged only 16 when claiming his first winner, at just the fifth attempt, aboard Ajax Tavern for trainer Denis Hogan in a seven-furlong claimer at Dundalk in December 2021.
With more experience coming on four horses bought especially to support him by Nallen, he had just sat a school exam when the chance of a ride in the 2023 Epsom Dash on Derby Day for English trainer Ian Williams came via a text message from then agent, Ruaidrhi Tierney.
That ninth-place finish on Mokaatil was Bowen’s only ride in Britain before 2024. Williams came calling again in March and syndicate ownership group Deva Racing booked him for Destinado on the opening day of the British flat turf season at Doncaster, where victory for trainer James Owen paved the way for what would prove to be a fruitful partnership.
At the start of May, he moved to England, based full-time at Owen’s Newmarket yard as his apprentice jockey and the rest is history. Over the next few months, he only came back to Ireland for a day trip.
“The opportunity came for plenty more racing than I would get at home. James was the next up-and-coming trainer at Newmarket –he’s very easy-going and does very well with his two-year-olds.”
That was ably demonstrated with Wimbledon Hawkeye winning the Group 2 Royal Lodge Stakes and finishing third in the Futurity Trophy under James Doyle. And the dual-purpose handler could hardly have fared better with his first apprentice jockey, providing much of the firepower for Bowen’s title charge, with William Haggas, David O’Meara and James Ferguson among 20 trainers to supply winners.
“Seán is a real team player with a great head on his shoulders, very well-mannered, and an extremely natural horseman. He has been incredibly committed this season and has a very bright future ahead of him,” says Owen.
Four successive August wins and a treble at Brighton in September saw him move clear in the
Bowen’s uncle, point-to-point legend John Nallen, bought some fllat horses speciflically to help his nephew get going as a young jockey (HR)
“He has the work ethic of his mother, the manners of his father, the neck of his uncle and the balls of a brass monkey”
SEÁN BOWEN
apprentice title race, although the battle with Joe Leavy went down to the final day of the season before he was finally crowned champion at Catterick. A total of 44 victories between May and October had sealed a winning margin of two.
“This is different gravy,” said Nallen, who was in attendance at the North Yorkshire course with Bowen’s parents as the teenager lifted the trophy.
“He has the work ethic of his mother, the manners of his father, the neck of his uncle and the balls of a brass monkey.”
Bowen acknowledged the support, saying: “John has a great team at home. He watches most of the races and I talk to him on a regular basis. Without them, I wouldn’t be standing where I was.
“I never really thought of the title at the start when I did move over, I thought I might be in the first four or five. Myself and Joe got a great thrill out of it every day. There was always people asking about it, and it was a buzz.
“Looking at the names of winners that have gone before, they have all gone on to do well, and
hopefully I can do the same. I was over the moon when I did do it.”
That roll of honour includes future champions like Frankie Dettori (1989), Ryan Moore (2003) and Oisín Murphy (2014) along with one of the riders he looked up to as a boy who he can now count on for help – the leading 2015 apprentice Tom Marquand.
“Tom would be one of the nicest people in the weighing room. You could ask him anything and he is always very easy to talk to and give advice.”
Bowen was controversially denied his biggest victory with Manxman in the Cesarewitch Handicap at Newmarket for Simon and Ed Crisford a fortnight before clinching the championship. Original winner, Alphonse Le Grande, trained in Ireland by Cathy O’Leary, edged out his mount by a nose but was then disqualified following a review after jockey Jamie Powell was deemed to have used his whip four times above the permitted level.
That verdict was later overturned on appeal and Manxman - and Bowen - went back to being second, with Bowen’s seasonal tally reduced from the 45 it was on the day he was crowned champion. Fortunately, he had just enough breathing space to be able to afford it.
Despite standing at 5’9”, he has been able to get down to a lowest weight of 7st11lb, and while shunning saunas, tries to go to the gym every day, does weights and runs three miles daily.
“I do a good bit of schooling for James on his jumpers so if I did get heavy, it wouldn’t be a problem going jumping.”
Bowen will still be able to claim 3lb next year and has benefitted from training with jockey coach Michael Hills, who won the Derby at Epsom with Shaamit in 1986.
“We had to do quite a lot of work on the different style of racing in England and he learned very quickly. It’s great to work with someone who has ambition and hunger, and when you see them improve, it gives you a great thrill. He’s come a long way in a short time,” Hills declares.
Bowen plans a spell in the United States over the winter to ride trackwork, and believes regular course riding against the clock will help him.
“James has a very nice bunch of yearlings and hopefully next year I can make a few more contacts. I’d like to up the rides for other trainers and the title should stand me in good stead.
“I definitely think my confidence has increased. I do think that it plays a huge role in race riding. When your confidence is up, then everything else is straightforward.”
While he shrugs off any comparison with the talented Welsh jump jockey of the same name, the two did meet in a flat race at Bath in September, where the Irish rider won on Maritime Lady with his counterpart unplaced.
And if they both keep progressing, who knows what the future might hold? There could be two champion jockeys called Seán Bowen.
“I think everyone sets that goal, but we will just have to wait and see,” concludes the younger man.
Bowen cantered Minella Indo prior to the fluture Cheltenham Gold Cup winner scoring in his maiden point-to-point at Dromahane and has been schooling James Owen’s jumps horses in Newmarket
Hot toTrot
A look at the Irish Classic crop in 2025
LAKE VICTORIA (IRE) 118p
b f Frankel – Quiet Reflection (Showcasing)
Lake Victoria enjoyed the perfect season. Debuting at the Derby meeting, she went unbeaten in five starts, showing great versatility in terms of trip and ground and enters winter quarters a strong 1000 Guineas favourite. That Curragh maiden win was followed by success in the Sweet Solera at Newmarket before returning to the Curragh to take the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes, coming off the pace with a fine turn of foot up the centre of the track to win comfortably.
Somewhat surprisingly, the Frankel filly was back out again under a fortnight later. Dropped to six furlongs for the first time for the Group 1 Cheveley Park, she stepped up another level in performance under a much more positive ride, coming home three lengths clear and clocking a quicker time than the colts in the Middle Park.
Her season culminated in success over a mile in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies’ Turf where she justified her position as odds-on favourite when essentially outclassing her rivals, despite not getting the best of passages. The sharp, turning mile at Del Mar is much less of a stamina test than the straight mile over
Newmarket’s Rowley Mile but Lake Victoria heads there a worthy favourite.
Bred on the now tried and trusted Coolmore formula of a Galileo (or son of Galileo) cross with a smart sprint mare, in this case the Commonwealth Cup and Haydock Sprint Cup winner Quiet Reflection, Lake Victoria is a three-parts sister to a couple of decent Galileo colts in this year’s three-year-old The Equator, who stays 1m6f, and Bluegrass, who stayed 1m2f.
Aidan O’Brien
HOTAZHELL (GB) 117p
b c Too Darn Hot – Azenar (Danehill Dancer)
“He ain’t called Hotazhell for nothing,” quipped Jessica Harrington after the colt’s success in the William Hill Futurity. Hot he may be, but gameness and toughness are qualities he has in abundance and never more in evidence than at Doncaster. Involved in a sustained duel with the Ballydoyle colt Delacroix from over a furlong out, that rival’s tendency to hang right did Hotazhell no favours but merely seemed to galvanise the son of Too Darn Hot.
The Futurity was a fourth win of the season for the colt, those wins also including the Tyros Stakes
Photos: PETER MOONEY • Words: ALAN HEWISON
HOTAZHELL
and Beresford Stakes. A mile and soft ground proved no barrier to the winner and he must have a good chance of staying 1m2f in 2025, though he’ll begin at a mile.
Jessica Harrington
THE LION IN WINTER (IRE) 117p
b c Sea The Stars – What A Home (Lope De Vega)
The unbeaten The Lion In Winter goes into winter quarters still something of an unknown quantity but a Guineas and Derby favourite. He was seen only twice, impressively winning a Curragh maiden in late July when a stable second choice and then a month later taking the Group 3 Acomb Stakes at York under a positive ride, Ryan Moore merely pushing him out hands and heels in beating subsequent Royal Lodge winner Wimbledon Hawkeye, with Tattersalls Stakes winner The Waco Kid back in fourth.
At that time he held no big-race entries and connections were suggesting the Goffs Million as his next target. He missed that race however, and also the Dewhurst Stakes due to a foot infection. A rare Sea The Stars colt coming from Ballydoyle, he was bought for €375,000 at the Goffs Orby Sale and is out of the group-placed 1m4f performer
What A Home, a half-sister to Ballydoyle’s dual 1m4f Group 3 winner Venus De Milo. A very exciting prospect with plenty of speed but a middle-distance pedigree - potentially a lethal combination.
Aidan O’Brien
DELACROIX (IRE) 116p
b c Dubawi – Tepin (Bernstein)
Just denied by Hotazhell when starting a warm favourite for the William Hill Futurity, Delacroix seems the more likely candidate of the two for the Derby trip judged on pedigree. A son of Dubawi, he is a half-brother to this year’s Prix de Royallieu winner over 1m6f, the three-year-old filly Grateful, the pair being the last two foals out of the top-class US miler Tepin. Delacroix had previously won the Autumn Stakes over a mile under a considerate enough ride from Ryan Moore. Indeed Moore only resorted to the whip at Doncaster in the closing stages as Hotazhell rallied. He had been more vigorous when the pair finished second to Green Impact in the KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes at Leopardstown. A colt still learning, Delacroix appears one of Ballydoyle’s leading Derby candidates.
Aidan O’Brien
EXPANDED (IRE) 115p
b c Wootton Bassett – Jigsaw (Galileo)
In the absence of The Lion In Winter, Expanded became the default Ballydoyle first-choice for the Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket in October, just a week after making a winning debut in a Curragh maiden over the same seven-furlong trip. He very nearly won it too, coming out second best in a three-way photo of necks. Remarkably in a field of just five the field split into two, Expanded being
HORSES TO FOLLOW
pressed by the eventual third Ancient Truth on the stands’ side, while Shadow Of Light led the trio up the centre of the track. The stands’ pair had it until Shadow Of Light, switched across inside the final furlong, produced a late surge to take it in the final strides. The winner had won the Middle Park Stakes just a week earlier, while Ancient Truth had landed the July Stakes over the same course and distance previously so the form has a solid look to it despite the small field size.
Expanded is a member of a terrific 2024 juvenile crop of Wootton Bassett, which also includes stablemates Camille Pissarro, Henri Matisse, Ides Of March, Twain and Twirl, as well as the likes of Tennessee Stud and Green Impact. A half-brother to last year’s Group 3-winning juvenile Henry Adams, who disappointed in two early-season outings this year, Expanded will have no trouble staying a mile, but quite how much further is open to question.
Aidan O’Brien
HENRI MATISSE (IRE) 115p
b c Wootton Bassett – Immortal Verse (Pivotal)
The victory of Henri Matisse in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf saw Aidan O’Brien join D Wayne Lukas as the winning-most trainers in the history of the 41-year Breeders’ Cup, with 20 winners. It was a third successive win in the race for O’Brien and a seventh in all. Henri Matisse had the best form of his 11 rivals at Del Mar, having won the Railway and Futurity Stakes at the Curragh and probably would have also won the National Stakes there but for running around when challenging inside the final furlong. However, he came into the race on the back of a disappointing run on soft ground in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère when blinkers had been tried. With blinkers left off and on fast ground, Henri Matisse was slow to break from an outside draw at Del Mar but under a very confident Ryan Moore, was able to circle his field on the home turn and finish his race out strongly to win with a bit in hand on his first run over a mile.
His dam, the high-class miler Immortal Verse, is proving a very successful broodmare too having already produced Cheveley Park and Prix Jean Prat
SCORTHY CHAMP
HORSES TO FOLLOW
BABOUCHE
winner Tenebrism, along with the Group 2 juvenile winner Statuette, who never made the track at three. Henri Matisse will be part of a strong Ballydoyle challenge for the 2000 Guineas in 2025.
Aidan O’Brien
SCORTHY CHAMP (IRE) 115p
ch c Mehmas – Fidaaha (New Approach)
Joseph O’Brien saddled his third winner in five renewals of the Goffs Vincent O’Brien National Stakes when Scorthy Champ reversed Futurity Stakes form with Henri Matisse at the Curragh in September. Showing a good attitude and keeping a much straighter course than that rival in the closing stages, he saw the trip out strongly although his rider said he idled in front. That Futurity Stakes third had been Scorthy Champ’s second start, having made a winning debut in a maiden over the same trip in May, despite a slow start, a trait which was also evident in the Futurity. He never ran after the National Stakes and will, presumably, be heading for the 2000 Guineas for which he’ll have to improve to play a leading role. A son of the sprinter Mehmas, a mile is likely to be Scorthy Champ’s limit as a threeyear-old.
Joseph O’Brien
CAMILLE PISSARRO (IRE) 114p
br c Wootton Bassett – Entreat (Pivotal) Beaten five times following his debut Navan maiden win in April, Camille Pissarro had run well in defeat on occasions over sprint distances but had begun to look exposed. He was passed over in favour of Henri Matisse by Ryan Moore when upped to seven furlongs in the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère on Arc weekend but showed marked improvement under a hold-up ride under Christophe Soumillon to outstay Coventry winner and Prix Morny second Rashabar on his first venture on soft ground. Being a half-brother to Commonwealth Cup winner Golden Horde was probably why he was viewed primarily as a sprinter, but the dam has also bred a listedwinning miler in Exhort, who has also won over
1m2f, so being by Wootton Bassett there must be a good chance of him getting a mile in 2025.
Aidan O’Brien
BABOUCHE (GB) 112p
b f Kodiac – Pavlosk (Arch)
In what looked a strong juvenile fillies crop in 2024, Ger Lyons had a pair who figure in the prospects for 2025 Classic success in Red Letter and Babouche. The latter never raced beyond six furlongs. Having made an immediate impression in a Cork maiden in June, she progressed to beat the colts in both the Anglesey Stakes and when overturning the odds-on Whistlejacket in the Group 1 Keeneland Phoenix Stakes, the first of her sex to win the race since La Collina in 2011. However, on softer ground, her winning streak came to an end in the Group 1 Juddmonte Cheveley Park Stakes, too keen when racing in a small group towards the near side and not getting home when only fourth to Lake Victoria. Babouche remains an exciting prospect. A full-sister to the group-winning miler Zarinsk, she is a better filly at this stage of her career and there seems every chance she can progress at three. A mile will be her limit.
Ger Lyons
GREEN IMPACT (IRE) 110p
b c Wootton Bassett – Emerald Green (Galileo) Whereas stablemate Hotazhell gained the plaudits for his Group 1 William Hill Futurity success, the Harrington yard could have an equal, if not better, Classic candidate in Green Impact. Two Leopardstown defeats of Futurity second Delacroix mark the Wootton Bassett colt out as a likely middle-distance performer, the second of which came at the Irish Champions Festival in the Juvenile Stakes over a mile. Keen enough early on, he settled well and then showed a good attitude for pressure. A big colt with plenty of scope, he looks the type to train on and will likely be seen out in a Derby trial.
Jessica Harrington
TWAIN (IRE) 110p
b c Wootton Bassett – Wading (Montjeu)
A latecomer to the party, Twain didn’t appear until mid-October when making all under 3lb claimer Mark Crehan to record a shock 28/1 success in a Leopardstown maiden over seven furlongs, beating two better-fancied stablemates. Just eight days later, supplemented to the race, he followed up at an admittedly weak Group 1 level, in the Criterium International at Saint-Cloud, produced under a more patient ride from Ryan Moore to lead in the straight and see the mile out well in testing conditions, despite running green and hanging left. A half-brother to the smart juvenile Just Wonderful, who failed to win in eight starts at three, Twain is a more late-developing type, hopefully with plenty more to come. Out of a half-sister to Irish Oaks winner Bracelet, he could well get 1m2f.
Aidan O’Brien
RACING FOR CHANGE
Tues 28th Jan - NH
Packages SRD - Student Race Day Catering for Non Racing Events
Thu 13th Mar - NH
Sun 23rd Mar - NH
Tues 1st Apr - NH -E
Thu 10th Apr - NH- SRD
Fri 25th Apr - Flat
Thu 22nd May - NH -E
Thu 29th May - NH - E
Wed 11th Jun - Flat - E
Sat 21st Jun - Flat
Sat 12th Jul - Flat
Sat 18th Oct - NH
Sun 19th Oct - NH
Tue 18th Nov - NH
Fri 26th Dec - NH
Sat 27th Dec - NH
Sun 28th Dec - NH
Mon 29th Dec - NH
• Words: RORY DELARGY
Light See the
What does the crystal ball tell us about next year’s crop of European three-year-olds outside of Ireland?
SHADOW
OF LIGHT (GB) 120
ch c Lope de Vega – Winters Moon (New Approach)
Middle Park Stakes winner Shadow Of Light took advantage of the absence of overnight favourite The Lion In Winter to follow up in the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes, emulating U S Navy Flag (2017) and Diesis (1982) as the only colts to have achieved that particular double since WWI.
The son of Lope de Vega was a surprise runner with connections having previously voiced the opinion that he was unlikely to stay beyond sprint trips, but they now have a conundrum to face given he’s won the most reliable 2yo trial for the colts’ Classic. On pedigree, the Guineas trip is a question mark with Shadow of Light closely related to another Middle Park winner in the shape of Earthlight, who gained all his wins at up to 7f, although other half-siblings have stayed a mile and Lope de Vega is hardly a pure speed influence.
My feeling is that the Commonwealth Cup is a better target for Shadow of Light, whose only defeat to date was a narrow one in the Gimcrack behind Cool Hoof Luke, but it would not surprise if he was given a chance in the Guineas before such a decision was made. He’s undeniably top class, and hard to leave out of any shortlist of prospects.
Charlie Appleby
DESERT FLOWER (IRE) 117p
ch f Night of Thunder – Promising Run (Hard Spun)
Desert Flower had beaten some useful fillies including Flight and Prestige Stakes runner-up Duty First on her debut on the July Course and showed her class by beating January by a length and a half in the Group 2 May Hill Stakes over a mile at Doncaster’s St Leger Festival.
She already looked a leading hope for Classic glory on Town Moor, but the way she outstayed
Photos: HEALY RACING
SHADOW OF LIGHT
January by five and a half lengths in the Fillies’ Mile at Newmarket suggests the sky is the limit for the daughter of Night Of Thunder. She looked altogether more professional at Newmarket too and it’s encouraging that her dam, Promising Run was a dual Group 2 winner over 1m1f at Meydan. Whether she stays the Oaks trip is hard to gauge, but she is much the likeliest of the locals to put it up to Lake Victoria in the 1000 Guineas.
Charlie Appleby
ANCIENT TRUTH (IRE) 114p
b c Dubawi – Beyond Reason (Australia) He may have lost his unbeaten record in the Dewhurst Stakes but Ancient Truth came out of that contest with his reputation enhanced. Coming off a 91-day break and racing on the softest ground he had encountered, he travelled like the best horse in the race before the lack of a recent run seemed to tell in the final furlong, going down by two necks behind stablemate Shadow of Light and Expanded.
Prior to the that, Ancient Truth had won all three starts, with his best effort coming when beating Seagulls Eleven and Wimbledon Hawkeye in the Group 2 Superlative Stakes at Newmarket’s July meeting. He will stay a mile at three, although that trip could prove his maximum and he looks Charlie Appleby’s best Guineas hope.
Charlie Appleby
WIMBLEDON HAWKEYE (GB) 113p
b c Kameko – Eva Maria (Sea The Stars)
It’s easy to forgive Wimbledon Hawkeye his defeat in a heavy-ground Futurity Stakes on his final 2yo start, with the offspring of Kameko seeming best on good or faster ground. Prior to Doncaster, he had produced an excellent display to win the Group 2 Royal Lodge at Newmarket from Royal Playwright and had served notice that he would be a major force at a mile and further when splitting The Lion In Winter and Ruling Court in the Acomb Stakes at York, that race looking much better than its Group 3 billing.
Lacking experience on his early starts (he was allowed to start at 28/1 when making a winning debut at Kempton), including when an excellent third in the Superlative Strakes behind Ancient Truth, Wimbledon Hawkeye matured through the season, and will continue to do so next year. He should develop into a leading 2000 Guineas hope, and given his dam won over 1¼m, he ought to get further in time, for all the Derby is likely to stretch him.
James Owen
AOMORI CITY (FR) 111
b c Oasis Dream – Setsuko (Shamardal)
Aomori City finds himself back on this list after a luckless third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, where he caught the eye with a fast-finishing effort after being hampered at the start, having initially broken through the gate before being allowed to rejoin the field.
Virtually last going into the turn, and not
HORSES TO FOLLOW
handling the sharp bend as well as Henri Matisse, Aomori City had almost three lengths to make up on the winner as the field straightened and did really well to bridge the gap to a length at the line. His win in the Group 2 Vintage Stakes at Goodwood didn’t work out that well, but physically, Aomori City appeals as the type to keep progressing into his second season. His best efforts have come on quick turf and he may again be campaigned with US prizes in mind.
Charlie Appleby
RASHABAR (IRE) 111
b c Holy Roman Emperor – Amazonka (Camelot) Rashabar’s only win to date came when an 80/1 shot in the Group 2 Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot, so it’s easy to be negative about his prospects as a three-year-old. However, he showed improvement in his two starts after that, finishing second in the Group 1 Prix Morny to Whistlejacket before filling the same spot in the Group 1 Prix Jean Luc Lagardère at Longchamp, shaping better that the bare result on both occasions.
In the Morny, the winner led throughout on the stands rail while Rashabar was pushed very wide as he launched his challenge, doing very well to separate himself from the pack and set off after the leader, and it was a short-looking threeparts of a length he was beaten at the line. In the Lagardère, he was involved with a battle for the lead for much of the straight before succumbing to the late charge of Camille Pissarro. Even then, he impressed as the only one of the leaders able to rally. Possessed of natural speed as well as an admirable fighting spirit, Rashabar ought to stay a mile on pedigree, and should pay his way at the top table.
Brian Meehan
ZARIGANA (GB) 110p
b f Siyouni – Zarkamiya (Frankel)
A half-sister to French 1½m winner Zarwara out of smart French 1m/1½m winner Zarkamiya, herself a daughter of brilliant Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe
WIMBLEDON HAWKEYE
HORSES TO FOLLOW
winner Zarkava, Zarigana has a pedigree to die for, and won her first two starts in the style of a topnotch prospect. All the rage for the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac on her final start at two, Zarigana was most unlucky to be edged out by stablemate Vertical Blue.
Zarigana was held up at Longchamp when those tactics were not advantaged, but she showed a ground-devouring stride as she set off in pursuit of the leaders. She is very much bred to make a better three-year-old and is likely to be trained with the Prix de Diane in mind. Francis Graffard is more than happy to travel his horses to England, however, and she could appear in races like the King George and/or the International should everything go according to plan on the home front. It would be no surprise to see her seek to emulate her brilliant grand dam at Longchamp in the autumn.
Francis-Henri Graffard
BIG MOJO (IRE) 108
b c Mohaather– JM Jackson (No Nay Never)
Big Mojo was beaten on all three starts after winning the Group 2 Molecomb Stakes at
Goodwood, where he was emulating the same connections’ star sprinter Big Evs, but despite those defeats, he showed improved form each time and looks a powerful sprinter who can do well in all the big events next season.
Big Mojo didn’t stay 6f in the Gimcrack having travelled well to lead a furlong out and was unlucky not to be placed in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, again looking the pick of the paddock, but not really handling the sharp bend and taking a bump in the straight before rallying for a close fourth to Magnum Force. A straight 5f on good or faster ground is ideal, and this strong colt can do better again with another winter behind him.
Mick Appleby
TUSCAN HILLS (FR) 105p
b c Night of Thunder – Taqleed (Sea The Stars) Here’s a real wildcard for the 2025 Classics. Not in the betting for the 2000 Guineas or Derby, Tuscan Hills is entered in the Irish 2000 Guineas and could prove a real force when the mud is fl ying. Unbeaten in two starts to date, he’s gone under the radar with those wins coming at Thirsk and Pontefract, but he looks to possess plenty of class and could well develop into a top-class three-year-old.
Tuscan Hills did well to win on debut at Thirsk (1m, good/firm) given he was slowly away and raced in rear in a contest run at a muddling pace, and he confirmed that promise when running away with the Listed Silver Tankard Stakes at Pontefract on heavy ground, beating the wellregarded Calla Lagoon, who had himself beaten Seaplane at Ascot on his previous start. Like his sire, Tuscan Hills has already proven himself on fast and testing turf as a juvenile and there’s no telling how good he might be in time. Keep him onside.
Raphael Freire
SIMMERING (gb) 104
b f Too Darn Hot – Cashla Bay (Fastnet Rock) Simmering is another who merits her place on the list due more to her efforts in defeat rather than her victories. She made quite hard work of landing the Group 3 Princess Margaret Stakes at Ascot in July before beating a sub-par French challenge in the Group 2 Prix du Calvados over 7f, but she impressed with her attitude in finishing second to Aidan O’Brien’s star pair Fairy Godmother, in the Albany Stakes, and particularly to Lake Victoria, in the Moyglare Stud Stakes in September.
Simmering was disappointing on paper in the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac on her final start but a change of tactics had much to do with that, and while she couldn’t quicken with Zarigana, she kept running to the line to show that a mile will be within her compass next year, and she will do better when able to utilise her battling qualities at that trip, with instant acceleration perhaps the one thing missing from her armoury.
Ollie Sangster
ZARIGANA
BIG MOJO
a Great
2025 RACE DATES DAY OUT at Gowran
JANUARY
Thursday 23rd – N.H. – Goffs Thyestes Chase
FEBRUARY
Saturday 15th – N.H. – Red Mills Race Day
MARCH
Saturday 8th – N.H. – Shamrock Chase (L)
APRIL
Wednesday 2nd – Flat (Evening Meeting)
Wednesday 16th – Flat
Wednesday 23rd – Flat (Evening Meeting)
MAY
Wednesday 7th – Flat (Evening Meeting)
Wednesday 21st – Flat (Evening Meeting)
JUNE
Monday 2nd – Flat – Bank Holiday Sunday 15th – Flat
JULY
Saturday 26th – Flat – Ladies Day 2025
AUGUST
Wednesday 13th – Flat (Evening Meeting) –Hurry Harriet Stakes (L)
SEPTEMBER
Tuesday 2nd – Flat
Saturday 20th – Flat
OCTOBER
Friday 3rd – N.H. – Mucklemeg Mares Bumper (L) & Pat Walsh Memorial Hurdle (L).
Saturday 4th – N.H. – PwC Champion Chase
Monday 20th – Flat Finale
NOVEMBER
Saturday 8th – N.H.
Elder Lemons
The depth chart looks pretty strong among the established cohort set to line up on the track next year (ages as of 2025, ratings reproduced by kind permission of Timeform)
CALANDAGAN (IRE) 129
4 b g Gleneagles – Calayana (Sinndar)
I must admit to having a soft spot for a top-class gelding since falling in love with a big unit called Teleprompter in the 1980s and it’s important to understand how the longevity of such runners can add to the appeal of flat racing. Several of the top races at Royal Ascot were won by geldings, the most exciting of which was Calandagan, who bolted up in the King Edward VII Stakes to follow up two impressive wins on softer ground in France.
The Aga Khan’s son of Gleneagles met defeat in the International Stakes at York and the Champion Stakes at Ascot on his subsequent starts, albeit improving his standing by being the only one to threaten City Of Troy on the
Knavesmire, and it went wrong for him at the start at Ascot, before he almost snatched victory from the jaws of defeat only to be collared in the dying strides by Anmaat. He is effective at 1¼m–1½m and has the physique and demeanour to improve again as a four-year-old. As a gelding the Arc is out of the equation, so he is likely to be campaigned with the big summer prizes in mind, and Francis Graffard will have the enviable headache of keeping he and stablemate Goliath apart.
Francis-Henri Graffard
GOLIATH (GER) 128
5 b g Adlerflug - Gouache (Shamardal) What an embarrassment of riches Francis Graffard
Photos: HEALY RACING & PETER MOONEY • Words: RORY DELARGY
CALANDAGAN
has among the middle-distance division, and what a shame neither of his best horses will be allowed to run in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp because they are geldings. Both have enjoyed group success on British soil last year and will undoubtedly be back for more in 2025.
Goliath enjoyed his biggest day with a surprise – but fully merited – win in the King George & Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot in July and that race is likely to be his main focus again, with the Hardwicke Stakes over the same track and trip looking an obvious stepping stone once more.
Goliath ended the season by winning the Prix du Conseil de Paris at Longchamp cosily from Hamish on heavy ground, but it’s fair to say that his best efforts came at Ascot on a faster surface.
A trip to Tokyo for the Japan Cup will come after the time of writing, but all being well, the son of Adler flug will continue to be a force at a mile and a half.
Francis-Henri Graffard
KYPRIOS (IRE) 128
7 ch h Galileo – Polished Gem (Danehill) What more needs to be said about the muchfeted Kyprios? He capped another perfect campaign with a comprehensive two-and-aquarter length victory in the Group 2 QIPCO British Champions Long Distance Cup, and the superstar stayer is set to return next season for a similar campaign, with the Gold Cup at Ascot his primary target.
That would be a treat for racegoers on both sides of the Irish Sea as Aidan O’Brien has never been shy of running a horse he describes as “needing a run to get his blood up,” and his win at Ascot was his seventh in a busy campaign which started with the Vintage Crop Stakes at Navan in April. The seven-year-old had a brush with death in 2022 from which he was deemed unlikely to recover, so to have come back as good as he was in a stellar 2022 campaign is a testament not only to those responsible for his veterinary care, but to the constitution of a truly remarkable racehorse. His trainer talks of him with a rare fondness, and he will be remembered as one of the best and most durable every to come out of Ballydoyle in the modern era.
Aidan O’Brien
WHITE BIRCH (GB) 128
5 g h Ulysses – Diagnostic (Dutch Art)
White Birch was sidelined by injury after winning the Tattersalls Gold Cup, where he saw off subsequent Prince of Wales’s Stakes winner Auguste Rodin in comfortable fashion to bring up an early-season Curragh hat-trick on ground softer than good, which took in the Group 3 Alleged Stakes and the Group 2 Mooresbridge Stakes.
White Birch had promised plenty when third to Auguste Rodin in the 2023 Derby and his defeat of that colt suggested that he had improved markedly from three to four, so it’s a shame that he was unable to run again. His setback was
HORSES TO FOLLOW
not expected to affect his ongoing career, and I’d expect to see him aimed once again at the Tattersalls Gold Cup with a similar preparation and he could be a big player in all the big middle-distance races open to older horses assuming he gets ground conditions in his favour.
John Murphy
ROSALLION (IRE)
126
4 b c Blue Point – Rosaline (New Approach)
A lung infection kept Rosallion out of the Sussex Stakes for which he was a hot favourite and after the ground turned soft, Richard Hannon opted to call it a day for the season, having been assured that he could train the horse to achieve his full potential as a four-year-old.
Beaten by Notable Speech in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket, Rosallion impressed when beating stable companion Haatem in the Irish version and took his revenge on Notable Speech with a most impressive victory in the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot. The son of Blue Point impressed with the way he quickened to get on terms having conceded first run to Haatem at the former and Henry Longfellow in the latter. His turn of foot on quick ground marks him down as the best of his generation at a mile.
It seems good or faster ground is imperative for Rosallion, so he’s unlikely to be making an early start, but races like the Lockinge and Queen Anne will be on his agenda in early summer.
Richard Hannon
GIAVELLOTTO (IRE) 125
6 ch h Mastercraftsman – Gerika (Galileo)
No match for Kyprios in the Irish St Leger, Giavellotto did travel best at the Curragh, and it was unlike him to find less than expected off the bridle. He looked an improved performer earlier in the campaign, winning the Yorkshire Cup impressively from Vauban before dropping back to a mile and a half in the Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket, where he had to carry a penalty for his York win. He still ran out a most convincing winner by 3¼ lengths from Arrest.
A break in the autumn will likely be followed by another international jaunt taking in some, if
KYPRIOS
HORSES TO FOLLOW
not all, of Hong Kong, Dubai and Saudi Arabia. He acquitted himself well on his travels last year and gave the strong impression that he could do better still based on his domestic form.
Giavellotto doesn’t stay the Gold Cup trip but gets a fast two miles well enough. He showed his adaptability at Newmarket’s July Festival, and I’d like to see him tackle the best around at 1½m at some stage.
Marco Botti
LAZZAT (FR) 125
4 b g Territories – Lastochka (Australia)
Here’s another gelding and Lazzat could follow in the footsteps of his owner’s Charyn to rise to the top of the tree as a miler at the age of four, having produced his best effort to win the Group 1 Prix Marice de Gheest (6½f) at Deauville where he slammed the likes of Flora and Bermuda and Mill Stream by four lengths and more. That took his career record to six wins from as many starts.
Lazzat had a break before going to Australia for the hugely valuable Golden Eagle Stakes at Rosehill Gardens where he finished a close second to Lake Forest in the 7½f event despite doing too much in front. While there are very few highprofile races over what might be his ideal trip of seven furlongs, he showed the speed to lead a strong field at Rosehill and should well prove as effective at six, with a mile yet to be attempted, but sure to tempt connections given his first three wins were at 7½f.
Jerome Reynier
KIND OF BLUE (GB) 122
4 b c Blue Point – Blues Sister (Compton Place) Followed in the footsteps of relatives The Tin Man and Deacon Blues by winning the Group 1 QIPCO British Champions Sprint in October. A grandson of the James Fanshawe-trained racemare Persario, Kind of Blue was providing the trainer with his third win in the Champions Sprint, with his previous winners both sons of
Persario, a remarkable achievement by both trainer and broodmare.
Unraced as a juvenile, Kind of Blue has progressed with every run and built on an excellent second to Montassib in the Sprint Cup at Haydock to gain his first Group 1 success on the softest ground he’s yet encountered. The son of Blue Point travelled strongly from his high draw and responded willingly to his rider’s urgings to lead well over a furlong from home. It was tough going in the final furlong, but he showed a most willing attitude to hold on.
Fanshawe has brought Kind Of Blue along expertly, allowing him to develop into a topclass sprinter, his progress steady rather that spectacular, but relentless at the same time. He’s already a tough competitor who has resolution on a par with his speed, and it will be a surprise if he doesn’t achieve more in 2025.
James Fanshawe
JAN BRUEGHEL (IRE) 120p
4 b c Galileo – Devoted To You (Danehill Dancer)
The decision by the Racing Victoria authorities not to allow Jan Brueghel run in the Melbourne Cup saw Aidan O’Brien unusually angered, and he let it be known that he considered his St Leger winner to be something of a certainty. That was a setback, but rather than highlighting any inherent weakness in Jan Brueghel’s limbs, the vets’ report merely confirmed that late-developing threeyear-olds tend to be changing physically all the time, and that augurs well for the colt’s continued physical progression.
Unbeaten in four starts starting with a Curragh 3yo maiden, Jan Brueghel looked raw in his early outings and is sure to do better still, with the possibility that he will be as effective back at shorter as he was when gamely denying stablemate Illinois on Town Moor. He will also stay two miles if O’Brien wants to stick with that route, but the looming presence of Kyprios means a drop to 1½m might be his starting point for the season.
Aidan O’Brien
FRIENDLY SOUL (GB) 113
4 b f Kingman (GB) – In Clover (Inchinor)
It’s safe to say that Friendly Soul is unlikely to be asked to race left-handed in the coming season, with her only blip when completely failing to handle the track at York when a red-hot favourite for the Musidora Stakes in May. Other than that debacle, her record is flawless, and her defeat of Kalpana in the Pretty Polly at Newmarket showed both fillies to be well above average.
Friendly Soul had a break after York, returning to land the Group 3 Valiant Stakes over a mile at Ascot before stepping up in trip and class for the Group 2 Prix Alex Head at Deauville in August. That allowed the daughter of Kingman to regain her confidence, and she completed her hat-trick in the Prix de l’Opera at Longchamp in October, beating stable companion Running Lion.
John & Thady Gosden
WHITE BIRCH
PAT FOLEY
Photos: HEALY RACING & CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: ANNE MARIE DUFF
Nice WAN
While not yet blessed with horses of the calibre of Danoli, trained so brilliantly by his late father Tom, Pat Foley has exhibited familiar ambition and outside-the-box thinking when it
Pat Foley enjoyed some success in the saddle for his late father, Tom, including in Dan O’Neill’s Danoli colours on Golanbrook at the Punchestown Festival in 2011 and it is clear that he learned plenty from his apprenticeship (HR)
Itrained jumper who carried Irish hopes on many occasions and will forever be remembered, with his late trainer Tom, for their win in the 1994 Sun Alliance Hurdle.
In the days of more random successes, Tom resonated all the more for his modest unassuming manner and storyline that a horse could take a ‘small’ trainer and owner – the late Dan O’Neill - on such a journey.
Now training in that Carlow yard, Pat Foley was nine years old then but remembers the build-up well with the horse who became a national hero.
”There were different cameras, or telly or journalists, nearly every second day there was somebody calling,” he details.
“It was Dad’s first time out of Ireland when he went to Cheltenham, he was a bad traveller with travel sickness, but a horse like him, he wasn’t going to not go.”
Danoli and Tom endeared themselves to the nation over the next three years. Come the horse’s famous win in Leopardstown’s 1997 Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup, Patrick was 12.
“There used to be a telly in the small preparade ring stable at Leopardstown. We all watched it there: my father, my mother, me, and one of the girls. We were all holding our breaths at nearly fence.”
Though always a key part of the operation, it was not until Tom’s death in 2021 that Pat had his name on the licence.
“It was always in the back of my mind to train but I was always happy to wait; it was always a winner for the yard.
“Even now, the most important thing is the yard. That was something that that was bred into us by my parents. Not whose name is on the licence is important, it’s how things are done. He got cancer ten years before he passed away but we were always happy he’d stay training away.”
Those who remember those ‘90s interviews and Danoli standing in his home-built breeze block stall will find changes now. But the legacy is there.
“The original ten boxes that Dad built are still here, still in use. We have two other barns now, 49 in total; we’re lucky most of them are full.”
He had ridden as an amateur for over 15 years, mainly on the yard’s own horses.
“Adrienne was getting plenty of rides and was leading female amateur, so I was happy. I was always more interested in the horses at home rather than going off leaving the yard looking for rides for someone else, even though I loved riding.”
He recorded his first and biggest winner early on, when Royal Paradise, a former Grade 1 winner for the yard, came back to win the valuable John Mulholland Bookmakers Handicap Hurdle at Galway in October 2007.
There was a special success too for father and son with Golanbrook, who carried Dan O’Neill’s famous Danoli colours to victory at the 2011 Punchestown Festival.
“Golanbrook was Dan’s first winner after Danoli. It was brilliant to win for the O’Neills; we’re family friends.”
Times of the small trainer finding the champion jumper may be bygone so while the jumpers made the Foley name, Pat is conscious of changing times and the need to expand where the opportunities lie.
“Dad had very little interest in the flat, national hunt was all he knew. Whenever he had a decent horse, all he wanted to do was get it over hurdles.
“Coming at it from a business model, we wanted to be busy all year round, it’s a long summer waiting for the jumpers to come back in. With the flat, you are selling to a worldwide market, with a jumper, you really only have England or Ireland.
“It was a conscious decision to try get more flat horses into the yard but we were very lucky with some of the owners, they came at the right time, especially Jim Browne. He gave us a good chance from day one, had faith in us.”
In the alliance with Browne’s Kilnamoragh Stud and more specifically, his mare Fast Jazz, the yard has moved up to be competing at listed and group level, with the type of horses the world market is seeking.
His first victory after taking over the licence from his father was with Yermanthere, a son of Fast Jazz and he also sent out the half-sister Yerwanthere to win on debut at Leopardstown before selling her to Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners for Joseph O’Brien. Then came Special Wan, into whom Team Valour bought, and the progressive three-year-old Over The Blues is owned by prominent US patron, Barbara Keller.
Dual group-placed filly, Special Wan drew extra attention to the yard, when still racing in Foley’s name, she won a valuable prize at the big Keeneland meeting in September, having missed a run as a reserve for an even bigger pot a week earlier.
“From early on she was doing things very, very easily, had a bit more class than anything we had ever had.
“After she won first time out (at Leopardstown last year), there was interest in her but Jim has his
own way of doing things, he doesn’t have to sell. He was more than happy to hold on to her.
“After her second at Naas (this year), Team Valour got in contact with Jim and they seemed to hit it off. Barry Irwin said she’d be staying to the end of the season to see how things went. When she was second in the Ballycorus, they realised she might be a bit better than at the time.”
So they raked in more than €50,000 in Kentucky before the filly joined Brendan Walsh’s barn and ran with credit in her first Grade 1 in Keeneland in October, beaten by less than six lengths.
Plans for Over The Blues revolve around group sprinting contests, as Foley suggests she will not stay a mile.
“Over the years, Team Valour or Barbara would have shipped them so it’s great that they had the confidence we could get the job done for them.”
He is quick to stress that this is Team Foley. The training yard encompasses all the Foley family.
“Sharon is the eldest, she does all the office work, still rides out. We couldn’t do any of the training without her. Adi does all the work riding, still as sharp as ever. Goretti, her first love has always been the flat, she’s loving that we have the flat horses.
“We have 30 riding out at the minute, 95% are proper winter horses. A good few unraced horses and Rebel Gold, the flagbearer, is still here.”
Rebel Gold provided big-race glory in the €80,000 Dan & Joan Moore Memorial Chase at Fairyhouse in 2023 and a Grade 3 win at Naas later that year.
“I’m blessed with the owners we have at the minute, though there’s always room for more. There’s Jim on the flat, bringing Paul Towell and Ray McSharry along with him, they want the better quality horses on the flat. Owners like that make all the difference.
“We’re lucky Liam McCormack spent a lot of money on a horse, please God, he’ll be plenty of luck. Michael O’Dowd has been here as long as I have. He has a lovely horse in Non Chalant. I hope over the winter they get plenty of luck out of it.”
The Foley training establishment will always be remembered with fondness for the Danoli years but the next chapter under Pat’s stewardship could be pretty exciting too.
It said a lot about Pat Foley that he could prepare and ship his 2023 Leopardstown winner, Special Wan in the perfect condition to win more than €50,000 in an allowance race at Keeneland in September (CN)
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS • Words: GARY CARSON
Making a STATEMENT
Four winners at Galway and an Irish Champions Festival triumph were hallmarks of a best ever year in both codes to establish Ross O’Sullivan as a trainer on the rise
The summer of 2024 wasn’t very memorable for most, with only fleeting glimpses of sunshine, but for Ross O’Sullivan there was a wonderful spell in the middle when he couldn’t do anything wrong.
The Kill handler surpassed his season best totals for both national hunt and flat winners this year and the highlight was a remarkable run at Galway when everything was clicking.
He came into the big festival of the summer off the back of a couple of winners and success continued to flow with the first four runners from
the yard all winning around Ballybrit.
It was far from a flash in the pan though with the consistency of his success throughout the year marking a real breakthrough campaign for the affable Kildare man.
“This season has been unbelievable. Really from the time Eagles Reign was second in the Boodles at Cheltenham, they have been on the crest of a wave. We went into the summer with a couple of nice horses, looking forward to them, but couldn’t believe what happened all summer long.
“The highlight I suppose was Galway, with four winners. Going there we had four horses that had won during the summer but they were kind of ‘summer’ horses.
“If I had picked a horse out for the week it would have been Volantis, who had just been touched off the year before when a bit unlucky. He was the horse that we had a plan with, to go back for the same race. Obviously the owners, the Monroes, have Galway as their main aim.
“When the two horses (Talk In The Park and Champella) won on the Wednesday it was absolutely unbelievable and then Donnie Devito scored on the Thursday. Volantis had been beating all of them in their work so I didn’t sleep great on Thursday night!
“It nearly didn’t happen, he nearly got beaten on the line, but the way the summer was going he just came out the right side of a short-head.”
O’Sullivan has pinpointed a few changes to his operation that he believes have made a big difference.
“There have been a couple of things, like the new gallop, and owners sending a nicer type of horse. We cleared out a couple of the low-grade horses that at the start of the summer had done what they could do. We were actually having fewer runners.
“The influence of Shane Foley on the yard was a big help. He came to my head lad, Tom Harney at the start of the year and said that he’d be interested in riding work for us. There was no real set agreement but we started meeting him once or twice a week and then it was three days.
“By the time the flat season got going we had a good few of the horses organised and knew where we stood with them. His judgement is unbelievable, he’s a great judge of work and a horse’s ability. He’s a great fella to meet and he has a savage work ethic.
He deserves all the success he’s after having.
“He could meet us at 6.30am on The Curragh midweek, go to Jessie (Harrington’s) straight after and ride four lots, and meet us back at The Curragh again for 12pm and then head off for an evening meeting. That was a massive help for us this year and steered us in the right direction.
“In previous years we ran some horses thinking that if they got a low mark they’d maybe win a bad race somewhere but Shane would say, ‘This isn’t going to win,’ and advised us to move them on. We just told the owners to take them home. We’ve run less but had a better strike rate.”
O’Sullivan trains on the same farm as his fatherin-law Ted Walsh – he is married to former Grade 1 and Cheltenham Festival winning jockey, Katie Walsh - and believes investment in the gallops there have reaped huge benefits for all involved.
“The gallop was put in after Katie sold a breezer last year. She got a good touch out of him. The straight gallop had been there since the time of Papillon and it was completely revamped. It had gotten very tired and worn out and wasn’t holding up to the weather.
“It’s a four-furlong sand and fibre gallop, not as deep as our round gallop which is Wexford sand, and it works well for the flat horses. It’s a straight line with a slight incline. They can swing up it and you can get a proper blow into them. We’re only 15 minutes from The Curragh as well.
“We are all on the same farm but at opposite ends and the gallops are in the middle. Katie keeps the breezers in a barn up beside Ted. Ted always has 15 to 20 jumpers every year and he had a great season last year, which is probably down to the gallop as well. Any Second Now finishing second in the Irish National at 12 years of age was a great result.
“Katie always has 20 breezers every year and she works from there. She’s only two minutes away if she wants to come over to us to sit on a horse or ride a bit of work.
“It works out well. We live beside my yard and she comes out in the evenings and has a walk around, so
she’s very much involved in it and knows everything. She’d watch every runner.”
O’Sullivan comes from a national hunt background and his love of the jumps game remains undiminished but his flat team has grown in recent years to the point where it is an equal mix.
“Initially we would have had point-to-pointers, jumps horses and maybe one flat horse. “Over the years I have really enjoyed the flat and the way the national hunt game has gone it’s maybe a little easier on the flat to be competitive. Horses pick up less bangs and injuries. It’s easier to get into as well and is more commercial.
“When you get to the winter time it can be very competitive and we just didn’t have a horse. We were lucky when Call It Magic and Baie Des Iles came along. They were two very good horses, the highest rated we’ve ever had in the 140s.
“Then we just didn’t have a good national hunt horse coming along for a couple of years, whereas we had some nice flat horses. Mick Kinane sent us Rocky Sky, who won the Salsabil Stakes for us in Navan, and she turned out to be a star.
“We have 55 to 60 in at the moment and they’d be straight down the middle, half and half. I don’t mind either way, I love the challenge of both games.”
O’Sullivan isn’t resting on his laurels.
“The aim is to keep improving. Hopefully the season we’ve had might attract a nice type of horse to the yard. The existing owners we have are very good, and very loyal, and they’ve sent nice horses to us. You never know, someone looking in might send another horse and we’ll just try to keep building it.
“We have a very good team of staff, we have the facilities and are in a good location. Like a lot of people you just need to get the ammunition. Mostly owners (sent) us horses, but we (did) have a few orders for yearlings this year, which is a bit unusual. We haven’t had it before.
“Dance Night Andday winning on Irish Champions (Festival) weekend has been a big profile boost as well. It’s all about building the whole thing up and trying to keep improving.”
“From the time Eagles Reign was second at Cheltenham, they have been on the crest of a wave”
Dance Night Andday (No 7, ridden by Ronan Whelan) winning the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Sovereign Path Handicap at Leopardstown during Irish Champions Festival was a highprofiile success
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: ANNE MARIE DUFF
Lord of Louth
Harry Rogers enjoyed a big day at Dublin Racing Festival and is hopeful of more
If you were a sports-mad youngster from the Wee County in the ‘80s and ‘90s, finding someone local to cheer was generally a journey of faint hopes rather than any confidence.
Worse still, you had to look longingly over the border to Meath; nothing worse than watching the neighbours lording it.
In GAA, Seán Boylan, Colm O’Rourke, Liam Hayes et al, and in racing, the Carberrys, Noel Meade, Michael Cunningham and co engineered a stream of constant success for the Royals.
Times have miraculously changed in the GAA world, where Louth can lord it over its once more richly endowed neighbours. And from his stable outside Ardee, trainer Harry Rogers had a glorious hour this year, proudly in the winner’s enclosure amid the Willie Mullins Cheltenham stars, on Irish jump racing’s biggest day at the Dublin Racing Festival.
And no man was better able to pull a rabbit from the hat over his near three decades in training. Punter and pundit alike have learned not to dismiss a Rogers-trained runner on the big days.
On the flat, Livadiya and Moon Unit rose through the ratings in the early ‘00s to represent the trainer with credit at group and listed level. Livadiya outran better fancied horses to take second in the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup in 2004. Then three years later, Silent Oscar won the Punchestown Champion Hurdle at 20/1.
It was with Cunningham that Rogers began his career with horses.
“I started to work with Michael Cunningham when I was 12, he trained between Nobber and Drumconrath. I started riding out during the summer and it started from there,” says Rogers
“I rode my first winner for him in Mallow, my first ride was a winner. When I left Michael, I went to work for Jerry Cromwell for a year and had a good few rides. Then I went to Dessie McDonogh and was probably with him for four or five years.”
Their biggest win was also at Leopardstown, in the Wessel Cable Champion Hurdle in 1986. Herbert United went down by a length and a half to Kesslin and John White, but Rogers and the McDonogh-trained runner were awarded the race by the stewards for bumping after the last.
“Herbert United was the best horse I rode, we won the Irish Champion Hurdle, got it in the stewards’ room.
“He was a pretty decent horse, just not top class. He went on to Cheltenham, ran in the Champion Hurdle. I had a good few rides at Cheltenham, was placed in a County Hurdle on Herbert United too.”
Entering the training ranks was a natural progression from someone working in a racing yard from an early age.
“Mountrush is where myself and Mary started from when we got married. I got a few horses sent to me, rejects and horses that weren’t sold at the sales and it just worked out.”
HARRY ROGERS
Moon Unit and Livadiya progressed to make their names in the better class races before Silent Oscar delivered Grade 1 glory. Ridden by Robert Power, he sprang a 20/1 shock by beating the favourite Mac’s Joy, who had beaten Brave Inca and Hardy Eustace in the race the year before. Unfortunately, he never ran again.
“He had a leg the next day. Over the next two years we had him back twice, ready to run but a little bit of heat came back and he was retired.”
Lord Erskine has been the stable standard bearer in more recent times, taking Rogers through the last few difficult years. As he noted after his big Leopardstown win, “Only for this horse and Benkei we probably wouldn’t have kept going.”
The loss of Mary in 2021 and Lord Erskine’s owner Jerry Nolan shortly after were tough blows to absorb.
Now rising 12, Lord Eskine proved as resilient as his trainer to carry him through the tough times.
As Cheltenham contenders Fact To File, Ballyburn, El Fabiolo and State Man highlighted the DRF Leopardstown card, in the goodwill stakes, there was as much delight for fans when the 11-year-old gelding, sent off at 40/1, came back to the winner’s enclosure under Darragh O’Keeffe after beating the subsequent Ebor winner Magical Zoe in the big, listed handicap hurdle. It was emotional.
“You couldn’t buy an owner like Jerry. I rode a winner for him years ago and we had a great connection.”
Lord Eskine too came as a ‘reject,’ running twice at two in the Godolphin colours for Willie McCreery.
“We bought him as a three-year-old in England. Willie advised me to buy him, he thought he was a nice horse, wanted a bit of time. We ended up getting him for £5,500. He was a good buy now.”
There are more memory lane touches looking back as Lord Erskine won his first race for the yard at Roscommon in August 2017, ridden by the late Pat Smullen to win the Sean Cleary Memorial Handicap.
If every trainer has their own target race, Harry Rogers’ is Bellewstown’s October meeting and the Mary Rogers Memorial Handicap. He won the first renewal in 2022 with the Siobhán Rutledge-ridden Clifftop, a horse Mary had bought as a yearling.
“Bellewstown has been a lucky place for me and Mary loved going racing here,” he said this year, though just missing out on winning a division of the race. Though Mary’s passing was a lifechanging blow, the yard has kept going.
“I’m lucky enough I have a few good owners. We have ten in training, a few more of Mary’s horses to go training that she bred, so we’ll keep going. Mary always kept a few mares. She loved animals, loved racing, she was the backbone of the thing. I was lucky to have her.”
A small yard needs all hands on deck in a support team and Harry has been lucky to have been aided over the last few difficult years.
“Meryem Walsh is here, she’s with me since before Mary went, she sort of ran the place when Mary wasn’t well. I probably wouldn’t have been able to keep going. Kate Kenwright comes in and rides out and Ellen O’Brien does the mucking out and rides one or two of the quiet ones.”
There are hopes too for another winner this year in Nap Racing Syndicate’s Fairyhouse winner Cleopatra’s Needle.
“She’s not too bad, she won one on the flat, she was unlucky not to win three on the flat. We might get another one out of her. She’ll jump a fence.”
Even rising 12, hopes are for another good prize with Lord Erskine. He has been kept busy like his trainer – nine runs since his big win with a good runs at Galway and Listowel.
“There’s a few big days in him because he needs a fast gallop and soft ground, not heavy. With a fast pace, he just goes the one gallop, he doesn’t like being in front too soon. A fast pace on soft ground really takes out the best in him. In Listowel, he was in front too soon, it’s the way racing falls. He’s a very easy horse to train.”
The Ardee man has weathered a few storms in recent years but you wouldn’t rule out Lord Erskine giving him another day in the sun.
The 11-year-old Lord Erskine beat future Ebor winner Magical Zoe to score in the Listed Timeless Sash Windows Handicap Hurdle at Leopardstown’s Dublin Racing Festival in February
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS & HEALY RACING • Words: JOHN O’RIORDAN
In like FLYNN
Having survived the recession, the Colehill conditioner has rebuilt his operation by pursuing new avenues while not abandoning the tried and tested
Afeature of recent seasons has been the revival of the Paul Flynn yard, particularly on the flat. No stranger to success, having won the Galway Hurdle as far back as 2011, Flynn’s ability to send out winners was never in question.
However, with a downturn in the economy forcing owners to quit the sport, the Longfordbased trainer had to fight for survival. An influx of new blood over the past three years, has seen him consistently hit double figures in terms of winners.
Training had never been the plan but unbeknownst to himself, Flynn had been learning the trade from an early age. After leaving school at 15, he spent two years with Jim Bolger, where he learned to ride work and break yearlings. From there, he went to Chantilly, spending a year working for leading trainer John Hammond. The following winter, Flynn moved on to America, where he rode track work for Ben Cecil and the legendary Bobby Frankel. Looking back now, he can appreciate that education.
“I was actually lucky enough that I never worked for a bad trainer,” he says. “They were all very successful in their own right. I never worked in a small yard. Each of them did things a bit different; no two were the same. The one thing they all had in common was that they kept everything simple enough. I think that’s the big thing. We try to do that here ourselves.”
During his time riding over jumps for trainer Philip Hobbs in England, Flynn found a similar strategy. Over the course of six seasons, he regularly rode in excess of 30 winners, bettering 40 in two campaigns. While Cheltenham Festival and Hennessy Gold Cup wins on What’s Up Boys stand out, Flynn has fond memories of Grade 2 winner Farmer Jack and Listed victor Supreme Prince, whose owners David and Karola Vann had him on a retainer. He also rode Dream Alliance, the future Welsh National winner featured in the Netflix series and movie Dream Horse, on his debut at Newbury.
“I think people are more impressed by that than anything I ever did during my career!” he jokes.
It wasn’t paying, however, so with two young children, he returned to Ireland. Having bought a place in Colehill, Flynn set about breaking and pre-training. Bronte Bay, one of the initial horses he started with, provided a first winner in the training ranks.
“I got him going at home. When he was ready to be sent back, his owner Alan O’Reilly asked me if I would take out a permit and train him myself. He ran well the first day and won his maiden hurdle early the next year.”
He acknowledges that he was very lucky to come across Drunken Sailor.
“He was owned by a local publican, John Keogh. When I started off, he sent me the horse as he wanted to be able to come in and see him in the yard. He had no real pedigree but was a freak of a horse. I think after him I thought I could win with
PAUL FLYNN
anything but he was actually a very good horse.”
Starting with a rating of 58, Drunken Sailor won six times, reaching a mark of 97, before being sold on to Luca Cumani. He later won at Listed and Group 3 level and ran in the 2011 Melbourne Cup.
Another horse that wasn’t particularly wellbred, Moon Dice, was sent out to win the Galway Hurdle, just a few months prior to Drunken Sailor’s Australian sojourn. The son of Norwich came to Flynn via an industry connection.
“Tom Furlong, who did the gallop for us, knew the owners. They had a horse that they wanted to put into training and thankfully Tom recommended us.
“Archie Boy was a very good horse (too) that won the Like A Butterfly Chase (Grade 3). He won nine races for us.”
In 2013, he partnered The Ring Is King to win a flat handicap at Ballinrobe – his first winner in Ireland and first winner anywhere on the level.
“He was a very hard horse to settle. I owned a leg in him with the lads. I said to Pat Smullen one day that I would get the licence back out to ride. I think he thought I was mad! In fairness to Pat, he was the first man over to say, ‘Well done,’ after the horse won.”
For over a decade after winning the Galway Hurdle, Paul Flynn struggled to survive.
“After Moon Dice, there seemed to be no money or nothing. We really had to dig deep just to keep going. Most of my owners were forced out of the sport. I suppose when the tough times hit, the horse is the first thing that has to go.”
Having kept his business afloat through such a difficult period, Flynn was more determined than ever when the tide eventually began to turn.
“Some of our previous owners came back to us and John Eastwood came along. We have a great team of staff now as well. My daughter, Ciara has been a huge help.
“We bought a few horses which thankfully worked out. With that taking a bit of the pressure off for money, it made things easier. We had that extra €10,000 or €20,000 to go and buy a nicer type of horse. Although we will still buy a cheaper horse if we like one, it is reassuring to know we have the budget to go that bit further if we want. Aubrey McMahon buys a lot of the horses for us. He is a young lad starting off, so he is hungry for success. We have done well together.”
In August, Flynn sent out his first ever two-year-old debutant winner when Ms Willpower won at Dundalk – he later completed a double with six-time victor Little Queenie - and he hopes to acquire a few more early types for next season in what would be a new departure.
“We tend to buy a more backward type that improves with racing and progresses at three,” Flynn says. “Ms Willpower is a similar model but I think she could just be very good. She should continue to develop and will be an even better three-year-old.”
He hasn’t traditionally been active at the horses-in-training sales but expects to do some buying at them this year. Having done exceptionally well with recruits from other yards, it would be no surprise to see those that end up in Colehill rising through the handicap.
Flynn is also optimistic about his national hunt horses.
“We have some nice young jump horses coming through this year,” he says. “I tend to buy from proven sources like Peter Maher and a cousin of mine, David Broad. I will always go and take a look at one in a field, if a prospective owner asks me to do so.”
Having weathered the storm of the last decade, the future looks bright for Paul Flynn. With a nicer type of horse at his disposal, it would be no surprise to see the big days return to Colehill.
In August, Flynn sent out his fiirst ever two-year-old debutant winner when Ms Willpower (Dylan Browne McMonagle) won at Dundalk on a day the admirable Little Queenie would bring up the double by scoring fior the sixth time (HR)
LEADER of the pack
Despite fiielding a very select squad ofi horses, David Christie’s impact on the point-to-point sector last season was monumental
“It will be one ofi my greatest achievements to have trained him,” says Christie ofi champion point-topoint horse, Winged Leader, pictured with jockey Barry O’Neill, notching up one ofi 22 career wins through the filags at Taylorstown in May and with David Jnr appreciating checking out another trophy
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: EOGHÁIN WARD
As the great and good of point-to-pointing gathered at the Newpark Hotel in Kilkenny last June for the traditional celebration of the season’s pointing stars, few of the 300-plus attendees could lay claim to having had as influential a role in deciding so many of the evening’s prize winners as one man.
David Christie’s isolated base just west of Lough Erne in County Fermanagh, may seem a million miles away from the new heartland of point-to-pointing within the powerhouse stables of County Wexford, but its influence on the sport nationally rivals that of the leading players.
In 2024 alone, Barry O’Neill, Rob James, Shane Cotter, Maxine O’Sullivan, Susie Doyle and Alan O’Sullivan all made their way to the stage at the Co Kilkenny venue to collect awards having ridden winners for Christie during that campaign.
That is quite an impact for a handler who only saddled 19 individual horses last season, and it is an achievement that is sure to rank among his proudest.
“I have a photograph from the awards night with all of the riders who won titles this year and had ridden winners for me,” he said.
“Shane Cotter won the U21 title, Maxine and Susie shared the ladies’ title, Alan O’Sullivan in the west, and then Barry and Rob - we had a good line-up.
“There will come a day when I am not doing this anymore, and it will be nice to remember it because, for me, that will be one of the big memories that I will look back on when it’s all over.”
Being able to call upon the sport’s best riders has its benefits, but Christie was doubtlessly not looking forward to the closing weekend of the campaign with two of his regular riders, Barry O’Neill and Rob James, locked in battle for the national title.
With divided loyalties, he was among the many who were pleased to see the pair shake hands ahead of a potential final weekend showdown, as they became the first joint champions since 2002.
“I felt a huge wave of relief when I heard that they were sharing the title. I wanted Barry to hold onto his title, but I also wanted Rob to win it.
“Barry has been with me since 2010 - 14 years now. That is scary. He is nearly like a member of the family, even though during the summer we might only speak briefly at the sales or something like that. There is a huge respect there.
“We are two fellas that don’t actually say a lot. At this stage, we kind of know what each other is thinking and what needs to be done. 95% of the time that works.
“For two people who could probably be quite demanding at times, we have never had a disagreement as such, which is strange. In this game, more things are going to go wrong than they will go right, but with Barry, I don’t know what it is, it just works.”
Last season had even greater significance for the popular figure as his stable star Winged Leader, owned by the Portrush hoteliers Jennifer
DAVID CHRISTIE
O’Kane and John Hegarty, was crowned as the season’s champion point-to-point horse.
“It will be one of my greatest achievements to have trained him,” he admits. “He is a tremendously tough horse, who is honest enough to give you everything.
“He can go on reasonable ground, as long as it’s safe, or deep, heavy ground. That’s what makes him so good for this job because you need a horse who can run on any ground at any track.”
Nine consecutive victories took Christie and the ten-year-old son of Winged Love to all corners of the country, winning at venues as diverse as Portrush on the Causeway coast to Quakerstown in the picturesque Burren of Co Clare.
“Once we won at Armagh in February, he carried that form all through the year, and we probably found ourselves in the position of being in with a shout of getting the title when we didn’t really expect to.
“I thought that his wins at Portrush and Tattersalls were outstanding. At Portrush, they took him on left, right and centre. The more they galloped, the more he galloped, he is just so tough and honest.”
That champion point-to-point horse title is a fitting accolade for a horse who came so close to claiming the most coveted prize in the point-topoint and hunter division, the Cheltenham Hunter Chase in 2022.
After a gruelling tussle with Mighty Stowaway from the back of the third-last fence at Prestbury Park, Barry O’Neill’s mount found himself with a healthy six-length advantage jumping the last, only to suffer the most heartbreaking of defeats when collared in the shadows of the post by the Willie Mullins-trained Billaway.
Over two years on, Christie remains as pragmatic as he had been in the immediate moments following the defeat.
“What can you do about it?” he said. “For the horse and the owners, he deserved to win it, but it didn’t happen.
“I know it is tough, but I have never agreed with this philosophy that Willie shouldn’t be running horses in those races because he just makes you strive harder. That’s what he does for me anyway.
“I strive harder to beat him, I don’t back off and think, ‘Oh, I’m not going to enter any of mine in a hunter chase because he has one in it,’ I would be mad to improve a horse to try and beat Willie. For anybody in racing, I think that is a good thing to push you up a level.”
It is that drive for success that has led him to completely alter his whole approach to sourcing potential new equine talent.
Where previously his MO may have revolved around recruiting older track horses in need of sweetening up, he now searches out for a younger, unproven model.
The results speak for themselves. Winged Leader is among the early fruits of that shift that he has made to his recruitment policy.
“I have never agreed with this philosophy that Willie shouldn’t be running horses in (hunter chases) because he just makes you strive harder”
DAVID CHRISTIE
“People think that it is easy to do things with an open horse, but often they come with a lot of baggage. You have to do a lot of work with them.
“Alongside that, I found that owners and trainers in Britain were going after those horses with a reasonable rating so that they could guarantee their places in hunter chases, especially the big hunter chases over there.
“What that was doing was lifting the prices of those hunter chase horses to a level that was not feasible, so I decided I would go a different route and make younger horses into hunter chasers.”
horses and educate them. I have never had that, and they are just not here. They won’t come up here to Fermanagh and spend the winter evenings looking out the window for hours.
“We are isolated up here; that is not a bad thing; it’s just the way it is, but that is why I have never really gone down that route. My son David and I have had the discussion about how we are in a very wet part of Fermanagh, one of the wettest places in Ireland, and you would wonder how you can even train horses here.”
Christie (right) and David Jnr (lefit) with fiive ofi the six point-topoint champions that had ridden winners fior Leginn House Stables during the season:
Rob James, Maxine O’Sullivan, Susie Doyle, Shane Cotter and Barry O’Neill, with Alan O’Sullivan the sixth.
Not afraid to pivot his approach to adapt to the changing landscape when necessary, he has, however, largely opted out of pursuing the commercialised and often lucrative route that has lured so many of his fellow handlers into the business of buying unraced stores to produce them for four-year-old maiden races.
That model may now dominate the pointto-point scene at present, but Christie acknowledges that it is his remote location that is the most significant barrier to challenging the top stables in that division.
“To make those young horses, you really need a team of good riders who can ride those young
While that largely commercial four-year-old maiden division of the sport thrives, the same cannot be said for many of the other categories within point-to-pointing, as the number of handlers and older horses in the sport continues to fall, a situation that Christie laments.
“When I started off, I was self-taught. I am from a farming background, and when I got started, I didn’t need anything. If you wanted to have one or two horses at home on your farm as a hobby for after you had done the milking and fed your calves, you could do so, and plenty of farmers did. It created a lot of friendly competition within the community.
“Since the insurance has come in, it now costs
so much, and you have all these hoops to jump through, it has taken all these people out of the game.
“To my mind, it is a great community all over Ireland. The number of people that I have met through point-to-pointing, from officials to members of the public, I just think that it is a great community.
“It will be a pity to see it fade any more because when I look through the history of point-to-pointing, I see photographs and videos from ten or more years ago, which isn’t that long ago. The amount of people that are there is unbelievable.
“I remember when Top Twig was running. There used to be big crowds coming to see him, and there could be as many as a dozen or 16 people alone that would come to see him as he was being washed down at the box after a race. There just doesn’t seem to be that connection anymore with them.”
Perhaps Christie’s own Winged Leader is one horse to reignite that attachment from racegoers with open lightweight horses. His title-winning campaign last season saw him become his trainer’s single winning-most point-to-pointer, a hard-fought crown when you consider the names that have graced his Leginn House Stables over the years.
Top Twig, Arctic Copper, Royal Ranger and Maple Mons are a quartet that won 70 races between them in the pointing fields, and in usurping them, Winged Leader has positioned
himself among the sport’s all-time great performers in the category, and within an outside chance of a piece of history.
“The all-time record of wins sits at 33 (held by Still William), and (Winged Leader) ended last season on 22 point-to-point wins. All the time I have been involved in point-to-points, I always felt that having a horse and getting them to 33 wins was completely impossible in today’s era because of competitive racing is now.
“It doesn’t matter if you have a Winged Leader, a Ramillies, or Fern’s Lock, there are enough good horses in Ireland to knock you off your perch. You will get beaten here, and you have to accept that.
“The times we are in now, it is hard to win any kind of a race, but I am now at the stage when I am thinking to myself, if we were very lucky, could we possibly get close to that?
“If he has a chance to do it, we will give him that chance, but we are running out of time, and 11 wins is a lifetime of wins for most horses.
“Even now though, the nice thing about it is that with every win he has, he is now equaling or surpassing an all-time great horse in point-topoints, so if he only got say four more wins, he is going to be up there with so many great names in the history of the sport.”
His unassuming character will likely prevent him from accepting it, but David Christie is already one of the sport’s great names, a title his achievements in the past year have only cemented further.
“When Top Twig was running there used to be big crowds coming to see him... There just doesn’t seem to be that connection anymore with them”
Top Twig, Arctic Copper, Royal Ranger and Maple Mons (pictured scoring at Necarne in 2016) are a Christie quartet that won 70 races between them in the pointing fiields
JOHNNY on the spot
It was a memorable year for a jockey who rode his 200th point winner, lost his claim under Rules, guided the latest stars from the John Nallen production line and also helped nurture the string of flat trainer Paddy Twomey
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: MICHAEL DUGGAN
JOHNNY BARRY
There are many strongholds of point-to-point racing in Ireland, but the Cork region, arguably, tops the charts. Week-in, weekout, large numbers turn out on the Leeside circuit to enjoy the sport that originated when one horseman challenged another to a race from the steeple in Buttevant to the steeple in Doneraile.
It’s unlikely those gentlemen could have envisaged the legacy that “Chase” would initiate, but, safe to say, racing between the flags is currently in good hands.
The Rebel County is famous for its many sporting icons and a real passion for a wide variety of sports, with horses and jump racing almost a religion around the southern capital.
On the point-to-point front, lots of great jockeys, past and present, have graced the arena and as is the norm in any sport, new talent emerges, but one constant in the saddle over the past two decades is Conna native, Johnny Barry.
Officially known as J C Barry, the 35-year-old brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table that sees him still very much the go-to man for some of racing’s most important stakeholders.
Respected as a hard-working, unassuming and stylish jockey, Barry cuts a contented figure as he reflects on what has been a hugely successful journey to date.
“I’ve had a good run of it to be fair,” he says. “Racing is a tough game, but I cannot complain, I have had my share of success along the way.”
Not exactly born into the game, Barry’s interest was sparked as a teenager when he followed the fortunes of his relations across the water.
“My first cousins, Barry and Liam Keniry, were jockeys in England and I used to always keep an eye on how they were doing. Liam is still riding, while Barry is retired but he rode a lot of winners too.
“Jimmy and Mary Mangan were neighbours of ours and I was friendly with their sons, Patrick and Bryan. We used to be tricking around with ponies and hunting with the Conna Harriers. Then we graduated to race-riding, so that’s how I got started.
“The Mangans are great people. They are just horse- and racing-mad, always willing to help people out. They have a very positive outlook on life, it’s a brilliant way to be.”
A stint with Patrickswell trainer, Michael Hourigan laid a solid foundation for the future and for a friendship that endures to the present day.
“I spent the summer of 2006 working for Michael. That really put me firmly on the road to race-riding. They had between 90 and 100 horses there at the time. I used to ride out the likes of Mossbank and Hi Cloy, who were really top class. Beef Or Salmon was just coming to the end of his reign at the time too.
“I went home to complete my leaving cert and came back the following year and started working full-time with Michael. He got me going to be fair, he gave me my first winner with Some Craic in Dromahane in November of 2007. Michael was a tough man, You worked hard but he was very straight and gave me plenty of opportunities.
“Andrew McNamara was the stable jockey there at the time, he was a seriously talented rider and a big influence on me. Stephen Gray and Adrian Heskin worked there too. It was a busy yard and super place to gain valuable experience.
“Kay Hourigan was an assistant trainer to her father; she was a huge help to me. I’ve remained very friendly with the family; I’d still ride for them now and again.”
Having departed Lisaleen, Barry decided to go freelance, and quickly found himself travelling the length and breadth of the country.
“I wanted to give it a real go, so I started going into as many yards as I could. I went up north a good bit also, riding for trainers such Brian Hamilton, Caroline McCaldin and Mark McNiff. I still travel up there, but not as much as I used to.
“Pat Doyle was good to me. I won point-topoints on nice horses like Fury Road, Commander Of Fleet and Angel’s Breath. They all went on to be graded track performers.
“Vinny Halley was another man I rode a good bit for at that stage and then I kind of hooked up with
“Racing is a tough game, but I cannot complain, I have had my share of success along the way”
Facile Ballindenisk winner, Minella Premier (bottom left) could be the latest future star partnered by Barry to maiden success for Nallen, having also scored on Notebook, Minella Melody and most notably, subsequent Gold Cup hero, Minella Indo at Dromahane in 2018
JOHNNY BARRY
John Nallen. He’s a huge figure in the pointing game. I went into there a good bit and rode a lot of very good horses for him.
“John has a great eye for a horse. Minella Indo won the Gold Cup and Minella Times the National. That will just tell you the kind of talent he has for unearthing future stars.
“He buys a lot of his stock as foals, and rears them on his farm in Clonmel. He gives them a good start to life. John likes a strong, big-framed type and will always do what is best for the horse. He’s not afraid to wait and, if he thinks they’re not going to make it as a four-year-old, he doesn’t mind waiting the extra 12 months. That pays dividends in the end.
“I rode some top horses for John such as Notebook, Minella Melody and Minella Indo of course. Minella Premier was sold to Jerry McGrath for £400,000 to join Nicky Henderson just weeks after he won his four-year-old maiden in Ballindenisk by 12 lengths last May. He’s a classy horse. The way he quickened that day was very impressive, he could very, very good.
“John always leaves a bit for the next man. His clients know that and the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Those horses go on to have big careers because they’re minded and nurtured in their early years.”
yard’s ongoing success cannot be quantified.
“Corky is John’s assistant and is a very shrewd cookie. He was a seriously good rider himself and there is very little he doesn’t know. I still ride out there one day a week and I’d meet them regularly on the gallops in Boulta, Glencairn or up The Curragh.”
While every winner is important, the victory of Ellemarie Holden’s Locken Lady in the five-yearold mares’ maiden at Tinahely last January marked a notable milestone in Barry’s career.
“That was very special as it was my 200th point-to-point winner. You never set any targets when you start out, but I have to say it was very satisfying to reach that landmark. It’s nice to achieve something like that, I never take anything for granted.”
Like many people, Johnny is conscious that the face of point-to-pointing has changed dramatically in recent years. There are many, many positives to take from that, yet there are some aspects that are tinged with regret.
“The points are very well organised nowadays and the standard is really high. The bar is consistently rising and you only have to look at the results here and in the UK (sic) on a daily basis to see so many ex-Irish pointers leading the way.
“You never set any targets when you start out, but I have to say it was very satisfying to reach that landmark”
- 200 not out thanks to Ellmarie Holden’s Locken Lady at Tinahely last January
Barry is a big fan of allowing young horses time to find their feet, citing long-term gains as a result.
“Every case is different, but, in general, I don’t like to see horses over-faced and asked to do too much too soon. In GAA terms, it’s a massive step up from minor to senior. Time to mature, mentally and physically, is very important for the long-term future of a horse.”
James “Corky” Carroll is a vital cog in the Nallen wheel and his valuable contribution to the
“It is much more commercialised now than it was when I started out. It’s tougher nowadays for anyone with just a handful of horses to make an impact. There are not a lot of fun horses competing like there were in the past, they are being pushed out. In some ways, that is sad to see.”
While Johnny is better known as a point-topoint man, he has made a significant impact inside the rails too.
“Actually, one of my proudest moments came when I lost my claim on the track. I rode
“One
of my proudest moments came when I lost my claim on the track (riding) Minella Hollow to win a Roscommon bumper in June”
Minella Hollow (trained by Nallen) to win a Roscommon bumper in June and that was my 60th racecourse win.
“I was thrilled to ride out my claim, it was a great day. I mainly concentrate on the points, so that was another pleasing achievement on my part.
“I rode a good few winners for Dublin trainer Karl Thornton. He’s a big supporter of mine. He’s given me plenty of ammunition and is a very shrewd trainer. He gave me the ride on Wakea in the Grade 2 Coral Hurdle in Ascot in 2017 where we finished third. That was a memorable afternoon.
“Oliver McKiernan is another man I ride quite a few for. He doesn’t have big numbers, but he is very clever and definitely knows the time of day. We’ve enjoyed plenty of success together over the years.”
Like any sportsperson, role models are an important factor and, in the formative years, Johnny looked up to some real icons of the game.
“Derek O’Connor and Jamie Codd were the bees’ knees as far as I was concerned. They took race-riding to a different level. If I didn’t have a ride in a race or was finished for the day I’d go and watch the race just to see them in action.
“They were just top class, as good as any professionals. Jamie has retired now, but Derek is still going strong, I’d say he’ll be around for a good while yet. He’s an amazing man.
“I don’t remember Davy Russell riding in the points, but I always watched him on TV and looked up to himself and Ruby Walsh. They were two incredible jockeys, the best in the business.”
These days, Barry works mainly for Tipperary trainer, Paddy Twomey. It’s an unlikely alliance given that his origins are in jump racing, while Twomey is a prominent figure on the flat racing scene.
“During Covid, I started going in to ride for Paddy and I love it. I’m there three days a week and he runs a very good operation. It’s mostly horses for the flat, but he’s a few for bumpers as well.
“I’ve ridden work on the likes of Pearls Galore, Rosscarbery and La Petite Coco. All group horses. I love doing that, it’s a different dimension and I get a great thrill out of it.
“I won a bumper on a nice horse for Paddy in Ballinrobe last August called Seo Linn. She is a daughter of Order Of St George and is a smart filly. I also do a small bit for Michael Kennedy in Innishannon. He is a brother of Jack and Paddy Kennedy. He hasn’t big numbers, but he can train horses.”
Based in Castlelyons in East Cork where he lives with his wife Jess, four-year-old daughter Esme, and eight-month-old son Beau, Barry is a proud family man who knows more than most that support from your nearest and dearest is vital in such a demanding environment.
“Jess is a daughter of Rathcormac trainer, Jeanette O’Riordan. She comes from racing stock and understands the game inside-out. We would all travel to the point-to-points together as much as possible during the season and it’s great fun.”
While any thoughts of life after race-riding are in the distant future, Johnny is adamant at this juncture that training is not on his agenda.
“I love working with horses and could never see myself doing anything else. Training on a full-time basis is not on my radar at the moment though, it’s a very tough business. I could see myself breaking and pre-training all right. I love working with young horses - seeing them develop and mature into racehorses is very satisfying.
“My priority at the moment is to stay safe, ride as many winners as I can and continue to enjoy what I am doing for as long as possible. Things can change very quickly in racing, there is no point in looking too far ahead.”
Make no mistake about it, there is no substitute for class and Barry has it in abundance. Given the ammunition, he has proven time after time that he can deliver when the chips are down. He has the backing of some of the best trainers in the business, a scenario that is unlikely to change anytime soon.
“Time to mature, mentally and physically, is very important for the longterm future of a horse”
CORRENA BOWE
Photos: HEALY RACING • Words: JOHN O’RIORDAN
BOWE knows
Former international eventer hits paydirt with daughter of Doyen
One of the real success stories of the 2024 sales season was the £410,000 paid for Echoing Silence at the Tattersalls Cheltenham Sale in March. Sold by trainer Sam Curling, on behalf of owner Correna Bowe, the Ballycahane point-to-point winner topped the session when knocked down to Peter Molony of Rathmore Stud.
Bowe, a former international event rider, who worked for Curling at the time, is steeped in the point-to-point tradition. A niece of well-known trainer Colin Bowe and daughter of JJ (pictured above with Correna after Echoing Silence’s cosy point triumph), there are also strong ties to the sport on her maternal side.
“Jack Lambert, my granddad on Mammy’s side, hunted all his life. Originally from Grange, that whole side of the family would have been heavily involved in horses and point-to-pointing,” Correna says.
Having started out hunting when she was still in primary school, Bowe reached quite a high standard in eventing during her teenage years. A weekend job with Richard Sheane in Cooley Farm led to Bowe going on to represent Ireland in the team competition at successive European Championships. With her mother Clare, who had previously worked for Sheane, also on hand to impart invaluable advice, Bowe rode LCC Cooley in Italy and Millstreet respectively.
After school, Correna spent two and a half years working for international show jumper Greg Broderick. Although doing plenty of flat work and riding out, she eventually began to miss the buzz of competition. During her years as an event rider, Bowe had wanted to ride out racehorses but found it just wasn’t feasible to do both.
“With Dad and Colin both having had racehorses at home, I often wished I could ride a couple of lots but the eventing was just so time-consuming; it required total dedication.”
Having decided on a change of career, Correna finally got an opportunity to ride out for her dad and uncle in her early 20s, before taking up a role with Curling. It wasn’t the first time she had sat on a racehorse.
“Toni Quail, who I would have evented with, went racing before me. She worked for James Doyle and later Brian Hamilton. During my time with Greg Broderick, I would have went in and rode out with her a few times. She ended up working for Colin, before then moving down to Sam.”
Having started with Curling four years ago, Correna rode out and did much of the racing. Despite her competitive nature, her one and only ride under Rules came in the charity race for kidney research at Punchestown in 2023. Content to have realised that ambition, she focussed her attention elsewhere. Encouraged by an early venture into the sales ring
with Colline Fleurie, Bowe was eager to have a second bite.
“I bought one at the August sale in 2021; a filly by Hillstar. She ran twice as five-year-old last year. After finishing second first time out, she won her next start (at Tattersalls), before being sold privately. That was my only previous experience.”
Having accepted that she wouldn’t have had the budget to afford anything at the earlier sales last year, Bowe targeted Tattersalls in July for her next venture. On this occasion, JJ accompanied her.
“Daddy had two or three point-to-pointers every year. He wanted to have one with me, so we went up on the first day.”
It didn’t take long before their eye was drawn to a particular lot.
“She just stood out to us. She was big and scopey. Her walk, size; everything about her. She looked so good as a store horse.”
From the moment they got the filly home, Correna and JJ loved her.
“We bought her on the Thursday and Daddy broke her straight away. She was riding by the following Wednesday. Her brain was just so forward; everything came so easy for her. She would learn something one day and it was like she was doing it for ten years.”
After Alice Griffin had popped the daughter of Doyen over poles and done some flat work, the Bowes left her off for three or four weeks, before sending her down to Curling. Quail did a lot of the initial schooling over fences, while both Correna and Sam rode her out. Jockey Phillip Enright then put the finishing touches to the four-year-old, now named Echoing Silence, before she made her point-to-point debut.
After doing everything so easily at home, the mare was sent off 4/1 to win at Ballycahane on March 3. Having got the job done with the minimum of fuss, her next date was at the Tattersalls Cheltenham Festival Sale less than two weeks later. While expectations would have understandably been rather high following Echoing Silence’s debut win, Bowe was taking nothing for granted.
“We hoped she’d sell well but I was in Sam’s long
enough to know that nothing is certain until the money is in the bank. Anything could have gone wrong right up until the last minute. Even if you get to the sale on the day, there is so much vetting involved before a horse is given the green light.”
To top the sale was something her owner could never have envisaged.
“Usually the geldings are more popular, so for a mare to do so well is incredible.”
Earlier that same afternoon, Correna had led up Angels Dawn in the Kim Muir at the Festival. A winner of that same race 12 months previously, when Correna also led her up, there was to be no fairytale result on this occasion, as the mare fell two out when still in contention.
Along with La Feline, who became the first horse to win the champion point-to-point mares’ title three years in a row last season, Angels Dawn is a mare Bowe knows well.
“She was my second ride at home every morning, so it was amazing to see her win at Cheltenham last year. La Feline, who was my first lot, is now rated 111, the highest rating a mare has ever achieved in point-to-points.”
Having hit the jackpot on her first venture as a consignor, Correna is keen to build on that success. With that in mind, she has teamed up with both her father and Curling to buy a Blue Bresil filly from a family they know quite well.
“We bought a half-sister to Metkayina at the Derby Sale. Metkayina finished third in her bumper first time out at Galway, before winning at Ludlow for Sam. Noel Fehily bought her after and she is now in training with Noel Williams. Daddy is breaking our filly at the minute. She will go down to Sam once she is ready to start off.”
Correna is currently riding out and doing some bookwork for trainer Cian Collins, while also keeping her hand in with half-bred horses. While she can see herself working more with the latter breed in the coming years, she intends to always maintain the trading interest with her dad and her former employer.
It is almost certain that we have not heard the last of Correna Bowe.
Echoing Silence and Brian Lawless clear the last on the way to winning at Ballycahane before being sold at Tatts’ Cheltenham Festival auction for a sale-topping £410,000 to Peter Molony on behalf of Kenny Alexander, who has sent the exciting mare to the same trainer that brought his superstar Honeysuckle to extraordinary heights, Henry de Bromhead
Words: LISSA OLIVER
GREYdays abound
Little wonder Kildare native, Joe Callan describes the thoroughbred industry as a “travel pass”, given the breadth of experience he built up prior to taking up station at Whitsbury Manor Stud
Sitting down to chat with Joe Callan, head of bloodstock and sales at Whitsbury Manor Stud, I’m reminded of not only the dedication required for this industry, but of the opportunities it presents, and how blessed we all are to be involved.
In a nutshell, living the dream; a phrase no doubt already used more than once elsewhere within these pages by an exuberant owner, an elated jockey or a well-rewarded sales consignor.
In 2024, Havana Grey covered 55 black-type performers, including Group 1 winners and the dams of numerous Group 1 winners
“I grew up in Kildare, so I was immersed in the thoroughbred industry from the get-go,” Callan says. “As a child I was fortunate to grow up in Ragusa Stud, where my father (Andrew) was assistant manager, and my mam (Siobhán) is part of the Fahey family in Kildare, who have had great success in numerous facets of the industry such as trainers and farriers, so from childhood onwards I was never far from it all.
“I suppose I always had a strong interest, but it
JOE CALLAN / WHITSBURY MANOR STUD
was really sparked when my dad had some mares of his own. I used to love helping out with them and have very fond memories of taking them to Goffs, and an added bonus was getting a few days off school for it at the time!”
That interest has taken Callan around the world and it’s a recurring theme in our conversation of how willing industry professionals are to help those seeking a career with thoroughbreds. Although Callan always knew he wanted to work in the industry, he is grateful to his parents for encouraging him to opt for a back-up plan and study English and history at UCD.
“I still wanted to get as much experience as possible at the time, so when I was in my first year at university I decided I wanted to work in Newmarket for the summer and I think I emailed every stud in Newmarket, all in the one email, looking for a job. Luckily, Brian O’Rourke at the National Stud gave me one – it was a great experience and only spurred on my desire to make a career in the industry.”
As soon as he had successfully finished university in 2014, Callan was off on his travels again. He isn’t wrong when he describes the industry as a “travel pass”. He spent time with the legendary Australian trainer Gai Waterhouse and eventually became a foreman of her two-year-old yard.
“Gai was a great person to work for,” he reveals. “She’s very hard on you, but as a young 20-year-old I most definitely needed it. Just to see how she operates was an invaluable experience, she’s an incredible trainer and businesswoman. After my stint there, I moved on to Arrowfield Stud for something different, to do the yearling sales and preparation, which was eye-opening at the time and gave a good insight to the Australian industry.”
It was there that Callan met some of the
graduates who had just finished the Irish National Stud diploma course and they encouraged him to aim toward a fresh objective.
“I came back to Ireland and David Cox gave me a job at Baroda Stud for the yearling season before I went to the Myerscoughs’ Colbinstown Stud for the breaking, which tied in nicely timing-wise before the INS course started.
“Something I learned quickly was that as a young person in the industry, everyone you met along the way was happy to help and provide great advice. David Cox at Baroda Stud was always a good sounding board and help for me and I ended working there at different times over the years when between different ventures!”
The world-renowned Irish National Stud course is so often the stepping stone to greatness for many graduates over the decades.
“It was such a great group of people in our year at the Irish National Stud, many of the group have gone on to be extremely successful, and it’s such a recognised and respected course. For me it then led to my place on the Godolphin Flying Start scholarship.
“(That) was incredible and a massive help to my career. The experiences you get and the people you meet is just massive. It’s funny how it works out; after the course I was due to go to America where I had a job lined up, but the visa proved extraordinarily difficult, which is how I ended up in the UK at the time.”
After Callan graduated in 2018, he returned to Newmarket and took up the position of sales and nominations manager at the National Stud.
“I got to know a lot of the breeders and clients very quickly while I was there and built connections that have carried through and are a great help to me now at Whitsbury Manor Stud.
“But I felt after three years that I needed a
“Something I learned quickly was that as a young person in the industry, everyone you met along the way was happy to help and provide great advice”
Europe’s leading first-season sire, Sergei Prokofiev had two stakes winners on the board by June
Showcasing is the sire of 145 stakes performers to date, including multiple Group 1 winners Moohather, Advertise and Quiet Reflection
change, and the opportunity came up to manage Market Rasen Racecourse, which like the National Stud, is owned by the Jockey Club. The job was a maternity cover, and I saw it as a chance to broaden my horizons a little bit and do something different. While there, and to try get more business experience, I also did an MBA Masters, through the University of Liverpool. I thought I was probably half-mad taking it on while working full-time, initially at a racecourse, and continuing when working at a stud was definitely a challenge, but one I am glad I did.”
Now also a trustee of the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association, to describe Callan as well-rounded would be an extreme understatement and by now, he was on the radar of Ed Harper at Whitsbury Manor Stud, where the success of the resident stallions and stud overall was taking a sharp upward trajectory.
Taking over in 2010 from his father Chris, Harper had not been afraid to take risks and those purchases were clearly paying handsome dividends. The stud has come a long way since standing its first stallion, Philip Of Spain, in 1973. At that time Whitsbury Manor was owned by bookmaker William Hill, for whom Chris Harper had been farm manager since 1963. Harper senior purchased the stud upon Hill’s death in 1986.
“I hadn’t been at the racecourse that long when Ed got in touch to share a few ideas with me,” Callan reveals. “We’d worked together while I was at the National Stud through Lope Y Fernandez and some other dealings, and now Havana Grey was doing so well, he felt he needed some extra help with the overall expansion that comes with it.
“I thoroughly enjoyed the racecourse management, but did feel my passion was the bloodstock and the breeding side of it, so as soon as the maternity cover was over, I left Market Rasen to join Ed. I’m very fortunate to be here,
Whitsbury Manor is an incredible place to be and there is a great team here, and some obviously very exciting horses – I was very lucky, the timing couldn’t have been better for me really! Ed is a very dynamic, forward-thinking person who is great to work with; what he and the team here have achieved with the stud is incredible.”
Callan’s well-trodden pathway of exploring many different aspects of the industry is not unusual and clearly illustrates the links throughout the racing and breeding sectors, as well as how important an understanding of the industry in its entirety can be.
“I had deliberately tried different things to get a good grounding and comprehension of the industry as a whole; it’s been great to see the different side of things. As head of bloodstock and sales, my role here is very varied depending on the time year. It’s a small but great team and we all try help where we can, so no doubt the different experiences gathered along the way come in useful!
“The roster here overall currently is very strong, and it’s incredible to work with Havana Grey, the most exciting young stallion in Europe. It is wellknown we limit his book to circa 140 mares, which when we account for breeding right holders and our own mares, it does unfortunately leave quite limited space, which in turn results in having to disappoint a lot of people. This is undoubtedly the hardest part of the job, but that’s part and parcel of managing such a fantastic stallion,” Callan accepts.
“Something Havana Grey has done which is extremely impressive, is that he has managed to maintain his momentum with books from his initial years which would not have the strength and depth that people may expect – at the end of the day his two-year-olds from 2024 were covered off a fee of £6,000 and he still managed to produce high-class horses such as Arabian Dusk, and similarly his two-year-olds from last year, which included
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JOE CALLAN / WHITSBURY MANOR STUD
“It’s incredible to work with Havana Grey, the most exciting young stallion in Europe”
Vandeek. You only have to look at his foals catalogued for the upcoming sales to see the difference in the pedigrees to previous years, which is very exciting.”
The height restriction of 16 hands and under for mares for Havana Grey has been well-advertised, and although size might be a touchy subject, Havana Grey is far too big in prominence to take any offence. This has done nothing to limit the quality of his book. In 2024 he covered 55 blacktype performers, including Group 1 winners Glass Slippers, Mabs Cross and Sky Lantern and the dams of numerous Group 1 winners including Anmaat, Big Evs, Chaldean, Romantic Warrior, Starlust and Vandeek just to name a few.
“It is now well-known that we will only cover mares that are 16 hands or below, purely as the stallion struggles on bigger mares. He is only 15.2½ hands, he is short legged and deep chested. Thankfully, he has great libido and fertility, but in 2022 when he had his “breakout” year per se, we quickly saw a trend of large mares returning to the shed, while smaller and medium-sized mares went in foal easily. Overall, he was feeling the strains from bigger mares more than we would have liked.
“We of course have tried ramps and any other tricks you can think of, but he clearly wasn’t comfortable covering on them. We try to be as transparent as possible and really this is for the breeders’ benefit as much as anyone else, who of course want to get their mare in foal. We also firmly believe it is not that restrictive, as the vast majority of mares fall into that bracket.”
From only three crops of racing age to date, Havana Grey already boasts 11 group winners, 22 stakes winners and 36 stakes performers, all impressively conceived from a fee of £8,000 or less. His dramatic rise in popularity saw him rise to a fee of £55,000 in 2024, while in 2025 he will stand at a private fee, something which may have surprised a
lot of breeders and bloodstock enthusiasts.
“The private fee is set purely to encourage people to discuss their mares with us. We are very much open for business with him for suitable mares. We have not hidden the limited number of nominations available in the horse, or the height restrictions. Often when fees are announced, people understandably just try to reserve multiple spots in popular horses, where with Havana Grey this just isn’t possible due the factors mentioned, so we just take it on a mare-by-mare basis to ensure the best for horse and breeders.”
Of course, he is only one of four stallions standing at Whitsbury Manor Stud and there is a fifth, owned in partnership, based at the National Stud. Relinquishing pride of place to Havana Grey is the ever-reliable Showcasing. The son of Oasis Dream, standing at £35,000, is the sire of 145 stakes performers to date, including two Group 1 Commonwealth Cup winners and multiple Group 1 winners Moohather, Advertise and Quiet Reflection. Thanks to the remarkable Lake Victoria, among others, he is already establishing himself as an exciting broodmare sire.
Standing at £8,000 is the 2024 leading European first-season sire, Sergei Prokofiev, by the outstanding sire of sires Scat Daddy. Quick to get off the mark with his first crop, he had sired two stakes winners by June, including the imposing Arizona Blaze, so narrowly touched off in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.
Alongside is the top-class Group 1 sprinter Dragon Symbol, standing at £8,000, who covered a full book of 140 mares in his first season at stud.
“He was received very well in his first year at stud, we sent him a lot of very nice mares as did our regular clients, we can’t wait to see his foals in the coming months – he is the most stunning physical with a great mind, so fingers crossed they can take after him.”
Dragon Symbol “is the most stunning physical with a great mind, so fiingers crossed (his progeny) can take afiter him”
2025 FIXTURES
Words: MARTIN STEVENS
Blue genes Forever in
The hens laying the golden eggs - broodmares consistently producing elite thoroughbred talent
Swirral Edge’s fiiirst two fioals were stakes winner and Group 1-placed Asymmetric, and this year’s July Cup victor Mill Stream, and she is pictured here at Redpender Stud with her fiilly fioal firom Minzaal’s fiirst crop
ADVENTURE SEEKER (FR)
2008 ch m Bering-American Adventure (Miswaki) Camas Park Stud, Lynch Bages and Summerhill haven’t looked back since buying this listed-winning maternal granddaughter of the great champion All Along for €125,000 from the Wildenstein dispersal at the Goffs November Sale of 2016.
Her owners found the key to the stoutly bred mare when sending her to the conversely sharp and speedy No Nay Never. Their first liaison produced Phoenix Stakes winner Little Big Bear, who now stands alongside his sire at Coolmore, and the same mating two years later resulted in this year’s Prix Morny and July Stakes hero Whistlejacket, also runner-up in the Phoenix Stakes and Middle Park Stakes.
Sadly, Whistlejacket is Adventure Seeker’s final produce, as she died in 2022.
BLOOMFIELD (IRE)
2014 b m Teofilo-Ramona (Desert King) Veteran breeder John Connaughton is best known for breeding Hong Kong superstar Dan Excel and Futurity Trophy runner-up Sissoko from his Polish Precedent mare Love Excelling, and popular handicapper Sea The Lion and Athasi Stakes winner Prima Luce from his Desert King mare Ramona, and he has unearthed another fine producer in Bloomfield, a dual listed-winning daughter of Teofilo and Ramona.
The County Westmeath horseman has bred this year’s unbeaten Champagne Stakes winner Bay City Roller and Foundation Stakes runnerup Botanical from Bloomfield, whose Blue Point yearling filly produced a popular result when selling to Agrolexica International Trading for €850,000 at the Goffs Orby Sale in October.
Bloomfield has a colt foal by Blue Point, who is sadly the mare’s final produce as she died this year.
DEVOTED TO YOU (IRE)
2007 b m Danehill Dancer-Alleged Devotion (Alleged)
David and Diane Nagle’s Barronstown Stud in County Wicklow is one of the world’s greatest nurseries, having produced the likes of Generous, Kew Gardens, Oratorio, Wind In Her Hair, Simple Verse and Yeats. Devoted To You is typical of its mares, being a true blueblood and a reliable source of middle-distance superstars.
The Group 2-placed daughter of Danehill Dancer from the family of Balanchine, Coroebus
and Thunder Snow has produced eight winners, and clicked with the late Galileo to produce two Classic scorers – Sovereign in the Irish Derby in 2019 and Jan Brueghel in the St Leger this year. For good measure, another of her sons by Galileo, Dawn Rising, took the Loughbrown Stakes at the Curragh in November.
Devoted To You has a St Mark’s Basilica yearling filly who was sold to Richard Knight for €460,000 at the Goffs Orby Sale and a filly foal by Wootton Bassett. She was sent to Camelot this year, which sounds like another Classic winner in waiting.
FIDAAHA (IRE)
2014 ch m New Approach-Ceist Eile (Noverre) How does Tally-Ho Stud do it? The County Westmeath operation often seems to magic up blue hen mares out of nothing, and did it again with Fidaaha, a New Approach full-sister to dual Group 3 winner Steip Amach, who was well beaten in all four starts and was bought at the end of her uneventful three-year-old season for a mere €15,000 at the Goffs November Sale of 2017.
Fidaaha’s first three runners, all by home sire Mehmas, are group winners. Malavath won the Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte and Prix Imprudence and finished second in the Prix de la Foret before selling to Moyglare Stud for €3.2m at Arqana. Knight took the Horris Hill Stakes. Scorthy Champ was sent out by Joseph O’Brien to win the National Stakes this year.
The mare was privately sold by Tally-Ho to Healthy Wood Co, who bred Scorthy Champ, and she was covered by Mehmas in 2022 and 2023, but with no returns from those matings registered with Weatherbys.
FUTOON (AUS)
2013 b m Kodiac-Vermilliann (Mujadil)
A likely first British and Irish sire championship for Dark Angel in 2024 is richly deserved by his custodians, the O’Callaghan family of Yeomanstown Stud, as they have done so much to build him up from a cheap source of speed to a super-stallion themselves, including breeding many of his best horses.
Charyn, the horse who did most for his sire this year thanks to his victories in the Queen Anne Stakes, Prix Jacques Le Marois and Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, was bred by Guy O’Callaghan, who went out on his own at Grangemore Stud. He is the second foal out of the listed-placed Kodiac mare Futoon, whose first produce, also by Dark Angel, was Mill Reef Stakes scorer Wings Of War.
From the family of classy sprinters Brown Sugar, Burnt Sugar, Galeota, Justineo and Logo Hunter, Futoon has a two-year-old full-sister to Charyn, sold to the colt’s owners, Sumbe for 850,000gns, and another yearling filly by Dark Angel who sold to Godolphin for 2,900,000gns this year. She foaled a colt by Dark Angel this March before being sent to Blue Point, her first ever cover by a different sire.
BROODMARES
IN CLOVER (GB)
2002 b m Inchinor-Bellarida (Bellypha) George Strawbridge’s Group 3-winning daughter of Inchinor was represented by a fourth top-level winner as broodmare this year, with the victory of her three-year-old Kingman filly Friendly Soul in the Prix de l’Opera. Her previous three were Call The Wind, We Are and With You.
In Clover joins Dahlia, Darara, Ebaziya, Fall Aspen, Toussaud, Urban Sea and You’resothrilling in producing a quartet of Group 1 winners. That’s not the end of her achievements, either: she has also bred listed scorers Dream Clover, Incahoots and In Crowd, and Incahoots is the dam of Prix de la Foret heroine Kelina.
The wonderful mare has no two-year-old or yearling produce, but she foaled a Kingman colt –thus a full-brother to Friendly Soul – in April and returned to Kingman again.
MINIDRESS (GB)
2009 br m Street Cry-Short Skirt (Diktat) Godolphin aren’t exactly short of brilliant broodmares, but this listed-placed daughter of Street Cry must still be one of the best. She has produced four winners, including two multiple international Group/Grade 1 scorers this year.
Rebel’s Romance, a six-year-old by Dubawi, took his progeny earnings past €10m by landing
James, Serena and Guy O’Callaghan with Futoon, dam ofi triple Group 1 winner Charyn, who was bred at Grangemore Stud by Guy
BROODMARES
the Dubai Sheema Classic, Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup, Preis von Europa and a second Breeders’ Cup Turf, while Measured Time, a four-year-old by Frankel, struck in the Jebel Hatta and Manhattan Stakes.
Minidress has a yearling colt by Dubawi, but has no foal. She returned to Frankel this year.
County Kildare small breeder Christy Behan bought her unraced daughter Silver Moon for just €12,000 and has bred two fairly smart winners from her – Perfect Gentleman and Profit Refused – from as many foals.
SWIRRAL EDGE (GB)
2013 b m Hellvelyn-Pizzarra (Shamardal)
Jimmy Murphy of Redpender Stud in County Kilkenny deserves some sort of medal for unearthing Swirral Edge as a broodmare prospect when her only victories came in lowly handicaps at Ayr and Thirsk and she is by the unglamorous sire Hellvelyn.
The renowned breeder admired her family, which goes back to high-class sprinters Firebolt, Mensa and Wunders Dream, and has been rewarded for his faith by her first two foals being Richmond Stakes winner and Prix Morny third Asymmetric, and this year’s July Cup victor Mill Stream, who retires to Yeomanstown Stud.
and Delacroix, her two-year-old colt by Dubawi, won the Autumn Stakes and was beaten just a nose by Hotazhell in a desperate finish to the Futurity Trophy.
Delacroix was Tepin’s fourth and final foal, but at least the mare left three daughters – Grateful plus the unraced pair Swirl and Tepin Thru Life –from which to continue her bloodline.
TOGETHER FOREVER (IRE)
2012 b m Galileo-Green Room (Theatrical) Together Forever is well-bred, being a Galileo full-sister to Oaks heroine Forever Together and half-sister to Prix Jean Prat winner Lord Shanakill. She was top-class herself, winning the Fillies’ Mile. And her owners Coolmore have sent her to a succession of top sires, so she was always entitled to make a smart broodmare.
The 12-year-old has still exceeded expectations, though, with all of her first fi ve foals having earned black type – King Of Athens, Military Style and Absolute Ruler by War Front, and Bertinelli and City Of Troy by Justify. This year’s European champion, successful in the Derby, Eclipse and Juddmonte International, should disperse her genes far and wide now that he joins the Coolmore stallion ranks.
Matnie was bought by Walter Connors as he kept having to fiork out signifiicant sums fior her offspring – her fiirst fiive fioals were all graded winners, with Mighty Potter, Caldwell Potter and Brighterdaysahead prevailing at the highest level
Swirral Edge has no yearling, but does have a filly foal from the first crop of Minzaal. She was covered by Frankel this year.
TEPIN (USA)
2011 b m Bernstein-Lifie Happened (Stravinsky)
What a shame Coolmore lost Tepin last year. The brilliant US turf queen, who put the Europeans in their place when successful in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot and was sold to MV Magnier for $8m, was the dam of two topnotchers this year.
Grateful, her three-year-old filly by Galileo, struck at the highest level in the Prix de Royallieu,
Together Forever has a two-year-old filly by Uncle Mo named Takemetothemoon, who finished third on debut for Aidan O’Brien at Leopardstown in October, a yearling filly by Dubawi and a filly foal by Into Mischief.
And one for the jumps
MATNIE (FR)
2007 b m Laveron-Lir fiox (Foxhound)
Walter Connors of Sluggara Farm in County Waterford is best known for being one of the shrewdest national hunt traders in the business, but it is as a breeder that he has hit the headlines in recent seasons, thanks to his speculative purchase of the unraced Laveron mare Matnie from Remy Cottin, after buying several of her foals from him.
Matnie’s first fi ve foals are all graded winners. There is French Dynamite, who took this year’s BetVictor Chase at Punchestown; Indiana Jones, a former winner of the Flyingbolt Novice Chase; Mighty Potter, a dual top-level winner both over hurdles and over fences, who was sadly lost in action last year; Caldwell Potter, who won last season’s Future Champions Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown before becoming the most expensive NH horse at auction when sold for €740,000 at Fairyhouse in February; and Brighterdaysahead, who struck in the Mersey Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree in April.
Matnie has a three-year-old gelding by Doctor Dino who sold to Gordon Elliott for €350,000 at the Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale in June and has been named Ravendark, and a two-year-old gelding by the same sire who has been retained by Connors and named Here Be Dragons. She also has a yearling colt by No Risk At All.
Photos: PETER MOONEY • Words: JOHN BERRY
Feast famine &
While business in the top tiers is extremely strong, at the lower levels there is less money around than there used to be
Sheikh Mohammed spent €5,270,000 for seven lots at Goffs Orby Sale Book One, including the headline €2m for this son of Frankel from Denis Brosnan’s Croom
TATTERSALLS FEBRUARY SALE
There were plenty of notable events during the sales year but they came after a low-key start when Tattersalls’ first sale of 2024, the February Sale, showed a slight increase in average and median but from a significantly smaller catalogue (with 273 lots offered, compared to the 356 of 12 months previously) and a reduced clearance rate (83% to 73%). Overall, this saw the aggregate dropping from 4,414,800 guineas to 2,863,000 guineas. the principal inference was that there was less money around.
TATTERSALLS CALDWELL DISPERSAL
Tattersalls Ireland held a notable one-off boutique sale in the first week of February to disperse the Caldwell Construction string of Andy and Gemma Brown. With some top-class jumpers included, trade was frenzied, the 29 lots fetching an aggregate of €5,290,000. Four horses each fetched in excess of half a million euros. The top price was Caldwell Potter at €740,000, bought by Highflyer Bloodstock for a syndicate of established clients of Paul Nicholls’ stable.
BREEZE-UP SALES
Tattersalls found that the results of its two major breeze-up sales in the spring followed the trend set by its February Sale, with less money changing hands. Turnover dropped from 15,357,500 to 14,585,500 guineas at the Craven Sale and from 5,942,500 to 4,943,500 guineas at the Guineas Sale. While the average increased at the former, this was helped by a reduction in both the size of the catalogue (180 lots, down from 202 in 2023) and the clearance rate (76% to 72%).
Also helping the average was a continuation of the ‘feast or famine’ feel which has become the norm at sales nowadays, largely thanks to Sheikh Mohammed, who bought the top three lots for a
total of 2,600,000 guineas. Topping the bill was a colt that gave bidders the last chance to try to buy an untried son of Galileo (not that one can call a breeze-up horse untried). Consigned by Glending Stables, this colt, who had been picked up for 125,000 guineas at Tattersalls’ December Yearling Sale less than fi ve months previously, fetched a million. Now named Royal Officer, he is still a maiden but has lost his testicles and gained a BHA rating (76).
The price which Sheikh Mohammed paid for Royal Officer was dwarfed the following month at Arqana, where he gave €2,300,000 for a son of Justify, sold by Norman Williamson’s Oak Tree Farm (which had previously supplied Native Trail, Godolphin’s champion two-year-old of 2021, bought for 210,000 guineas at the Craven BreezeUp Sale). Previously picked up for $150,000 as a yearling in Keeneland, this colt, given the name Ruling Court, started his career well enough with an impressive victory at Sandown in July before finishing third behind The Lion In Winter as favourite in the Acomb.
SUMMER SALES
Boutique sales are more a feature of the NH world but they do appear on the flat scene too. The Goffs London Sale on the eve of Royal Ascot is a standout and this year it contained a particularly memorable moment when Sparkling Plenty was offered for sale having won the Prix de Diane the previous day! Initially she appeared to have been bought back for £8,100,000 but 50% of her was sold subsequently to Al Shaqab for £5,000,000. Truly remarkable stuff – and emphatic confirmation that her owner/breeder Jean-Pierre-Joseph Dubois was very wise not to let her go when the bidding for her reached €600,000 at Arqana’s Deauville August yearling sale in 2022.
The next major sale in the calendar is one of the longest established: Tattersalls’ July Sale. As it contains a cross-section of pretty much every kind of horse, this tends to be a useful barometer. This year trade was unequivocally down. This added to the impression that, notwithstanding that business in the top tiers is extremely strong, at the lower levels there is less money around than there used to be. The aggregate made this clear: 13,904,200 guineas, down from 16,986,000 guineas 12 months previously.
YEARLING SALES
The yearling sales’ season kicked off with Arqana’s principal sale in the third week of August in Deauville followed by Goffs UK’s Premier Sale at Doncaster. Thereafter both purchasers and consignors hardly had time to draw breath until the middle of October.
The trade in yearlings at present can be summed up simply: a significant downturn has been masked by demand for the most obvious lots.
In the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, Radio Rentals tycoon David Robinson was the Sheikh Mohammed of his day. One of his better horses was Breeders Dream, a son of Tudor Melody for
SALES REVIEW
whom he paid 30,000 guineas as a yearling in 1969. Breeders Dream was a good horse but is best remembered for his name, given to him by a sardonic Robinson to describe the situation when a yearling grabbed not only his attention but also that of whoever happens to be the other most significant buyer of the time.
In 2024, there were quite a few yearlings for whom the name would fit perfectly, thanks to the clashes of the two current titans of the buyers’ brigade, Sheikh Mohammed and Kia Joorabchian. Overall, trade in yearlings was patchy at best and the situation will not improve until the overproduction issue is seriously addressed. However, Sheikh Mohammed and Joorabchian attacked the top tier of yearlings with such determination that the figures went through the roof, particularly in Book One of Tattersalls October Sale. It is very debatable whether trickle-down economics ever really applies in the real world but in the October Sale they did to some extent. Figures for Book Two were significantly up on 2023, thanks to so many would-be major players having found themselves unable to buy in Book One. Book Three started off fairly solid before tailing off, with nothing whatsoever left to trickle down to Book Four, in which trade was dire.
Sheikh Mohammed’s desire for success seems insatiable even after all these years, reminding us how massively in his debt so many consignors are. It is remarkable that a man who owns such a colossal broodmare band should still be buying yearlings and breeze-up horses on this scale.
Joorabchian, a relative newcomer, clearly shares Sheikh Mohammed’s ambition. Having digested the evidence of Europe’s biggest races of 2024, the gist of which is that the big races are dominated by owner-bred horses, the boss of Amo Racing concluded that there are only two ways to become a serious competitor. One - building up a broodmare band to rival those of the likes of Coolmore, Godolphin, Juddmonte, the Aga Khan Studs, Shadwell - takes decades. The quicker option is to buy a significant proportion of the bestcredentialled yearlings that are put on the market.
The convergence of Sheikh Mohammed and Kia Joorabchian was thus a dream come true for several breeders. Their most notable battleground was Book One of Tattersalls October Sale, after the two had both been busy at the Orby the previous week where Sheikh Mohammed spent
€5,270,000 for seven lots at Goffs Orby Sale Book One including the headline €2m for a son of Frankel from Denis Brosnan’s Croom House Stud. Between the big two, they bought the top eight lots at Tatts’ October Sale, four each. Amo picked up the two top lots (a Frankel filly for 4,400,000 guineas and a Wootton Bassett colt for 4,300,000 guineas). Book One’s turnover (including private sales) of 129,648,000 guineas was over 32 million guineas up on the 2023 figure.
The tenth most expensive yearling in Book One (a daughter of Sea The Stars for whom Sheikh Mohammed paid 1,600,000 guineas) would have been the joint-second most expensive in 2023. Which is all very exciting, except that for normal people, and in particular normal breeders, the situation is deteriorating badly, as the figures for the lower-profile sales make very clear.
HORSES-IN-TRAINING SALES
The figures for horses-in-training sales which attract overseas buyers continue to make the sport look healthier than it is. Demand for second-hand horses not sought by the export market remains poor but those bought for export to the major racing nations, particularly Australia, continue to command high prices. The Group 1-placed three-year-old Delius was the prime example, changing hands at Tattersalls for 1,300,000 guineas to join Gai Waterhouse’s stable in Sydney. The top lots also included horses heading Down Under to Chris Waller, Ciaron Maher and Henry Dwyer.
Middle Eastern purchasers also remain a major factor at Tattersalls’ Autumn Sale, at which this year there was an interesting flashback to the days when NH owners and trainers were leading buyers. Too Bossy For Us, a winning three-year-old son of Golden Horn, was the joint-ninth most expensive horse in the sale, bought out of Kevin Phillipart de Foy’s stable by Harold Kirk for 330,000 guineas to join Willie Mullins.
NATIONAL HUNT SALES
Trade in national hunt stores has shown a downturn, but that is as much the result of the continuing trend of the major owners towards buying readymade horses as an indication of any decline in the sport’s health. Lightly raced horses with strong form, whether bought at the boutique sales or privately, remain stunningly expensive, as Caldwell Potter illustrated.
TIGHTER margins
There were some standout performers at all levels but an increased average did not translate into profits all around
The returns from the 2024 yearling sales, when viewed in their entirety, look very impressive. While Coolmore and Godolphin kept their spending at high levels, we had a new big player in the market as Kia Joorabchian of Amo Racing weighed in with over £27 million at Tatts October.
The net result was that the average price for all yearlings sold up to and including Goffs Autumn Sale, rose by 12.6% from last year. The average price of £74,349 is the highest it has ever been and is 21.6% ahead of 2020, when Covid affected the price equilibrium.
That said, production costs are also creeping upwards with stallion fees – the main component of said costs – climbing to a new high of £27,216. That’s 3.5% higher than last year, which means that about £920 has on average has been added to the conception fee of each of the 5,165 yearlings sold in 2024 to the end of Goffs Autumn.
It goes without saying that not everyone benefitted from the increased demand at the top of the market. An average up 12.5% while the accompanying conception fees rose by only 3.5% did not translate into profits all around. The number of profitable yearlings after an upkeep fee of £20,000 is applied stood at 1,998 or 39% of the 5,165 sold. That is the first time in four years that this metric had dipped below 40% – it was 41% last year and 42% the year before, admittedly with the unpaid-for Saleh Al Homaizi yearlings included.
It is unsurprising that Dubawi and Frankel top the charts by average price among those with ten or more yearlings sold. At this stage of his career, there is nothing left to prove for Darley’s evergreen Dubawi, certainly nothing in his stud record that would change buyers’ perceptions. However, I wonder if that old age is now playing on the minds of buyers as it was noticeable that only 14 of the 22 (64%) offered found buyers. It should not be a worry as he’s still producing the goods leading all European sires with 24 stakes winners this year headed by the likes of G1 winners Notable Speech. Moreover, he had another nice set of two-yearolds representing him, featuring group winners Ancient Truth and Delacroix.
Frankel, meanwhile, has had one of his quieter years from his horses aged three and up, so much so that he will be relinquishing his Britain and Ireland sires’ title this year. But, just like Dubawi, he’s back with a very good group of juveniles led by three group-winning fillies, featuring the unbeaten triple G1-winning European champion two-year-old filly Lake Victoria. His yearlings, conceived at a fee
of £200,000, still produced the highest average price/fee multiple of any stallion with a fee of £100k or more, at 3.8.
Stallions priced up to £9,999
In the sub-£10k category, the runaway winner was Havana Grey, whose current yearlings are from his fourth crop conceived at just £6,000. He’s the only sire below £20k to record a six-figure average price. No fewer than 63 (91%) of his 69 yearlings sold made a profit which makes him the leader among all sires with 15 or more sold. It also goes without saying that his ridiculously high average price/fee multiple of 17.3 is the best in the business.
Stallions priced from £10,000 to £19,999
Nathaniel, who has earned a fee increase to £20,000 for 2025, leads our next group of sires by average price and has also posted the best profit percentage at 73.3%. The highlight of his 2024 season was his G1 Irish Oaks heroine You Got To Me, who comes up for sale at Tattersalls December Sales. Several stallions in this cohort had very good fee multiples, Territories leading the way with 6.6, followed by Nathaniel (5.4), Gleneagles (4.8) and Study Of Man (4.7), plus the best performing newcomer of the group Space Blues (4.1). It is no surprise that the four proven sires above have all delivered G1 winners during 2024.
Stallions priced from £20,000 to £49,999
This category is dominated by Too Darn Hot, Blue Point, Mehmas, and another Dubawi pair in New Bay and Zarak, all of whom produced six-figure averages. Once again it is a Darley stallion, this time Too Darn Hot, that led this group by average price, while another, Blue Point, has the best average price/fee multiple at 5.1. Not only did this pair succeed in adding first-crop three-year-old G1 winners to their resumes, they also achieved further group success with their second-crop two-year-olds, in Too Darn Hot’s case through Fallen Angel and Hotazhell, while Blue Point’s Rosallion added to his juvenile G1 haul and Kind Of Blue was a new G1 winner from his first crop. Mehmas, meanwhile, smashed his stud companion Kodiac’s single-season two-year-old individual winner world record with his first breed-back crop following his own record-breaking first season. More importantly, the latest Mehmas youngsters feature plenty of classy types, including three G1 winners in Scorthy Champ, Vertical Blue and Magnum Force. His nine two-year-old stakes
Words: JOHN BOYCE
YEARLING SALES
YEARLING SALES
EUROPEAN SIRE YEARLING PROFITABILITY
winners in 2024 puts him right in the vanguard of elite sires of juveniles, behind only Wootton Bassett (13) and Galileo (11).
The metric that has everyone excited about Zarak is his 11.7% stakes winners to runners from mares that managed only 5.7% with all other sires. He’s also added G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains winner Metropolitan and Zagrey – both new stallions in France for 2025 – to his tally of G1 winners. Little wonder then that he had the best proportion of profitable yearlings of his fee group (80.4%) and an excellent average price/fee multiple of 4.9.
Stallions priced from £50,000 upwards
Among all the stallions in our £50k-plus cohort, it was Night Of Thunder who delivered the best average price/fee multiple at 5.1. Produced at €75,000, the 2024 yearlings by the son of Dubawi were always going to be highly sought after, as he rewarded breeders and buyers by capitalising on the
quality of his 2021 crop which delivered his first ever G1-winning colt in the shape of Irish Champion Stakes winner Economics. And his next crop contains two outstanding fillies in G1 Fillies’ Mile heroine Desert Flower, plus the impressive G3 Albany winner Fairy Godmother.
The two first-season sires among this group are headed by St Mark’s Basilica with an average profit of £108,686 but Palace Pier struggled a little with just 30% of his yearlings making money after the £20k upkeep fee is levied. We must also mention Dark Angel who, like many speedorientated sires with a large number of yearlings coming to market, was not as commercially successful as his middle-distance counterparts. Although he netted 2.9 million guineas for his full-sister to champion miler-elect Charyn, out of Futoon, there were so many on the market that just under half made a profit. The same applies to No Nay Never, perhaps the best sire of speedy juveniles there has ever been.
Proven sires excelling on the track and in the sales ring and exciting young recruits with first foals in 2025
€250,000 SIYOUNI
€200,000 ZARAK
€80,000 VADENI €18,000 EREVANN
€8,000
Words:
MARTIN STEVENS
ANGEL life of
With the behemoths of recent years less dominant than before, it proved an intriguing season for both established and newer stallions (fiigures fi om stallionguide.com accurate as ofi November 5)
LEADING SIRES
What an oddly equable British and Irish sire table it was this season. More often than not, one big name pulls well clear of the opposition: last year, for example, Frankel was crowned the champion by a margin of more than €3.3m in progeny earnings, the measure that traditionally decides the title.
But this time around, the lead changed constantly throughout the year thanks in part to Frankel being relatively quiet by his own very high standards, and up to mid-November little more than €3.6m covered the whole of the top 20.
Dark Angel looked assured of a first championship, though, with a lead of more than €435,000 over his nearest rival Dubawi. The brilliant miler Charyn was his highest earner, while Khaadem contributed more than £500,000 to the pot for winning the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at
Royal Ascot and My Mate Alfie became a bit of a cash machine, winning the valuable Bold Lad Handicap and a hat-trick of black-type races at the Curragh and Naas.
Dark Angel fully deserves the title. He has been a wonderfully consistent source of twoyear-olds, sprinters and milers since he retired to Yeomanstown Stud in 2008. Remarkably, considering he retired before racing at three, his stock has become a byword for toughness, durability and versatility.
Dalham Hall Stud patriarch Dubawi, champion in 2022, is booked for his tenth consecutive topthree finish in the table. He delivered a fourth 2000 Guineas winner, with Notable Speech scoring on his turf debut at Newmarket in May, and broke new ground with a first Epsom Classic winner when Ezeliya blew apart her rivals in the Oaks later that month.
DARK ANGEL
LEADING SIRES
LEADING SIRES IN GB & IRE 2024 BY PRIZEMONEY
Galileo, who headed the table in 2008 and in every year from 2010 to 2020, has fewer runners these days, with only around a dozen two-year-olds in his final crop, and so it seemed safe to assume that his championship days were over.
However, the late Coolmore phenomenon staged an unlikely assault on a 13th title in the autumn, when Kyprios won the Irish St Leger and British Champions Long Distance Cup, and Jan Brueghel and Illinois finished first and second in the St Leger. He was in third position in November, and looked likely to remain there.
Reigning champion Frankel languished towards the bottom of the top ten for much of the year, not helped by many of his highest earners in 2023 – the likes of Chaldean, Mostahdaf, Soul Sister, Triple Time and Westover – having been retired and a few others who remained in training, including Inspiral, Nashwa and Ylang Ylang, failing to recapture their best form.
However, Frankel flew at the finish of the British and Irish champion sire race, with Lake Victoria establishing herself as the best two-year-old filly in town by taking the Moyglare Stud Stakes and Cheveley Park Stakes, and The Euphrates striking in the lavishly endowed Irish Cesarewitch.
The Juddmonte stallion was in fourth place up to mid-November, but only around €100,000 in front of Lope De Vega in fifth. The Ballylinch Stud flagbearer seemed to sire elite winners in every corner of the globe this year – Look De Vega and Rouhiya struck in French Classics, Carl Spackler and Program Trading took US Grade 1s and Duke De Sessa won the Caulfield Cup in Australia – and he kept the home fires burning with Middle Park and Dewhurst Stakes scorer Shadow Of Light.
The British and Irish sire championship is
historically significant, and because of that holds a certain prestige, but of course the European table gives a wider view of stallion performance in the last 12 months.
The only problem with the European table, when ordered by progeny earnings, is that it is often distorted by the result of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, with its enormous riches. So it proved again this year, with Camelot sitting pretty at number one thanks to his daughter Bluestocking’s victory at Longchamp.
Camelot was far from a one-hit wonder in 2024, though. Los Angeles won the Irish Derby and ran third in the Arc, Luxembourg struck in the Coronation Cup, and Sevenna’s Knight scored
LEADING SIRES IN EUROPE 2024 BY PRIZEMONEY
CAMELOT
LEADING SIRES
LEADING THIRD-SEASON SIRES IN GB & IRE 2024 BY WINNERS
in three group races at Longchamp and finished runner-up in the Prix Royal-Oak and fifth in the Arc.
Lope De Vega is poised in second in the European table, one place ahead of Sea The Stars in third. The Gilltown Stud stalwart’s headline acts were Grand Prix de Paris victor Sosie and Prix de Pomone winner Aventure, who finished fourth and second in the Arc – meaning he and Camelot sired all of the first five home in the 12-furlong spectacular.
Sea The Stars’ other big-hitters this year included group winners Emily Upjohn, Hanalia, Ottoman Fleet, See The Fire and Sweet William, and he is responsible for the 2000 Guineas and Derby favourite The Lion In Winter, unbeaten in two starts including in the Acomb Stakes.
Dark Angel occupied fourth place in the European table, with Kingman in fifth. The Banstead Manor Stud stallion notched two fillies’ Classic winners, Elmalka in the 1000 Guineas and Sparkling Plenty in the Prix de Diane, with another daughter, Friendly Soul, prevailing in the Prix de l’Opera. He also provided two new Group 2 scorers in Celandine and Quddwah, while his evergreen son Kinross continued to prove one of the best seven-furlong performers in training.
Prizemoney customarily decides sire championships, but that is of course not always the most reliable measure of success, with those sires who have larger crops or winners of a handful of highly valuable races gaining an unfair advantage.
Strike rates are a more satisfactory metric, and for the record the best ratios of winners to runners among the top sires in Europe belonged to the Dubawi sons, Zarak and Night Of Thunder, on 56% and 55% respectively.
Dubawi himself fielded the best strike rate of
black-type winners to runners among the tabletopping sires in Europe in 2024, on an outstanding 13.87%. Justify, whose selected Kentucky-conceived representation in Europe included champion-elect City Of Troy and fellow Group 1 winners Opera Singer and Ramatuelle, was second best on 12.2%.
Rounding out the top ten by this score, which is all-important for illustrating the depth of quality in a sire’s output, were Zarak (11.27%); Galileo (9.7%); Frankel (8.82%); Night Of Thunder (8.51%); Wootton Bassett (7.69%); Sea The Stars (7.29%); Lope De Vega (6.44%); and Havana Grey (6.21%).
LEADING THIRD-SEASON SIRES
Havana Grey is quite something, isn’t he? He is managing to keep pace with those premiumbrand stallions with his first three crops bred from mostly mediocre mares at fees of £6,000 to £8,000 at Whitsbury Manor Stud.
LEADING SECOND-SEASON SIRES IN GB & IRE 2024 BY PRIZEMONEY
HAVANA GREY
LEADING SIRES
LEADING FIRST-SEASON SIRES IN GB & IRE 2024 BY PRIZEMONEY
Unsurprisingly, then, the son of Havana Gold led the third-season sire table in Britain and Ireland by most measures apart from prizemoney, where Justify outpointed him thanks to City Of Troy and co.
Among the other sires at that stage of their careers who impressed throughout 2024 were the late Roaring Lion, who gave more cause to regret his death after one year in the breeding shed by fielding 7.89% black-type winners to runners, including the high-class fillies Queen Of The Pride and Running Lion, and Sioux Nation, whose status as a consistent source of smart two-year-olds and sprinters is confirmed by his mark of 3.33% black-type winners.
Another third-season sire that deserves mention is Harry Angel, who has gained a reputation as a reliable source of winners. He has produced a commendable 40% winners to runners and 3.16% black-type winners to runners in Britain and Ireland this year. He could arguably do with a bona fide superstar, but Irish 1000 Guineas second and Falmouth third A Lilac Rolla wasn’t far off being one.
LEADING SECOND-SEASON SIRES
Blue Point and Too Darn Hot dominated the 2023 British and Irish first-season sire table, suggesting they could be future breed-shapers, and they confirmed that impression with another strong showing in the sophomore standings.
Blue Point was out on his own in terms of winners (65 up to mid-November) and prizemoney (just shy of €3.6m), and his figures of 41% winners to runners and 3.75% black-type winners to runners were strong. His standouts were Irish 2000 Guineas and St James’s Palace Stakes hero Rosallion and British Champions Sprint winner Kind Of Blue.
Too Darn Hot was a clear second to Blue Point by winners (56) and prizemoney (nearly €2m), and
LEADING SIRES OF 2YOS IN
was tied with his fellow Darley stallion for the best tally of black-type scorers, at six-all. Too Darn Hot did it with fewer runners, though, and therefore achieved the best ratio of black-type winners to runners among the British and Irish second-season sires, at 4.76%. Irish 1000 Guineas winner Fallen Angel and Futurity Trophy scorer Hotazhell were his highlights.
Study Of Man showed promise in last year’s freshman table, especially when it was obvious his progeny would improve for turning three, and he duly delivered on it this year. Lanwades Stud’s son of Deep Impact produced a high strike rate of black-type winners, headed by British Champions Fillies and Mares Stakes heroine Kalpana, already being talked of as an Arc hope for 2025.
STUDY OF MAN
LEADING SIRES
LEADING FIRST-SEASON SIRES
This year’s first-season sire championship was, like the overall one, unusually even. There was no clear leader up to mid-November by prizemoney, with less than €200,000 covering the top five – Sergei Prokofiev, Sands Of Mali, Pinatubo, Mohaather and Kameko – and nor by number of winners, with Mohaather and Sergei Prokofiev on 16, and Pinatubo and Sands Of Mali on 15.
Hello Youmzain won admirers for his 50% winners to runners in Britain and Ireland and his French Group 3 scorers Electrolyte and Misunderstood, while Sands Of Mali caught the eye with 5.71% black-type winners to runners, encompassing a onethree in the Windsor Castle Stakes by Ain’t Nobody and Aviation Time and success in the Radley Stakes for Ellaria Sand.
In truth, though, no freshman of 2024 can really claim supremacy over his peers. It will just have to be a case of wait and see, which will make next year’s sophomore tables essential reading.
LEADING SIRES OF 2YOs
Irish-based sires Mehmas and Wootton Bassett performed miracles with their two-year-old runners this season.
Tally-Ho Stud hotshot Mehmas supplied 49 individual juvenile winners in Britain and Ireland, admittedly from an enormous pool of 122 runners conceived in the wake of his excellent first season with runners, but his winners-to-runners strikerate held up at 40%.
The son of Acclamation, who broke his studmate Kodiac’s record of 61 two-year-old winners in a season, showed he does quantity as well as quality, with Magnum Force, Scorthy Champ and Vertical Blue all winning at the highest level.
A hat-trick of two-year-old Group/Grade 1 winners from a single crop is pretty impressive but Wootton Bassett said ‘hold my beer’ when his first generation conceived at Coolmore after his
Twain. Wootton Bassett also put a record-breaking 13 two-year-old stakes winners on the board, not including Dewhurst runner-up Expanded and Middle Park third Dash Dizzy. We could be looking at a future champion sire here.
Mehmas and Wootton Bassett are clearly powerful forces in juvenile racing but they were actually outdone by several sires in terms of black-type winners to runners in Britain and Ireland.
No Nay Never was operating at 13.21% up to mid-November, his seven stakes winners from 53 runners led by Prix Morny hero Whistlejacket and Rockfel Stakes scorer Bubbling; Frankel was on 11.43% (four from 35), including Lake Victoria; and Night Of Thunder came in at 10.34% (three from 29), headed by unbeaten Fillies’ Mile victress Desert Flower.
LEADING BROODMARE SIRES
The usual suspects figured prominently in this year’s European broodmare sire table, with Galileo, Dansili, Shamardal, Oasis Dream, Invincible Spirit, Pivotal, Dubawi, Kodiac, Montjeu and Teofilo comprising the top ten by maternal grandchildren’s progeny earnings.
Frankel is just starting to make a significant impact in this department. His daughters produced 48% winners to runners and a highly encouraging 7.61% black-type winners to runners in 2024. Sparkling Plenty became the first Classic winner to boast the dual world champion as damsire.
Frankel’s old sparring partner Zoffany is perhaps a more surprising name to make a mark in the European broodmare sire table. He was represented by 38 winners to runners and 3.3% black-type winners to runners up to mid-November, with Sun Chariot Stakes heroine Tamfana the best runner out of one of his daughters. His mares could be one for bargain-hunting breeders.
big-money transfer there yielded four – Camille Pissarro, Henri Matisse, Tennessee Stud and
MOHAATHER
LEADING SIRES
LEADING NH SIRES IN GB & IRE 2023/24 BY PRIZEMONEY
1
LEADING NH SIRE
All the top-class racemares and producers, and well-related mares, who have visited Walk In The Park since he joined the Coolmore roster in 2016 resulted in a first British and Irish national hunt sire championship for the son of Montjeu in 2023/24 – and by a long chalk, with his progeny earnings of €3.81m for the season nearly €1.5m more than those of Fame And Glory.
Jonbon, from Walk In The Park’s last Frenchconceived crop, was his highest earner after landing the Tingle Creek, Melling Chase and Celebration Chase, but the majority of the sire’s 17 black-type winners were Irish-breds, including Blow Your Wad, Inothewayurthinkin, Limerick Lace, Master Chewy and Spillane’s Tower.
French sires claimed the best black-type winners-to-runners ratios thanks to their highly selected representation in Britain and Ireland –Saddler Maker (20.45%), It’s Gino (15.79%), Saint Des Saints (11.94%), Authorized (9.09%), Doctor Dino (8.93%), No Risk At All (8.82%), Masked Marvel (7.89%) etc – which means it takes a bit of digging to find the biggest statistical overachiever on these shores.
Honours are shared by three sorely missed sires who stood in Ireland: Shantou on 5.26%, Jeremy on 4.76% and Fame And Glory on 4.48%.
LEADING YOUNG NH SIRES
Stallion Guide online features a table of leading NH sires who retired to stud after 2014.
The highest winners-to-runners strike rates in that category in Europe belong to Triple Threat, who died after serving his first book of mares at Capital Stud this year, on 52%; Zarak, the elite flat sire who has provided top-class hurdlers
Nietzsche Has and Zarak The Brave, on 48%; and Prince Gibraltar, a son of Rock Of Gibraltar who stands at Haras de Cercy, on 47%.
Zarak, whose sons will surely be firmly in the crosshairs of national hunt stud owners now, also boasts the highest strike rate of black-type winners among these younger sires, on 14.29%. French compatriot Galiway, source of Willie Mullins’ Grade 1-winning hurdlers Gala Marceau and Vauban, came in at a very creditable 7.41%.
WALK IN THE PARK
Words: LAURA JOY
Mark’s On your
With the odd notable exception, speed is the byword for the freshmen of 2025, with middle-distance prospects looking thin on the ground
The dizzying heights of Too Darn Hot and Blue Point seem a distant memory, such is the pace at which the stars of 2023 have risen to established status. This year’s rookie sires had big shoes to fill and in many camps, the jury is still out to whether they have succeeded.
Mohaather is the leader in terms of quality with three stakes winners to date. No Nay Never debuted with five, Night Of Thunder with seven. Mehmas had four but a whopping 55 winners accompanied them.
What can we expect in 2025? The yearling sales have been muddling to say the least. With the exception of a beautifully bred daughter of ST MARK’S BASILICA out of the prolific producer Prudenzia (of Magic Wand and Chiquita fame), that topped the Arqana August Yearling Sale, the headlines have been dominated by the established sires with the rookies in their shadows.
The aforementioned G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains and Prix du Jockey Club victor was the most expensive recruit in the class of 2025, debuting at a fee of €65,000. Making his debut in late July, he was pitched straight into G1 company in the Phoenix Stakes the following month, before shedding his maiden tag at the third attempt over the same course and distance. A podium finish in the G1 National Stakes followed, before eclipsing the stable first string Wembley (Galileo) in the G1 Dewhurst Stakes.
His ambitious juvenile campaign indicates his class was clearly evident from the outset, though a mid-summer debut suggests a Royal Ascot juvenile is unlikely to feature next year. Despite winning a 6f maiden, the offspring of the unbeaten Classic winner’s three-year-old campaign that concluded with a dramatic G1 Irish Champion Stakes victory, will likely be seen to
ST MARK’S BASILICA (Zuzanna Lupa)
FIRST RUNNERS IN 2025
best effect like their sire, from August onwards and over trips beyond seven furlongs.
The son of Siyouni, who has already enjoyed success in France with his son City Light, has been well supported by his masters at Coolmore and is one of the most exciting prospects of this year’s class with 141 first-crop two-year-olds to represent him.
Joining him in the upper echelon of the market is the five-time G1-winning miler PALACE PIER , who received over 100 mares in his debut season at a fee of £55,000. A son of Kingman, who continues to hold his own at Juddmonte despite sharing a covering shed with one of the best in Europe, he reached his peak from Royal Ascot of his three-year-old season and only got better with time.
His sire is more than capable of siring precocious and classy juveniles but based on his pedigree, that influence will need to shine through if he’s going to threaten for the title. Like St Mark’s Basilica, he also won in August at two and patience is a must until at least the same month before there will be any indication as to what he might go on to achieve with his autumn juveniles and first three-year-olds.
Fellow Darley inmate, standing at the Irish division at Kildangan, is one of Dubawi’s quicker sons SPACE BLUES . The neat winner of his only start at two progressed with each season he raced, not scoring in group company until his four-year-old season, something the market needs to keep in mind and look upon favourably. Nineteen runs over four seasons with wins in four countries should be enough to encourage breeders and agents to keep the faith beyond his first juveniles. €420,000 and €320,000 Arqana October yearlings purchased by Peter and Ross Doyle, and Stroud Coleman respectively were the highlights of his yearling sales, quite the return from a debut fee of €17,500.
Starting at a similar fee of €15,000 for the same outfit’s French division is the G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains winner VICTOR LUDORUM , also a G1-winning juvenile and yet another son of the breed-shaper Shamardal. He raced over three seasons and held his form throughout, chasing home Baaeed (Sea The Stars) in the G1 Prix du Moulin as a four-year-old. He was popular, covering 154 mares at Haras du Logis, and enjoyed some fireworks of his own in the sales ring with Oliver St Lawrence going to €420,000 at the Arqana August Sale for a colt. Victor Ludorum raced exclusively in France and won the first of three in an unbeaten juvenile campaign on September 1 at Longchamp over a mile, so is another we are unlikely to see represented in the Brocklesby.
Speaking of early speed, there is an exciting group to accommodate that audience this term, headed by the G1 Middle Park winner SUPREMACY, who hailed from the recordbreaking first crop of Mehmas. History often repeats itself, in which case progeny of Supremacy should be getting involved a lot earlier than the aforementioned later-maturing types, and over 5f and 6f. Yeomanstown, who stand him, supported him heavily at the sales and in the breeding shed as is customary. A final field of 118 will go to post for him come next March and will be expected to make a bright start. He failed to recapture his juvenile brilliance in three starts at three, which renders this first crop of two-year-olds crucial in determining his future place in the market.
In a similar boat is the Irish National Stud’s G1 Phoenix Stakes winner LUCKY VEGA (Lope De Vega), who unlike his sire, did the majority of his best work at two. That’s not to say his threeyear-old campaign was a no-show. In three starts, all at G1 level, he managed to place and in the process showed his versatility on good to firm and soft to heavy ground. Yulong Investments have
SPACE BLUES (Marc Rühl)
FIRST RUNNERS IN 2025
thrown their weight behind him and though he stood his first season in Australia and subsequently had a head start, he was off the mark quickly in New Zealand with a winner in a 650m trial. A debut winner himself, his foals impressed and his yearlings maintained momentum. Maxi Joorabchian, in tandem with George Scott, went to 180,000gns to secure a colt out of a half-sister to the G1 Middle Park Stakes winner Hail (Dayjur), a colt who we can safely assume will have top-flight juvenile targets on his radar.
Another looking to hit the ground running is Newsell Park Stud’s G2 Norfolk Stakes winner A’ALI (Society Rock). Although he came up short in three attempts in G1s, he plied his trade admirably well at G3 and G2 level and held his form in open company against older sprinters over five furlongs. Stroud Coleman Bloodstock signed the ticket for him at the Goffs UK Breeze-Up Sale back in 2019, and have thrown their weight behind him, signing for his three priciest yearlings. With speed and precocity in abundance, expectations are naturally high for a rapid start.
The same can be said for the G2 Mill Reef Stakes Newbury track record-breaker ALKUMAIT, whose sire Showcasing has enjoyed a stellar season with his sons at stud. Plagued by injury, the suspicion is that he never achieved his full potential. Regally bred, he is a half-brother to the G1 Dewhurst and G1 2000 Guineas winner Chaldean (Frankel), and his speedily bred twoyear-olds need to be fast out of the gates to showcase their sire’s ability.
Kodiac is another sire whose sons have consistently held their own at affordable prices and he will be represented by the G2 Flying Childers winner UBETTABELIEVEIT next year. His top-priced yearling was a three-parts brother to the G2 Coventry Stakes third Columnist (Ardad), purchased for £70,000. Standing at Mickley Stud for a fee of £5,000, speed and precocity are the order of business and the G2 Breeders’ Cup
Juvenile Turf Sprint third will need to fulfil the order if he’s going to make the grade.
We are all guilty of pigeonholing sires before their first runners have even hit the track, often negatively. Refreshingly, LOPE Y FERNANDEZ is the opposite and has already established a reputation for passing on his striking good looks. The G3-winning juvenile was a creditable second to Pinatubo (Shamardal) in the Listed Chesham Stakes after winning his Curragh debut in June. He ran 18 times across three seasons, winning or placing in ten of them and gave a number of talented horses a fright in G1s, including his renewed rival Palace Pier, who he chased home in the G1 Queen Anne Stakes. From a hot sire line but lacking a top-class race record, he has been priced accordingly and thus well supported. An £8,500 stud fee attracted enough mares to produce 98 foals and he could be one to threaten the principals if he passes on his own constitution.
The G1 July Cup winner STARMAN (Dutch Art) is one we can only hope will evade the all-toooften mix-up between speed and precocity. Unraced at two, he didn’t hit the track until July of his three-year-old campaign, when winning a 6f maiden at Lingfield, the first of three that culminated with a win in the Listed Garrowby Stakes. His four year-old season showed great improvement, running four times, winning twice and placing twice, three at G1 level. Lightly raced, he was fast and good-looking and stands at Tally-Ho Stud, who know a thing or two about standing speedy sires. Despite his own lack of precocity, the team behind him includes the supporting cast/broodmare band that played a role in the success of Kodiac and Mehmas.
Unusually, there is no standout middledistance prospect amongst this year’s class. The 2020 Epsom Derby winner Serpentine (Galileo) is busy mixing it with the best of the Australians in that division, now gelded, whilst the winner of the Irish equivalent, Santiago (Authorized), retired straight to Coolmore’s national hunt division. In a bizarre coincidence, the 2021 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner, Torquator Tasso (Adlerflug) raced on as a five-year-old, whilst the 2020 winner Sottsass (Siyouni) stood his first season in 2021 and has had his first juveniles hit the track already in 2024.
The King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner in 2020 was the wonder mare Enable (Nathaniel), and in 2021 it was that year’s Derby winner Adayar (Frankel), who raced on at four before his lamentable exportation to Japan.
The only other winning entire of a mile-and-ahalf G1 in Ireland, Great Britain or France to retire in 2022 was Mogul (Galileo), who does have his first progeny turning two on January 1, but was sent straight to the NH division at Coolmore. Food for thought and something to remember when the middle-distance Classics come around with this group’s first three-year-olds.
* Crop figures as of Weatherby’s Return Of Mares unless provided by relevant stud
LUCKY VEGA (Bronwen Healy)
T he Darley d y nast ies
Night Of Thunder
Better first-crop percentages than even Dubawi. Economics leads his breed-back crop, Desert Flower his two-year-olds and 2024 has also brought his first seven-figure yearlings.
Success is succession. And these are Dubawi and Shamardal’s truest successors...* * So far!
Blue Point
Faster to 50 winners than any stallion ever. Three major first-crop G1 winners: only Sadler’s Wells, Rainbow Quest, Sea The Stars and Montjeu have sired as many so early in their careers.
Too Darn Hot
More European Group wins from his first two crops of juveniles than any stallion ever. Sire of Classic heroine Fallen Angel, Futurity winner Hotazhell and superstar Australian colt Broadsiding.
sequel The
Our pedigree expert examines the credentials of some elite racehorses beginning the next phase of their careers as they take up stallion duties next year
ARREST (IRE)
2020 b Frankel – Nisriyna (Intikhab)
RACE RECORD: 4 wins including G3 Geoffrey Freer Stakes, G3 Chester Vase
A Classic-placed dual middle-distance pattern winner by the Timeform 147-rated superstar and leading international sire Frankel, this grandson of Galileo is a half-brother to two stakes winners and out of an unraced half-sister to the Group 1-placed dual pattern-winning Dubawi filly Narniyn. He is likely to be popular with national hunt breeders.
Boardsmill Stud
AUGUSTE RODIN (IRE)
2020 br Deep Impact – Rhododendron (Galileo)
RACE RECORD: 8 wins including G1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes, G1 Breeders’ Cup Turf, G1 Irish Champion Stakes, G1 Irish Derby, G1 Derby Stakes, G1 Futurity Trophy Stakes
Dual Derby hero and international Group 1 star by one of the all-time great Japanese stallions, he is the first foal of a multiple Group 1-winning full-sister to the prolific Group 1 star Magical. His grand dam is Halfway To Heaven, the multiple Group 1-winning daughter of Group 2-winning sprinter Cassandra Go, with that older mare also notable as being a half-sister to Classic-placed Group 1 sire Verglas. Sure to be very popular, and while his two-year-olds will most likely be autumn types, his best results will probably come with three-year-olds and older horses at a mile and upwards.
Coolmore Stud
BIG EVS (IRE)
2021 b Blue Point – Hana Lina (Oasis Dream)
RACE RECORD: 6 wins including G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint
Notable sprinter from the first crop of one of the most brilliant sprinters of the modern era, this grandson of Shamardal is, on his dam’s side, also a grandson of seven-length Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes heroine Queen’s Logic. She is the dam of Group 2-winning sprinter Lady of The Desert and was a half-sister to the Group 1 stars Dylan Thomas (Group 1 sire) and Homecoming Queen, as well as to Remember When, the Oaks-placed dam of runaway Derby winner Serpentine. Should get plenty of winners in all age groups, mostly sprinters at two and sprinters and milers beyond that.
Tally-Ho Stud
CITY OF TROY
BRADSELL (GB)
2020 b Tasleet – Russian Punch (Archipenko)
RACE RECORD: 6 wins including G1 Flying Five Stakes, G1 Nunthorpe Stakes, G1 King’s Stand Stakes
A leading juvenile who became a top-class sprinter at three and four, this grandson of Showcasing represents the Green Desert sire line. He is out of a juvenile stakes winner and from a family that has produced some prolific winners over a wide range of distances. Likely to get mostly sprinters and milers.
National Stud
BUCANERO FUERTE (GB)
2021 b Wootton Bassett – Frida La Blonde (Elusive City)
RACE RECORD: 4 wins including G1 Phoenix Stakes
Juvenile Group 1 star and a Group 3 winner at three, he is a full-brother to Group 1-winning sprinter Wooded, a successful freshman sire in France in 2024. Grand dam and juvenile stakes winner Firm Friend was Group 2-placed at a mile at three and that multiple black-type producer is out of a half-sister to the dam of juvenile pattern winner Magic Ring, a sire of winners from limited opportunities. Likely to be very busy in his new role and to get winners in all age groups, mostly as sprinters and milers.
Tally-Ho Stud
CITY OF TROY (USA)
2021 b Justify – Together Forever (Galileo)
RACE RECORD: 6 wins including G1 Juddmonte International Stakes,
Photos: CAROLINE NORRIS & HEALY RACING • Words: DR SIEGLINDE MCGEE
G1 Coral-Eclipse Stakes, Gr1 Derby Stakes, G1 Dewhurst Stakes
Unbeaten juvenile champion whose trio of Group 1s at three featured the Derby, he is an early stallion son for US Triple Crown star Justify and is out of a Group 1-winning full-sister to Oaks heroine Forever Together and half-sister to mile Group 1 scorer Lord Shanakill (sire of My Dream Boat). Group/Grade 1 winners including Spanish Fern, Heatseeker, Al Bahathri, and Haafhd are also on the page. He is guaranteed elite support, will likely get some smart autumn juveniles, and he has the potential to become a Classic sire.
Coolmore Stud
GO BEARS GO (IRE)
2019 b/br Kodi Bear – In Dubai (Giant’s Causeway)
RACE RECORD: 4 wins including G2 Railway Stakes
Smart sprinter and grandson of Kodiac who is out of a winning half-sister to dual mile stakes winner Baharah plus Nahrain, the Group 1-winning dam of Group 1 stars Benbatl and Elmalka, the latter 2024’s 1000 Guineas winner. His dual Oaks-placed grand dam Bahr won the Ribblesdale Stakes. Likely to get mostly sprinters and milers, but also some who stay a bit farther.
Springfiield House Stud
HENRY LONGFELLOW (IRE)
2021 b Dubawi – Minding (Galileo)
RACE RECORD: 3 wins including G1 National Stakes
Juvenile Group 1 star and dual Group 1-placed miler at three, he is by a notable sire of sires and is the second foal of a prolific Group 1 star whose siblings include Group 1-winning full-sisters Empress Josephine and Tuesday. His grand dam Lillie Langtry is a dual Group 1-winning miler. Likely to get some smart autumn juveniles, plus he has the potential to become a Classic sire.
Coolmore Stud
ISAAC SHELBY (GB)
2020 ch Night of Thunder – Kentucky Belle (Heliostatic)
RACE RECORD: 3 wins including G2 Superlative Stakes
Best at seven and eight furlongs, this Classic-placed juvenile Group 2 scorer is an early stallion son for a Classic-winning miler who is one of the top sire-sons of Dubawi. There is a mixture of speed and stamina in his distaff side, so don’t be surprised to see him get some capable middle-distance horses in addition to inevitable juveniles, sprinters, and milers. Newsells Park Stud
KING OF STEEL (USA)
2020 gr Wootton Bassett – Eldacar (Verglas)
RACE RECORD: 3 wins including G1 Champion Stakes
Top-class middle-distance horse by a rising star in the stallion ranks, he represents the Gone West branch of the Mr Prospector sire line and comes from a prolific black-type family whose notables
NEW TO STUD
include late Australian mile champion and Group 1 sire Contributor, plus last year’s Classic-placed French Group 2 heroine Survie. May get some good autumn juveniles, but likely to fare best with threeyear-olds and older horses over the full Classic range.
Tally-Ho Stud
LOOK DE VEGA (IRE)
2021 b Lope de Vega – Lucelle (High Chaparral)
RACE RECORD: 3 wins including G1 Prix du Jockey Club
This Classic star joins his leading international sire at Ballylinch Stud and is the latest winner of the Prix du Jockey Club added to the roster. A seven-length winner of his only start as a two-year-old, he is out of a middle-distance-winning half-sister to G2 Lancashire Oaks winner The Black Princess, and his grand dam is a half-sister to the French Classic stars Latice and Lawman, the latter a former Ballylinchbased Classic sire. Likely to be very popular, get some good autumn juveniles and later winners across the full Classic range. Potential Classic sire.
Ballylinch Stud
LUXEMBOURG (IRE)
2019 b Camelot – Attire (Danehill Dancer)
RACE RECORD: 7 wins including G1 Coronation Cup, G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup, G1 Irish Champion Stakes, G1 Futurity Trophy Stakes
Classic-placed four-time Group 1 winner by a leading international sire and from a prolific black-type family whose top-level stars include Cape Verdi and Arcangues, this €2.7m earner is being marketed at the national hunt division and will surely receive huge books in his new role. Hopefully, he might also receive some flat mares because he could be a useful source of much needed middle-distance Classic stamina.
Castlehyde Stud
MILL STREAM (IRE)
2020 b Gleneagles – Swirral Edge (Hellvelyn)
RACE RECORD: 5 wins including G1 July Cup
An early stallion son for his Classic-winning miler sire, this grandson of Galileo is a half-brother to Group 2 scorer Asymmetric, whose first foals arrive in
BUCANERO FUERTE
NEW TO STUD
2025. His dam is a half-sister to the dam of an Italian three-year-old sprint champion, whereas grand dam
Pizzarra is a half-sister to Group 2 Flying Childers
Stakes heroine and black-type producer Wunders
Dream. Likely to get late-summer/autumn two-yearolds plus sprinters and milers aged three and up. Yeomanstown Stud
GO BEARS GO
New in FRANCE
AL HAKEEM (GB) 2019 b Siyouni – Jadhaba (Galileo)
– G2 Haras de Bouquetot
BIG ROCK (FR) 2020 b Rock of Gibraltar – Hardiyna (Sea The Stars)
– G1 Haras de Grandcamp
CHARYN (IRE) 2020 gr Dark Angel – Futoon (Kodiac)
– G1 Haras de Montfort et Preaux
FEED THE FLAME (GB) 2020 b Kingman – Knyazhna (Montjeu)
– G1 Haras de la Hetraie
GAMESTOP (IRE) 2020 ch Lope de Vega – Your Game (Montjeu)
– G1 Haras du Taillis
MASTER D’OC (FR) 2020 b Doctor Dino – Mind Master (Mizzen Mast)
– NH G3 Haras de Toury
METROPOLITAN (FR) 2021 ch Zarak – Alianca (Halling)
– G1 Haras d’Etreham
MY PROSPERO (IRE) 2019 b Iffraaj – My Titania (Sea The Stars)
– G2 Haras des Faunes
NIETZSCHE HAS (FR) 2021 ch Zarak – Nice To Meet You (Martaline)
– NH G3 Haras de Montaigu
PUCHKINE (FR) 2021 b Starspangledbanner – Vadyska (So You Think)
– G1 Haras de Beaumont
RIVER TIBER (IRE) 2021 b Wootton Bassett – Transcendence (Arcano)
– G2 Haras de la Huderie
ZAGREY (FR) 2019 b Zarak – Grey Anatomy (Slickly)
– G1 Haras de Grandcamp
New in GERMANY
FANTASTIC MOON (GER) 2020 b Sea The Moon – Frangipani (Jukebox Jury) – G1 Gestut Ebbesloh
SAKHEER (IRE)
2020 b Zoffany – Shortmile Lady (Arcano)
RACE RECORD: 2 wins including G2 Mill Reef Stakes
Lightly raced juvenile sprinter by a late Classic sire from the Danehill line, he is inbred 4x5 to Danzig and is a half-brother to the triple pattern winner Lemista. That Grade 1-placed Raven’s Pass filly was best at eight and nine furlongs. His dam is a half-sister to the prolific stakes-winning sprinter Indian Maiden (dam of two multiple stakes winners) and he represents a branch of the family of Kentucky Derby heroine Winning Colors. He is likely to get mostly sprinters and milers, with winners in all age groups.
Ballyhane Stud
SHOULDVEBEENARING (GB)
2020 gr Havana Grey – Lady Estella (Equiano)
RACE RECORD: 6 wins including G3 Prix de Ris-Orangis
Best at six and seven furlongs, this early stallion son of one of Great Britain’s most popular sire looks sure to be busy. He was a stakes winner at two, three and four, is out of a half-sister to a seven-furlong pattern winner, related to the very quick US Grade 3-winning sprinters Home of The Free and Poolesta and to middle-distance Grade 1 scorer Grand Couturier, and he represents a branch of the family of influential Classic sire
Elusive Quality. He is inbred 4x3 to Acclamation and should supply sprinters and milers in all age groups.
Irish National Stud
VANDEEK (GB)
2021 gr Havana Grey – Mosa Mine (Exceed And Excel)
RACE RECORD: 4 wins including G1 Middle Park Stakes, G1 Prix Morny
First or third in all six starts, he was an unbeaten dual Group 1 star as a juvenile. He is one of the first stallion sons of one of England’s most popular young sires, a Whitsbury Manor Studbased Group 1-winning sprinter notable as being arguably the fastest male-line descendant of Galileo. Vandeek’s grand dam is a winning halfsister to Balbonella, the Group 1-winning dam of European sprint champion and Classic sire
Anabaa, his Classic-winning half-sister and Group 1-producing half-sister Always Loyal, and Group 3 scorer and Classic sire Key of Luck. Sure to be very popular, and with plenty of winners in all age groups likely, his best will probably be sprinters and milers.
Cheveley Park Stud
*Dr Sieglinde McGee is a widely published thoroughbred pedigree analyst and author of the comprehensive Best Racehorse annuals that offer a comprehensive view of each racing year and are available to purchase online.
Fee: £22,500 (1st October SLF)
• Sire of 5 GROUP 1 WINNERS
• Sire of 21 GROUP/STAKES horses in 2024 including Gr.1 and Gr.2 winner FANTASTIC MOON
Gr.1 and Gr.3 winner ASSISTENT
• Also sire of 12 individual 2yo winners in 2024 including Listed winner INSTANT FRAGILE Group 3 placed SHANDANA Listed placed QUEBEC and SECRET OF LOVE
• Champion Sire in Germany in 2023 and 2024
• In 2023, sire of the Group 1 German Derby winner and the Group 1 German Oaks winner
STUDY OF MAN
Fee: £25,000 (1st October SLF)
• Sire of 11 Group/Stakes horses including Gr.1 winner KALPANA, Gr.2 winners BIRTHE and DEEPONE from his first crop, 3yos of 2024
• Also sire of 9 2yo winners in 2024 including REVOIR, ALMERIC, MANY MEN and Group placed ALLA STELLA
• Leading 2nd Crop Northern Hemisphere Sire with 9.72% Group Horses to Runners
• Leading 2nd Crop European Sire with 13.89% Stakes Horses to Runners
• Yearling colts sold in 2024 made 260,000gns, 220,000gns, 210,000gns, etc and at Tattersalls Book 2 averaged £143,193 (€171,832)
STALLION FEES FOR 2025
A’ALI
ACCON
ACE IMPACT
ACLAIM
ADAAY
£5,000
€2,500
€40,000
£3,000
€4,500
ADVERTISE Private
AFFAIRE SOLITAIRE o/a
AFFINISEA o/a
AGENT SECRET o/a
AIR CHIEF MARSHAL o/a
AIZAVOSKI o/a
AL HAKEEM €5,000
AL KAZEEM £10,000
AL WUKAIR o/a
ALBAASIL o/a
ALBERT DOCK €5,000
ALHEBAYEB o/a
ALIGNAK o/a
ALKUMAIT o/a
ALMIGHWAR o/a
ALSON €5,500
ALTER ADLER €2,500
ALTRUISTIC o/a
AMARILLO o/a
AMARON €4,500
AMERICAN DEVIL o/a
AMERICAN PHAROAH $45,000
AMERICANREVOLUTION $12,500
AMHRAN NA BHFIANN o/a
ANGEL BLEU €8,000
ANJAAL o/a
ANNAPOLIS $12,500
ANODIN o/a
ARABIAN KNIGHT
$30,000
ARABIAN LION $20,000
ARCANGELO $35,000
ARCANO €4,000
ARCTIC COSMOS o/a
ARDAD £12,500
ARMOR €5,000
ARMY MULE $20,000
ARREST o/a
ARRIGO o/a
ASSERTIVE o/a
AUDIBLE $10,000
AUGUSTE RODIN €30,000
AUSTRALIA €10,000
AUSTRIAN SCHOOL o/a
AUTHENTIC $25,000
AUTHORIZED o/a
AWTAAD €7,500
BAAEED £65,000
BANDE o/a
BANGKOK £3,000
BARASTRAIGHT o/a
BARRAQUERO o/a
BATED BREATH
£8,000
BATHYRHON £6,000
BATTLE OF MARENGO o/a
BAY BRIDGE o/a
BAYSIDE BOY €12,500
BEAUMEC DE HOUELLE €5,000
BECKFORD o/a
BEHESHT o/a
BELARDO £5,500
BIG EVS
€17,500
BIG ROCK €12,000
BIRCHWOOD o/a
BIZ THE NURSE o/a
BLACK HORUS o/a
BLACK MAMBAZO o/a
BLACKBEARD
BLAME
CODY’S WISH
COGBURN
COKORIKO
COLLECTED
€17,500
$25,000
BLAZING SEVENS $12,500
BLEK o/a
BLU CONSTELLATION
€2,500
BLUE BRESIL o/a
BLUE POINT €100,000
BOBBY’S KITTEN £5,000
BOLSHOI BALLET o/a
BOLT D’ORO $30,000
BORN TO SEA €3,500
BOUTTEMONT o/a
BOW CREEK o/a
BRADSELL £10,000
BRAMETOT o/a
BRAVE MANSONNIEN o/a
BRIAN BORU o/a
BRIGHT FUTURE
$12,500
BUBBLE GIFT €2,500
BUCANERO FUERTE
€12,500
BUCCHERO $10,000
BUCK’S BOUM o/a
BULLET TRAIN o/a
BUNGLE INTHEJUNGLE €7,500
BURMA GOLD o/a
BURWAAZ o/a
CAIRO PRINCE $15,000
CALYX €12,500
CAMELOT €75,000
CAMERON HIGHLAND o/a
CANDY RIDE $75,000
CANNOCK CHASE £2,000
CANTOCORALE €3,000
CAPPELLA SANSEVERO o/a
CAPRI
£2,500
CAPTAIN CHOP o/a
CARACARO $10,000
CARLTON DU BERLAIS €3,000
CASA CREED $10,000
CASHBAG o/a
CASTLE DU BERLAIS €5,000
CASTLE STAR o/a
CATURRA £5,000
CELTICUS o/a
CENTURY DREAM £3,000
CHACHNAK o/a
CHALDEAN
£25,000
CHANDUCOQ o/a
CHARGE IT $12,500
CHARLATAN $50,000
CHARM SPIRIT €4,000
CHARMING THOUGHT £3,000
CHARYN €35,000
CHASEDOWN o/a
CHEMICAL CHARGE o/a
CHESTNUT HONEY o/a
CHICHI CREASY o/a
CHOEUR DU NORD o/a
CHURCHILL
BELBEK
€6,000
BERKSHIRE o/a
BEST COMPANY o/a
BEST SOLUTION €5,000
BHARUCH o/a
$65,000
$30,000
€15,000
$10,000
COMPLACENT o/a
COMPLEXITY
CONNECT
CONSTITUTION
CORNICHE
COTAI GLORY
COULSTY
COUNTERATTACK
CRACKSMAN
$25,000
$10,000
$110,000
$15,000
€15,000
€5,500
€7,500
£12,500
CREACHADOIR o/a
CRYSTAL OCEAN o/a
CURLIN
$225,000
CURTAIN TIME o/a
CYBERKNIFE
$20,000
DABIRSIM o/a
DADS CAPS o/a
DALYAKAN o/a
DAREDEVIL
DARK ANGEL
$15,000
€60,000
DARTMOUTH o/a
DAVE o/a
DAVID DU BERLAIS
€3,500
DAWN APPROACH o/a
DE TREVILLE o/a
DECORATED KNIGHT o/a
DEE EX BEE o/a
DESINVOLTE o/a
DESTINO
€4,000
DEVASTAR o/a
DEVILISH o/a
DIALED IN $15,000
DIAMOND BOY o/a
DICAPRIO o/a
DINK
DIPLOMAT
DOCTOR DINO
£3,000
£1,500
€24,000
DOGMA NOIR o/a
DOHA DREAM o/a
DOMESTIC PRODUCT
$30,000
DONJUAN TRIUMPHANT o/a
DOPPELGANGER o/a
DORNOCH
$40,000
DOWSING o/a
DR SCHIVEL
DRAGON DANCER
ELIOT o/a
ELITE POWER
$50,000
ELLIPTIQUE o/a
ELM PARK o/a
ELUSIVE PIMPERNEL o/a
ELZAAM o/a
EPICENTER
$35,000
EQUIANO o/a
ERASMUS o/a
EREVANN €8,000
ESOPE o/a
ESSENTIAL QUALITY $50,000
ESTEJO o/a
EXCELEBRATION o/a
FA UL SCIUR o/a
FALCO o/a
FAMOUS NAME o/a
FANTASTIC MOON €9,000
FANTASTIC MOON o/a
FAQUIR o/a
FAR ABOVE o/a
FARHH Private
FAS o/a
FASCINATING ROCK o/a
FEED THE FLAME €4,500
FEEL LIKE DANCING o/a
FIFTY STARS o/a
FIGHTING IRISH o/a
FINSCEAL FIOR o/a
FIRST ELEVEN €4,000
FLAG OF HONOUR o/a
FLAMEAWAY $15,000
FLASH GORDON o/a
FLIGHTLINE $150,000
FLINTSHIRE €4,000
FLY WITH ME €2,200
FOMENT o/a
FOOT OF KING o/a
FOOTSTEPSINTHESAND €8,000
FOREVER NOW o/a
FORTE $45,000
FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH o/a
FRAMMASSONE o/a
FRANKEL £350,000
FRANKLINS GARDENS o/a
FREE EAGLE o/a
FREE PORT LUX o/a
$10,000
£1,500
DRAGON PULSE o/a
DRAGON SYMBOL
DRAIN THE CLOCK
DREAM AHEAD
£8,000
$10,000
£6,500
DREAM EATER o/a
DSCHINGIS SECRET
DUBAI MILE
DUBAWI
€3,000
€4,000
£350,000
DUBAWI LEGEND o/a
EAGLES BY DAY o/a
EARL OF TINSDAL o/a
EARLY VOTING
€25,000
CITY LIGHT
CITY OF LIGHT
CITY OF TROY
CLOTH OF STARS
€10,000
$35,000
€75,000
€4,000
CLOVIS DU BERLAIS o/a
$12,500
EARNSHAW o/a
EARTHLIGHT
€12,500
EASTERN ANTHEM o/a
EBRO RIVER o/a
ECOLO o/a
ECTOT o/a
EL CABALLO
£5,000
EL KABEIR o/a
ELECTRIC BEAT o/a
FRONTIERSMAN o/a
FROSTED $15,000
FUISSE o/a
FULL DRAGO o/a
GALIDON o/a
GALIKEO o/a
GALILEO CHROME o/a
GALILEO GOLD o/a
GALIWAY €30,000
GAME WINNER $20,000
GAMESTOP €4,000
GAMMARTH o/a
GAMUT o/a
GARY DU CHENET €2,500
GENGIS o/a
GENIALE o/a
GENTLEWAVE o/a
GEORDIELAND o/a
GETAWAY o/a
GHAIYYATH €20,000
GHOSTZAPPER Private
GIRVIN $25,000
GLENEAGLES €20,000
GLOBAL IMPACT o/a
GO BEARS GO
GOD BLESSING
€8,000
€3,000
GOKEN €10,000
GOLD TAIL o/a
GOLDEN HORDE
€4,000
GOLDEN HORN £10,000
GOLDEN LARIAT o/a
GOLDEN PAL
GOLDENCENTS
GOLIATH DU BERLAIS
GOOD GUESS
GOOD MAGIC
$20,000
$10,000
€12,500
€12,500
$125,000
GREAT PRETENDER o/a
GREGORIAN
€4,500
GRENDISAR o/a
GUAPO o/a
GUENDALE’S STAR
€1,500
GUILIANI o/a
GUN PILOT
$17,500
GUN RUNNER $250,000
GUNITE $30,000
GUSTAV KLIMT o/a
GUTAIFAN
€2,500
HARBOUR LAW o/a
HARD SPUN
HARRY ANGEL
$25,000
£10,000
HARZAND o/a
HAVANA GREY Private HEADMAN o/a
HEARTLAND $10,000
HELLO YOUMZAIN
€40,000
HELLVELYN o/a
HELMET o/a
HENRY LONGFELLOW
€15,000
HENRY MOUTH o/a
HERALD THE DAWN o/a
HEROSTAR o/a
HEY GAMAN o/a
HILLSTAR o/a
HOLY BALLET o/a
HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR €8,000
HONOLULU o/a
HONOR A P $10,000
HOT STREAK o/a
HUNTER’S LIGHT o/a
HUNTING HORN o/a
HURRICANE LANE o/a
HYDROGEN o/a
I’LL HAVE ANOTHER o/a
IDAHO o/a
IFFRAAJ £10,000
ILARAAB o/a
IMPERIAL MONARCH o/a
IN SWOOP o/a
INDIAN DAFFODIL o/a
INDOMITO o/a
INNS OF COURT o/a
INSTAGRAND
INSTILLED REGARD
INTELLO
INTO MISCHIEF
INVINCIBLE ARMY
IQUITOS
ISAAC SHELBY
ISFAHAN
STALLION FEES FOR 2025
BUCANERO FUERTE
JACK HOBBS o/a
JACKIE’S WARRIOR
JAPAN
$35,000
€9,500
JET AWAY o/a
JEU ST ELOI o/a
JIGME o/a
JIMMY TWO TIMES o/a
JOSHUA TREE €7,000
JUKEBOX JURY o/a
JUSTIFY
KAMEKO
$250,000
£20,000
KANTHAROS $12,500
KAP ROCK o/a
KAPGARDE o/a
KARAKONTIE $15,000
KARAKTAR €12,000
KEIAI NAUTIQUE o/a
KENDARGENT €12,000
KENWAY €3,000
KESSAAR o/a
KEW GARDENS £3,000
KHALIFA SAT o/a
KHALKEVI o/a
KHAN o/a
KIKUJIROU o/a
KING EDWARD o/a
KING OF CHANGE o/a
KING OF STEEL
€20,000
KING’S TRAIL o/a
KINGMAN £125,000
KINGSBARNS $20,000
KINGSFORT o/a
KINGSTON HILL £3,000
KNICKS GO $12,500
KNIGHT TO BEHOLD o/a
KODI BEAR o/a
KODIAC
€25,000
KOOL COMPANY o/a
KUROSHIO o/a
LACCARIO o/a
LAND FORCE
£2,500
LANGTANG o/a
LATROBE
LAVELLO
€4,000
€3,000
LAWMAN o/a
LE BRIVIDO o/a
LE CADRE NOIR o/a
LE REBEL
€1,600
LE VIE INFINITE o/a
LEADING LIGHT o/a
LEGENDS OF WAR o/a
LETHAL FORCE o/a
LIAM’S MAP $40,000
LIBANO o/a
LIBERTARIAN o/a
LIFE IS GOOD $75,000
LIGHTNING SPEAR £5,000
LINDA’S LAD o/a
LUCK OF THE KITTEN o/a
LUCKY LION
€2,500
LUCKY SPEED o/a
LUCKY TEAM o/a
LUCKY VEGA
LUSAIL
€12,500
€5,000
LUXEMBOURG o/a
MAC SWINEY o/a
MACHUCAMBO o/a
MACLEAN’S MUSIC
$40,000
MADHMOON o/a
MAGE
$25,000
MAGIC DREAM o/a
MAGNA GRECIA
£5,500
MAGNETICJIM o/a
MAHLER o/a
MAHSOOB o/a
MAKALOUN o/a
MAKE BELIEVE €8,000
MALOSSOL o/a
MANATEE o/a
MANDALOUN
$15,000
MARCEL o/a
MARE AUSTRALIS
MARIANAFOOT
€4,500
€2,200
MARIE’S DIAMOND o/a
MARKAZ o/a
MARTEL o/a
MARTINBOROUGH o/a
MASAR o/a
MASKED MARVEL €12,500
MASSAAT
MASTER CARPENTER
£3,500
£1,500
MASTER D’OC €3,200
MASTER’S SPIRIT o/a
MASTEROFTHEHORSE o/a
MASTERSTROKE o/a
MATTMU
£2,000
MAXFIELD $40,000
MAXIMUS MISCHIEF $20,000
MAXIOS o/a
MAYSON
MCKINZIE
MEDAGLIA D’ORO
€4,250
$75,000
$75,000
MEDIA HYPE o/a
MEHMAS
MEKHTAAL
MENDELSSOHN
MENDOCINO
METROPOLITAN
MIDNIGHT LUTE
MIDNIGHT SANDS
€70,000
€2,000
$15,000
€3,800
€15,000
$10,000
£2,500
MIDNIGHTS LEGACY £3,000
MIDSHIPMAN $15,000
MILDENBERGER o/a
MILITARY STYLE o/a
MILL STREAM
€12,500
MILLOWITSCH €2,000
$10,000
$10,000
€8,000
$250,000
€3,500
€6,000
£7,000
€7,500
IT’S GINO o/a
ITO o/a
IVANHOWE €4,000
JACK CHRISTOPHER
$25,000
LIQUIDO o/a
LITERATO o/a
LITTLE BIG BEAR
€20,000
LODOVICO IL MORO o/a
LOGICIAN o/a
LOHIT o/a
LONE EAGLE o/a
LOOK DE VEGA
LOPE DE VEGA
LOPE Y FERNANDEZ
MINESHAFT $10,000
MINZAAL €12,500
MIRAGE DANCER o/a
MISHRIFF €16,000
MITOLE
€20,000
€175,000
£7,500
LORD CHAPARRAL o/a
LOVELACE o/a
$10,000
MIZZOU o/a
MKFANCY o/a
MO DONEGAL
$10,000
MODERN GAMES £30,000
MOGUL o/a
MOHAATHER £15,000
MOISES HAS o/a
STALLION FEES FOR 2025
PASSING GLANCE
£3,000
PEACE ENVOY o/a
PEARL SECRET
£2,000
PENNY’S PICNIC o/a
PER UN DIXIR o/a
PERFECT POWER
PERSIAN FORCE
PERSIAN KING
£7,500
€8,000
€25,000
PETHER’S MOON o/a
PETILLO o/a
PHELPS WIN o/a
PHENOMENA o/a
PHOENIX OF SPAIN
€10,000
PILLAR CORAL o/a
PINATUBO
PLANTEUR
£30,000
£4,000
POET’S WORD o/a
POLARIX o/a
POLICY MAKER o/a
POLISH VULCANO
€2,000
POMELLATO o/a
PORTAGE o/a
POSEIDON ADVENTURE o/a
POSTPONED o/a
POUNCED o/a
POUR MOI o/a
PRACTICAL JOKE
$75,000 PRESIDENCY o/a
PRETTY TIGER
€4,000 PRIMARY o/a
PRINCE GIBRALTAR
€4,500
PRINCE NOMAD o/a
PRINCE OF MONACO $30,000
PROXY $15,000
PUCHKINE
RUBIS VENDOME o/a
RULER OF THE WORLD o/a
RUMBLE INTHEJUNGLE
£3,500
SADDEX o/a
SADDLER’S ROCK o/a
SAINTGODREL
SAKHEER
€2,000
€6,500
SALFORD SECRET o/a
SALT LAKE CITY o/a
SAMYSILVER o/a
SANDS OF MALI o/a
SANS FRONTIERES o/a
SANTIAGO o/a
SAONOIS o/a
SASSOFORTINO o/a
SAVOIR VIVRE o/a
SAXON WARRIOR
€15,000
SCALO o/a
SCHIAPARELLI £2,000
SCORPION o/a
SEA MOON o/a
SEA THE MOON
£22,500
SEA THE STARS €250,000
SEABHAC o/a
SEAHENGE o/a
SEALIWAY €12,000
SECHE o/a
SEEKING FOR GARRY o/a
SEIZE THE GREY
$30,000
SERGEI PROKOFIEV £8,000
SEVEN POCKETS o/a
SHALABINI o/a
SHAMALGAN o/a
SHAMAN €5,000
€8,500
PYLEDRIVER o/a
QUALITY ROAD
$150,000
QUEST FOR PEACE o/a
QUICK MARTIN o/a
RACINGER
RAGING BULL
€3,000
$10,000
RAJASINGHE £3,000
RAJJ o/a
RAJSAMAN o/a
RANSOM HOPE o/a
RAVEN’S PASS €7,500
RECHARGE o/a
RECOLETOS
€4,000
RECORDER o/a
REFUSE TO BOBBIN o/a
REGAL APACHE o/a
REKINDLING o/a
REMUS DE LA TOUR o/a
RETIREMENT PLAN o/a
RICH HISTORY o/a
RIOCORVO
€2,800
RIP VAN LIPS o/a
RIVER BOYNE o/a
RIVER TIBER
€5,500
ROAD TO ARC o/a
ROB ROY o/a
ROBIANO o/a
ROBIN DU NORD o/a
ROBIN OF NAVAN o/a
ROMAN CANDLE o/a
ROMANISED
ROSEMAN
STORM THE STARS
€3,500
STORMY OCEAN o/a
STRADIVARIUS
STREET SENSE
STUDY OF MAN
STUNNING SPIRIT
SUBJECTIVIST
£10,000
$50,000
£25,000
€3,000
£4,000
SUCCESS DAYS o/a
SUMBAL o/a
SUN CENTRAL o/a
SUPREMACY
SWISS SPIRIT
€8,000
£1,000
TAAREEF o/a
TACITUS
$10,000
TAI CHI o/a
TAIBA
TAJ MAHAL
$30,000
€2,500
TAMATOA o/a
TAPIT
TAPIT TRICE
$185,000
$20,000
TAU CETI o/a
TECHNICIAN
€2,000
TELECASTER o/a
TELESCOPE €3,000
TEOFILO
€30,000
TEXAS o/a
THE ANTARCTIC €5,000
THE ANVIL o/a
THE GREY GATSBY €12,000
THE GURKHA o/a
THE IRISH ROVER o/a
THOUSAND WORDS
$12,500
THREAT o/a
THUNDER MOON
€6,000
VENDANGEUR o/a
VERBAL DEXTERITY o/a
VERIFYING o/a
VICTOR LUDORUM €15,000
VICTOR’S CRY o/a
VICTORY SONG o/a
VIF MONSIEUR o/a
VINO ROSSO
$12,500
VIOLENCE $30,000
VIRTUAL o/a
VITA VENTURI o/a
VOCALISED o/a
VOILADENUO o/a
VOLATILE $12,500
VOLFANGO o/a
WALDGEIST €6,000
WALDKONIG o/a
WALDPARK €2,500
WALDPFAD o/a
WALK IN THE PARK o/a
WAR COMMAND o/a
WAR FRONT $75,000
WAR OF WILL $20,000
WASHINGTON DC £3,500
WATAR o/a
WAY TO PARIS €3,000
WELL CHOSEN o/a
WELLS FARHH GO £2,500
WELTMEISTER o/a
WELTSTAR o/a
WESTERNER o/a
WHIPPER o/a
WIESENPFAD o/a
WILLYWELL o/a
SHAQUILLE £15,000
SHAWEEL o/a
SHIROCCO o/a
SHOULDVEBEENARING €6,000
SHOWCASING £35,000
SILAS MARNER €1,200
SILVER STATE $15,000
SILVERWAVE o/a
SIOUX NATION €30,000
SIR RON PRIESTLEY o/a
SIXTIES ICON o/a
SIYOUNI €200,000
SKY MESA $10,000
SLADE POWER o/a
SMOOTH DADDY o/a
SNOW SKY o/a
SOFT LIGHT €4,000
SOLDIER OF FORTUNE o/a
SOLDIER’S CALL £6,000
SOMMERABEND €3,500
SON OF REST o/a
SORDINO o/a
SOUTHERN HILLS o/a
SPACE BLUES €16,000
SPACE TRAVELLER o/a
SPANISH MOON o/a
SPEAK IN COLOURS o/a
SPEAKER’S CORNER $10,000
SPUN TO RUN $10,000
ST MARK’S BASILICA €40,000
STARMAN €10,000
€7,000
£4,000
ROSS o/a
ROYAL LYTHAM o/a
RUBAIYAT
€4,500
STARSPANGLEDBANNER €45,000
STATE OF REST o/a
STAY THIRSTY o/a
STEELE TANGO o/a
STELLAR MASS o/a
TIBERIAN o/a
TIMBERLAKE
$20,000
TIN HORSE o/a
TIP TWO WIN £2,500
TIRWANAKO o/a
TIZ THE LAW
TONALIST
$30,000
$10,000
TOO DARN HOT £90,000
TOP TRIP o/a
TORNIBUSH o/a
TORQUATOR TASSO €20,000
TOSEN STARDOM o/a
TOTXO o/a
TOUGH AS NAILS o/a
TOUT SEUL o/a
TRIPLE TIME £10,000
TUNIS
€10,000
TUSCAN GAZE o/a
TWILIGHT SON €5,000
TWIRLING CANDY $60,000
TWO PHIL’S
$10,000
UBETTABELIEVEIT £5,000
ULTRA o/a
ULYSSES
UNCLE MO
£8,000
$125,000
UNION RAGS $10,000
UNIVERSAL o/a
UP TO THE MARK
UPSTART
$25,000
$25,000
URBAN POET o/a
VADAMOS o/a
VADENI
€18,000
VALIRANN o/a
VAN BEETHOVEN o/a
VANDEEK
£15,000
VEKOMA o/a
WINDSTOSS €4,000
WINGS OF EAGLES o/a
WINKER WATSON o/a
WITHOUT PAROLE
£8,000
WONDERFUL MOON €2,500
WOODED
€7,000
WOOTTON BASSETT €300,000
WOOTTON’S COLT o/a
WORKFORCE o/a
WUSOOL o/a
YAFTA o/a
YAUPON $25,000
YEATS o/a
YORGUNNABELUCKY £2,500
YOUMZAIN o/a
ZAGREY €6,000
ZANDON $10,000
ZANZIBARI o/a
ZARAK €80,000
ZASKAR €3,500
ZELZAL €10,000
202 4 FLAT & NH STATISTICS
Irish Flat Season
Irish NH Season
Major Irish NH Winners (last
Boylesports Irish Grand National Handicap Chase, Fairyhouse (3m 5f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 FREEWHEELIN DYLAN 9, 10-8 D A McLoughlin R A Doyle
2022 LORD LARIAT 7, 9-12 D A McLoughlin P J O’Hanlon
2023 I AM MAXIMUS 7, 11-1 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 INTENSE RAFFLES 6, 11-4 T Gibney JJ Slevin
Lawlor’s of Naas (Slaney) Novice Hurdle, Naas (2m 4f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 ENVOI ALLEN 6, 11-10 G Elliott D N Russell
2021 BOB OLINGER 6, 11-12 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 GINTO 6, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2023 CHAMP KIELY 7, 11-10 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2024 READIN TOMMY WRONG 6, 11-12 W P Mullins D Jacob
Dan & Joan Moore Memorial Handicap Chase, Fairyhouse (2m 1f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 CHARLIE STOUT 9, 10-3 S Nolan C P McNamara
2021 DALY TIGER 8, 11-2 N Meade S W Flanagan
2022 DUNVEGAN 9, 11-0 P A Fahy B J Cooper
2023 REBEL GOLD 10, 10-4 P T Foley D F O’Regan
2024 UNCLE PHIL 7, 10-12 W P Mullins P Townend
Goffs Thyestes Handicap Chase, Gowran Park (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 TOTAL RECALL 11, 11-4 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2021 COKO BEACH 6, 10-6 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2022 LONGHOUSE POET 8, 10-9 M Brassil D J O’Keeffe
2023 CAREFULLY SELECTED 11, 11-8 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 AIN’T THAT A SHAME 10, 11-3 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
Nathaniel Lacy Solicitors Novice Hurdle, Leopardstown (2m 6f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 LATEST EXHIBITION 7, 11-10 P Nolan B J Cooper
2021 GAILLARD DU MESNIL 5, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 MINELLA COCOONER 6, 11-10 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2023 GOOD LAND 7, 11-10 B Connell M J M O’Sullivan
2024 DANCING CITY 7, 11-10 W P Mullins D E Mullins
Ladbrokes Dublin Chase (2m 1f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2021 CHACUN POUR SOI 9,11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 CHACUN POUR SOI 10, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 GENTLEMAN DE MEE 7, 11-12 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2024 EL FABIOLO 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
Goffs Irish Arkle Perpetual Challenge Cup Novice Chase, Leopardstown (2m 1f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 NOTEBOOK 7, 11-10 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2021 ENERGUMENE 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 BLUE LORD 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 EL FABIOLO 6, 11-12 W P Mullins D A Jacob
2024 IL ETAIT TEMPS 6, 11-12 W P Mullins D E Mullins
Chanelle Pharma Irish Champion Hurdle, Leopardstown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 HONEYSUCKLE 6, 11-3 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2021 HONEYSUCKLE 7, 11-5 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 HONEYSUCKLE 8, 11-5 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2023 STATE MAN 6, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 STATE MAN 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
McCann Fitzgerald Spring Juvenile Hurdle, Leopardstown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 A WAVE OF THE SEA 4, 11-0 J P O’Brien B J Geraghty
2021 QUILIXIOS 4, 11-2 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2022 VAUBAN 4, 11-0 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 GALA MARCEAU 4, 10-7 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2024 KARGESE 4, 10-7 W P Mullins D E Mullins
Tattersalls Ireland Novice Hurdle, Leopardstown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 ASTERION FORLONGE 6, 11-10 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2021 APPRECIATE IT 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 SIR GERHARD 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 IL ETAIT TEMPS 5, 11-12 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2024 BALLYBURN 6, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
Ladbrokes Novice Chase, Leopardstown (2m 5f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 FAUGHEEN 12, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2021 MONKFISH 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS 6, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 MIGHTY POTTER 6, 11-10 G Elliott D N Russell
2024 FACT TO FILE 7, 11-10 W P Mullins M P Walsh
5 years)
Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup, Leopardstown (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 DELTA WORK 7, 11-10 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2021 KEMBOY 9, 11-12 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2022 CONFLATED 8, 11-10 G Elliott D N Russell
2023 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS 7, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS 8, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
Irish EBF Honeysuckle Mares’ Novice Hurdle, Fairyhouse (2m 4f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 SKYACE 6, 11-9 J J Hanlon J S McGarvey
2022 BRANDY LOVE 6, 11-5 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 ASHROE DIAMOND 6, 11-5 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 JADE DE GRUGY 5, 11-5
WillowWarm Gold Cup Novice Chase, Fairyhouse (2m 4f) Year
KPMG Champion Novice Hurdle, Punchestown (2m)
William Hill Champion Chase, Punchestown (2m)
Dooley Insurance Champion Novice Chase, Punchestown (3m 120y)
Jockey
cancelled due to Covid-19 2021 COLREEVY 8, 11-5 W P Mullins D E Mullins 2022 CAPODANNO 6, 11-10 W P Mullins M P Walsh 2023 FERONILY 6, 11-10 E Mullins D Meyler
2024 SPILLANE’S TOWER 6, 11-10 J J Mangan M P Walsh
Channor Real Estate Group Novice Hurdle, Punchestown (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS 5, 11-11 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 THE NICE GUY 7, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 GAELIC WARRIOR 5, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 DANCING CITY 7, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
Ladbrokes Punchestown Gold Cup, Punchestown (3m 1f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 CLAN DES OBEAUX 9, 11-12 P Nicholls S Twiston-Davies
2022 ALLAHO 8, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 FASTORSLOW 7, 11-10 M Brassil J J Slevin
2024 FASTORSLOW 8, 11-10 M Brassil J J Slevin
Race & Stay at Punchestown INH Flat Race, Punchestown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 KILCRUIT 6, 12-2 W P Mullins Mr D O’Connor
2022 FACILE VEGA 5, 12-0 W P Mullins Mr P
Ladbrokes Champion Stayers’ Hurdle, Punchestown (3m)
Barberstown Castle Novice Chase, Punchestown (2m)
Year
MAJOR IRISH NH WINNERS
Boodles Champion Hurdle, Punchestown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 HONEYSUCKLE 7, 11-7 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 HONEYSUCKLE 8, 11-5 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2023 STATE MAN 6, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 STATE MAN 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
Alanna Homes Champion Novice Hurdle, Punchestown (2m 4f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 GAILLARD DU MESNIL 5, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 STATE MAN 5, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 IMPAIRE ET PASSE 5, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 BALLYBURN 6, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
Coolmore N.H. Sires Bolshoi Ballet Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle, Punchestown (2m 3f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 STORMY IRELAND 7, 11-9 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2022 MARIES ROCK 7, 11-5 N J Henderson N de Boinville
2023 ECHOES IN RAIN 7, 11-7 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 LOSSIEMOUTH 5, 11-7 W P Mullins P Townend
Ballymore Champion 4-Y-O Hurdle, Punchestown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 cancelled due to Covid-19
2021 JEFF KIDDER 4, 11-2 N Meade S W Flanagan
2022 VAUBAN 4, 11-0 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 LOSSIEMOUTH 4, 10-7 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 KARGESE 4, 10-7 W P Mullins P Townend
Tote Galway Plate (Handicap Chase), Galway (2m 6f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 EARLY DOORS 7, 10-5 J P O’Brien M P Walsh
2021 ROYAL RENDEZVOUS 9, 11-5 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 HEWICK 7, 11-7 John Joseph Hanlon J C Gainford
2023 ASH TREE MEADOW 7, 9-11 G Elliott D Gilligan
2024 PINKERTON 8, 10-04 N Meade D Meyler
Guinness Galway (Handicap) Hurdle, Galway (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 ARAMON 7, 11-10 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2021 SALDIER 7, 11-10 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2022 TUDOR CITY 10, 10-11 A J Martin L A McKenna
2023 ZARAK THE BRAVE 4, 11-5 W P Mullins P Townend
2024 NURBURGRING 4, 10-10 J P O’Brien J J Slevin
Guinness Kerry National (Handicap Chase), Listowel (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 CABARET QUEEN 8, 10-9 W P Mullins P Townend
2021 ASSEMBLE 7, 10-10 J P O’Brien S Fitzgerald
2022 BUSSELTON 5, 10-5 J P O’Brien J J Slevin
2023 DESERTMORE HOUSE 8, 10-6 M Brassil R A Doyle
2024 FLOORING PORTER 9, 11-4 G Cromwell K Donoghue
Boylesports JT McNamara Ladbrokes Munster National Handicap Chase, Limerick (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 AFOREMENTIONED 7, 9-12 G Elliott G P Brouder
2021 ONTHEROPES 7, 11-10 W P Mullins S F O’Keeffe
2022 THE BIG DOG 9, 11-4 Peter Fahey K M Donoghue
2023 GEVREY 7, 10-12 G Elliott R A Doyle
2024 REAL STEEL 11, 10-08 E McNamara D E Mullins
Ladbrokes Champion Chase, Down Royal (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2020 THE STORYTELLER 9, 11-12 G Elliott K M Donoghue
2021 FRODON 9, 11-12 P Nicholls B Frost
2022 ENVOI ALLEN 8, 11-10 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2023 GERRI COLOMBE 7, 11-10 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2024 ENVOI ALLEN 10, 11-10 H de Bromhead D O’Keeffe
Unibet Morgiana Hurdle, Punchestown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 SALDIER 5, 11-10 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2020 ABACADABRAS 6, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2021 SHARJAH 8, 11-12 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2022 STATE MAN 5, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 STATE MAN 6, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
Bar One Racing Troytown Handicap Chase, Navan (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 CHRIS’S DREAM 7, 11-7 H de Bromhead R M Power
2020 THE JAM MAN 7, 10-6 R M P McNally P Townend
2021 RUN WILD FRED 7, 11-6 G Elliott D N Russell
2022 THE BIG DOG 9, 11-10 P Fahey K M Donoghue
2023 COKO BEACH 8, 11-5 G Elliott D J Gilligan
Bar One Racing Royal Bond Novice Hurdle, Fairyhouse (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 ENVOI ALLEN 5, 11-10 G Elliott D N Russell
2020 BALLYADAM 5, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2021 STATUAIRE 6, 11-5 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2022 MARINE NATIONALE 5, 11-12 B Connell M J M O’Sullivan
2023 FARREN GLORY 6, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
Bar One Racing Hatton’s Grace Hurdle, Fairyhouse (2m 4f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 HONEYSUCKLE 5, 11-3 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2020 HONEYSUCKLE 6, 11-5 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2021 HONEYSUCKLE 7, 11-5 H De Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 TEAHUPOO 5, 11-10 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2023 TEAHUPOO 6, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
Bar One Racing Drinmore Novice Chase, Fairyhouse (2m 4f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 FAKIR D’OUDAIRIES 4, 11-2 J P O’Brien M P Walsh
2020 ENVOI ALLEN 6, 11-2 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2021 BEACON EDGE 7, 11-12 N Meade D F O’Regan
2022 MIGHTY POTTER 5, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2023 I AM MAXIMUS 7, 11-12 W P Mullins J McGarvey
John Durkan Memorial Chase, Punchestown (2m 4f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey 2019 MIN 8,11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
MIN 9,11-12 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins 2021 ALLAHO 7, 11-12 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2022 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS 7, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 FASTORSLOW 7, 11-12 M Brassil J J Slevin
Racing Post Novice Chase, Leopardstown (2m 1f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 NOTEBOOK 6, 11-12 H de Bromhead R Blackmore 2020 FRANCO DE PORT 5, 12-0 W P Mullins B J Cooper
FERNY HOLLOW 6, 12-0 W P Mullins P Townend
SAINT ROI 7, 11-12 W P Mullins M P Walsh
2023 FOUND A FIFTY 6, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
Guinness Faugheen Novice Chase, Limerick (2m 3f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 FAUGHEEN 11,11-10 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2020 COLREEVY 7, 11-5 W P Mullins D E Mullins
2021 MASTER MCSHEE 7, 11-12 P Corkery I J Power
2022 GERRI COLOMBE 6, 11-12 G Elliott J C Gainford
2023 GAELIC WARRIOR 5, 11-12 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase, Leopardstown (2m 1f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 A PLUS TARD 5, 11-12 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2020 CHACUN POUR SOI 8, 12-0 W P Mullins P Townend
2021 ENVOI ALLEN 7, 12-0 H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 BLUE LORD 7, 11-12 W P Mullins D A Jacob
2023 DINOBLUE 6, 11-05 W P MULLINS M P Walsh
Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle, Leopardstown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 ABACADABRAS 5, 11-10 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2020 APPRECIATE IT 6, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2021 MIGHTY POTTER 4, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2022 FACILE VEGA 5, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 CALDWELL POTTER 5, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
Jack de Bromhead Christmas Hurdle, Leopardstown (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 APPLE’S JADE 7, 11-3 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2020 FLOORING PORTER 5, 11-12 G Cromwell J M Moore
2021 KLASSICAL DREAM 7, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2022 HOME BY THE LEE 7, 11-10 J P O’Brien J J Slevin
2023 IRISH POINT 5, 11-10 G Elliott J W Kennedy
Savills Chase, Leopardstown (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 DELTA WORK 6, 11-10 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2020 A PLUS TARD 6, 11-12 H de Bromhead D J O’Keeffe
2021 GALVIN 7, 11-12 G Elliott D N Russell
2022 CONFLATED 8, 11-10 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2023 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS 7, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
Neville Hotels Novice Chase, Leopardstown (3m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 BATTLEOVERDOYEN 6, 11-10 G Elliott D N Russell
2020 MONKFISH 6, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2021 FURY ROAD 7, 11-12 G Elliott J W Kennedy
2022 GAILLARD DU MESNIL 6, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 GRANGECLARE WEST 7, 11-10 W P Mullins P Townend
Matheson Hurdle, Leopardstown (2m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2019 SHARJAH 6, 11-10 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2020 SHARJAH 7, 11-12 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2021 SHARJAH 8, 11-12 W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2022 STATE MAN 5, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
2023 STATE MAN 6, 11-12 W P Mullins P Townend
Irish Trained Winners
At the Cheltenham NH Festival & the Aintree Grand National (last 10 for championship races, last 5 otherwise as applicable)
Cheltenham Gold Cup (3m 2½f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2006 WAR OF ATTRITION Gigginstown House Stud M F Morris C O’Dwyer
2014 LORD WINDERMERE Dr R Lambe J H Culloty D N Russell
2016 DON COSSACK Gigginstown House Stud Gordon Elliott B J Cooper
2017 SIZING JOHN Ann & Alan Potts Mrs J Harrington R M Power
2019 AL BOUM PHOTO Mrs J Donnelly W P Mullins P Townend
2020 AL BOUM PHOTO Mrs J Donnelly W P Mullins P Townend
2021 MINELLA INDO B Moloney H de Bromhead J W Kennedy
2022 A PLUS TARD Cheveley Park Stud H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2023 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS Mrs A Turley W P Mullins P Townend
2024 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS Mrs A Turley W P Mullins P Townend
Champion Hurdle (2m 110y)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2011 HURRICANE FLY G Creighton/R Boyd W.P. Mullins R Walsh
2013 HURRICANE FLY G Creigton W P Mullins R Walsh
2014 JEZKI J P McManus Mrs J Harrington B J Geraghty
2015 FAUGHEEN Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins R Walsh
2016 ANNIE POWER Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins R Walsh
2019 ESPOIR D’ALLEN J P McManus G Cromwell M P Walsh
2021 HONEYSUCKLE K Alexander H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 HONEYSUCKLE K Alexander H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2024 STATE MAN Mrs J Donnelly W P Mullins P Townend
Queen Mother Champion Chase (2m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2006 NEWMILL Mrs M T Hayes J J Murphy A J McNamara
2010 BIG ZEB Patrick Joseph Redmond C A Murphy B J Geraghty
2011 SIZING EUROPE Ann & Alan Potts H de Bromhead A E Lynch
2017 SPECIAL TIARA Mrs S Rowley-Williams H de Bromhead N D Fehily
2021 PUT THE KETTLE ON One For Luck Syndicate H de Bromhead A Coleman
2022 ENERGUMENE T Bloom W P Mullins P Townend
2023 ENERGUMENE T Bloom W P Mullins P Townend
2024 CAPTAIN GUINNESS Declan Landy H de Bromhead R Blackmore
Stayers’ Hurdle (3m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1993 SHUIL AR AGHAIDH Mrs P Kiely P Kiely C F Swan
1995 DORANS PRIDE T Doran M Hourigan J P Broderick
2013 SOLWHIT Top Of The Hill Syndicate D N Russell P Carberry
2017 NICHOLS CANYON Andrea & Graham Wylie W P Mullins R Walsh
2018 PENHILL Tony Bloom W P Mullins P Townend
2021 FLOORING PORTER Flooring Porter Syndicate G Cromwell D E Mullins
2022 FLOORING PORTER Flooring Porter Syndicate G Cromwell D E Mullins
2023 SIRE DU BERLAIS J P McManus G Elliott M P Walsh
2024 TEAHUPOO Robcour G Elliott J W Kennedy
Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (2m 110y)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2014 Vautour Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins R Walsh
2015 DOUVAN Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins R Walsh
2017 LABAIK A J O’Ryan G Elliott J W Kennedy
2019 KLASSICAL DREAM Mrs Joanne Coleman W P Mullins R Walsh
2021 APPRECIATE IT Miss M A Masterson W P Mullins P Townend
2023 MARINE NATIONALE B Connell B Connell M J M O’Sullivan
2024 SLADE STEEL Robcour H de Bromhead R Blackmore
Arkle Challenge Trophy Chase (2m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2023 EL FABIOLO S Munir & I Souede W P Mullins P Townend
2024 GAELIC WARRIOR Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins P Townend
David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle (2m 4f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2017 APPLE’S JADE Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott B J Cooper
2018 BENIE DES DIEUX Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins R Walsh
2020 HONEYSUCKLE K Alexander H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2021 BLACK TEARS C Walsh/J Lightfoot Mrs D Foster J W Kennedy
2023 HONEYSUCKLE K Alexander H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2024 LOSSIEMOUTH Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins P Townend
National Hunt Challenge Cup Chase (3m 6f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2018 RATHVINDEN Mr R A Bartlett W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2020 RAVENHILL Try Ravenhill Syndicate G Elliott Mr J J Codd
2021 GALVIN R A Bartlett I R Ferguson J W Kennedy
2022 STATTLER R A Bartlett W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins 2023 GAILLARD DU MESNIL Mrs J Donnelly W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2024 CORBETTS CROSS J P McManus E Mullins Mr D O’Connor
Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle (2m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2018 VENEER OF CHARM M J Wasylocha G Ellott J W Kennedy
2020 ARAMAX J P McManus G Elliott M P Walsh
2021 JEFF KIDDER A Dravins/E Scanlon N Meade S W Flanagan
2022 BRAZIL J P McManus P Roche M P Walsh
2023 JAZZY MATTY Caldwell Construction G Elliott M J M O’Sullivan
2024 LARK IN THE MORNIN Seán & Bernardine Mulryan J P O’Brien J J Slevin
Baring Bingham Novices’ Hurdle (2m 5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2019 CITY ISLAND Seán & Bernardine Mulryan M Brassil M P Walsh
2020 ENVOI ALLEN Cheveley Park Stud G Elliott D N Russell
2021 BOB OLINGER Robcour H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 SIR GERHARD Cheveley Park Stud W P Mullins P Townend
2023 IMPAIRE ET PASSE S Munir & I Souede W P Mullins P Townend
2024 BALLYBURN R A Bartlett W P Mullins P Townend
Broadway Novices’ Chase (3m 80y)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2011 BOSTONS ANGEL E Scouller Mrs J Harrington R M Power
2013 LORD WINDERMERE Dr R Lambe J H Culloty D N Russell
2015 DON POLI Gigginstown House Stud W P Mullins B J Cooper
2018 PRESENTING PERCY Philip J Reynolds P G Kelly D N Russell
2021 MONKFISH Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins P Townend
2024 FACT TO FILE J P McManus W P Mullins M P Walsh
Coral Cup (2m 5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2016 DIAMOND KING Mrs Diana L Whately Gordon Elliott D N Russell
2017 SUPASUNDAE Ann & Alan Potts Mrs J Harrington R M Power
2018 BLEU BERRY Luke McMahon W P Mullins M P Walsh
2021 HEAVEN HELP US J Turner P Hennessy R J Condon
2022 COMMANDER OF FLEET Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott S Fitzgerald
Cross Country Handicap Chase (3m 6f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2017 CAUSE OF CAUSES John P McManus G Elliott Mr J J Codd
2018 TIGER ROLL Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott K M Donoghue
2019 TIGER ROLL Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott K M Donoghue
2021 TIGER ROLL Gigginstown House Stud Mrs D Foster K M Donoghue
2022 DELTA WORK Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott J W Kennedy
2023 DELTA WORK Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott K M Donoghue
MAJOR IRISH NH WINNERS
Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Challenge Cup (2m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2008 TIGER CRY C Jones A L T Moore D N Russell
2013 ALDERWOOD J P McManus T Mullins A P McCoy
2014 SAVELLO Gigginstown House Stud A J Martin D N Russell
2017 ROCK THE WORLD John P McManus Mrs J Harrington R M Power
2020 CHOSEN MATE Northern Four Racing Partnership G Elliott D N Russell
2023 MASKADA M K Mariga H de Bromhead D O’Keeffe
Champion Bumper (2m 87y)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2018 RELEGATE Paul McKeon W P Mullins Ms K Walsh
2019 ENVOI ALLEN Cheveley Park Stud G Elliott J J Codd
2020 FERNY HOLLOW Cheveley Park Stud W P Mullins P Townend
2021 SIR GERHARD Cheveley Park Stud H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 FACILE VEGA Hammer & Trowel Syndicate W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
2023 A DREAM TO SHARE J P McManus J E Kiely Mr J L Gleeson
2024 JASMIN DE VAUX S Munir & I Souede W P Mullins P W Mullins
Pertemps Network Final (3m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2016 MALL DINI Philip J Reynolds P G Kelly D N Russell
2017 PRESENTING PERCY Philip J Reynolds P G Kelly D N Russell
2018 DELTA WORK Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott D N Russell
2020 SIRE DU BERLAIS J P McManus G Elliott B J Geraghty
2021 MRS MILNER SoftCo P Nolan B J Cooper
2023 GOOD TIME JONNY A Shiels/D Gavigan/NReilly A J Martin L A McKenna
Turners Novices’ Chase (2m4f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2022 BOB OLINGER Robcour H de Bromhead R Blackmore
Ryanair Chase (2m 5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2017 UN DE SCEAUX E O’Connell W P Mullins R Walsh
2018 BALKO DES FLOS Gigginstown House Stud H de Bromhead D N Russell
2020 MIN Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins P Townend
2021 ALLAHO Cheveley Park Stud W P Mullins R Blackmore
2022 ALLAHO Cheveley Park Stud W P Mullins P Townend
2023 ENVOI ALLEN Cheveley Park Stud H de Bromhead R Blackmore
Festival Plate Handicap Chase (2m 5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1982 DOUBLEUAGAIN P J McBennett A Geraghty F Berry
2016 EMPIRE OF DIRT Gigginstown House Stud C A Murphy B J Cooper
2017 ROAD TO RESPECT Gigginstown House Stud N Meade B J Cooper
2018 THE STORYTELLER Mrs P Sloan G Elliott D N Russell
2021 THE SHUNTER P Byrne E Mullins J C Gainford
2023 SEDDON Galaxy Horse Racing Syndicate J C McConnell B W Harvey
Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle (2m 5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2017 LET’S DANCE Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins R Walsh
2018 LAURINA Sullivan Bloodstock Ltd W P Mullins P Townend
2019 EGLANTINE DU SEUIL Sullivan Bloodstock Ltd W P Mullins N D Fehily
2020 CONCERTISTA S Munir & I Souede W P Mullins D Jacob
2021 TELMESOMETHINGGIRL K Alexander H de Bromhead R Blackmore
Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup Chase (3m 1½f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2014 SPRING HEELED Dr R Lambe J H Culloty Mr R P McNamara
2016 CAUSE OF CAUSES John P McManus Gordon Elliott Mr J J Codd
2019 ANY SECOND NOW John P McManus T M Walsh Mr D O’Connor
2020 MILAN NATIVE Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott Mr R James
2021 MOUNT IDA KTDA Racing Mrs D Foster J W Kennedy
2023 ANGELS DAWN A Sweetnam S Curling Mr P A King
2024 INOTHEWAYURTHINKIN J P McManus G Cromwell Mr D O’Connor
Triumph Hurdle (2m 1f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2014 TIGER ROLL Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott D N Russell
2016 IVANOVICH GORBATOV John P McManus A P O’Brien B J Geraghty
2018 FARCLAS Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott J W Kennedy
2020 BURNING VICTORY Mrs A Turley W P Mullins P Townend
2021 QUILIXIOS Cheveley Park Stud H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 VAUBAN Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins P Townend
2023 LOSSIEMOUTH Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins P Townend
2024 MAJBOROUGH J P McManus W P Mullins M P Walsh
County Hurdle (2m 1f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2015 WICKLOW BRAVE Wicklow Bloodstock (Ire) Ltd W P Mullins P Townend
2017 ARCTIC FIRE Wicklow Bloodstock (Ire) Ltd W P Mullins P Townend
2020 SAINT ROI J P McManus W P Mullins B J Geraghty
2021 BELFAST BANTER Direct Bloodstock P Fahey K C Sexton
2022 STATE MAN Mrs J Donnelly W P Mullins P Townend
2024 ABSURDE H O S Syndicate W P Mullins P Townend
SPA Novices’ Hurdle (3m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2015 MARTELLO TOWER Barry Connell Ms M Mullins A P Heskin
2019 MINELLA INDO Barry Maloney H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2020 MONKFISH Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins P Townend
2021 VANILLIER Mrs H M Keaveney G Cromwell M P Walsh
2022 THE NICE GUY M C Denmark W P Mullins S O’Keeffe
2024 STELLAR STORY Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott S Ewing
Foxhunter Challenge Cup Handicap Chase (3m 2½f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2014 TAMMYS HILL P J Smyth L Lennon Mr J J Smyth
2015 ON THE FRINGE John P McManus E Bolger Ms N Carberry
2016 ON THE FRINGE John P McManus E Bolger Ms N Carberry
2020 IT CAME TO PASS Mrs A O’Sullivan E M O’Sullivan Ms M O’Sullivan
2022 BILLAWAY The Turner Family W P Mullins Mr P W Mullins
Mares’ Chase (2m 5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2021 COLREEVY Mrs N Flynn W P Mullins P Townend
2022 ELIMAY J P McManus W P Mullins M P Walsh
2023 IMPERVIOUS J P McManus C A Murphy B Hayes
2024 LIMERICK LACE J P McManus G Cromwell M P Walsh
Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle (2m 4½f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider 2017 CHAMPAGNE CLASSIC Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott J J Slevin
2018 BLOW BY BLOW Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott D Meyler
2019 EARLY DOORS John P McManus J P O’Brien J J O’Neill 2021 GALOPIN DES CHAMPS Mrs A Turley W P Mullins S F O’Keeffe
BANBRIDGE R A Bartlett J P O’Brien M McDonagh
BETTER DAYS AHEAD Bective Stud G Elliott D Gilligan
Grand National (Handicap Chase), Aintree (4m 2f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
PAPILLON Mrs J M Moran T M Walsh R Walsh 2003 MONTY’S PASS Dee Racing Synd J J Mangan B Geraghty
HEDGEHUNTER T Hemmings W P Mullins R Walsh 2006 NUMBERSIXVALVERDE O B P Carroll M Brassil N Madden 2007 SILVER BIRCH B Walsh G Elliott R M Power
RULE THE WORLD Gigginstown House Stud M F Morris D J Mullins 2018 TIGER ROLL Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott D N Russell
2019 TIGER ROLL Gigginstown House Stud G Elliott D N Russell 2021 MINELLA TIMES J P McManus H de Bromhead R Blackmore
2022 NOBLE YEATS R Waley-Cohen E Mullins S Waley-Cohen
2024 I AM MAXIMUS J P McManus W P Mullins P Townend
Irish Classic Winner
Tattersalls
2015
(last
10 years)
Juddmonte Irish Oaks, The Curragh (1m 4f)
Year Winner Trainer Jockey 2015 COVERT LOVE H Palmer P J Smullen
SEVENTH HEAVEN A P O’Brien J A Heffernan
ENABLE J Gosden L Dettori
SEA THE CLASS W Haggas J Doyle
STAR CATCHER J Gosden L Dettori
EVEN SO G M Lyons C T Keane
SNOWFALL A P O’Brien R L Moore 2022 MAGICAL LAGOON Mrs J Harrington S Foley 2023 SAVETHELASTDANCE A P O’Brien R L Moore
2024 YOU GOT TO ME R Beckett H Crouch
Comer Group International Irish St Leger, The Curragh (1m 6f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey 2015 ORDER OF ST GEORGE 3, 9-11 A P O’Brien J P O’Brien 2016 WICKLOW BRAVE 7, 9-11 W P Mullins L Dettori 2017 ORDER OF ST GEORGE 7, 9-11 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2018 FLAG OF HONOUR 3, 9-1 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2019 SEARCH FOR A SONG 3, 8-11 D K Weld C D Hayes
2020 SEARCH FOR A SONG 4, 9-8 D K Weld O J Orr
2021 SONNYBOYLISTON 4, 9-11 J P Murtagh B Coen
2022 KYPRIOS 4, 9-11 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2023 ELDAR ELDAROV 4, 9-11 R Varian D Egan
2024 KYPRIOS 6, 9-11 A P O’Brien R L Moore
Irish Group 1 Flat Race Winners (last
Cairn Community Games Pretty Polly Stakes, The Curragh (1m 2f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2015 DIAMONDSANDRUBIES 3, 8-12 A P O’Brien J A Heffernan
2016 MINDING 3, 8-12 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2017 NEZWAAH 4, 9-8 R Varian A Atzeni
2018 URBAN FOX 4, 9-8 W Haggas D Tudhope
2019 IRIDESSA 3, 8-12 J P O’Brien D O’Brien
2020 MAGICAL 5, 9-12 A P O’Brien J A Heffernan
2021 THUNDERING NIGHTS 4, 9-12 J P O’Brien S Crosse
2022 LA PETITE COCO 4, 9-12 P Twomey W J Lee
2023 VIA SISTINA 5, 9-10 G Boughey J P Spencer
2024 BLUESTOCKING 4, 9-10 R Beckett R Ryan
Tattersalls Gold Cup, The Curragh (1m 2f 110yds)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2015 AL KAZEEM 7, 9-3 R Charlton J Doyle
2016 FASCINATING ROCK 4, 9-3 D K Weld P J Smullen
2017 DECORATED KNIGHT 5, 9-3 R Charlton A Atzeni
2018 LANCASTER BOMBER 4, 9-3 A P O’Brien J A Heffernan
2019 MAGICAL 4, 9-3 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2020 MAGICAL 5, 9-9 A P O’Brien W M Lordan
2021 HELVIC DREAM 4, 9-5 N Meade C T Keane
2022 ALENQUER 4, 9-5 W Haggas T Marquand
2023 LUXEMBOURG 4, 9-5 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2024 WHITE BIRCH 4, 9-5 J J Murphy C T Keane
Keeneland Phoenix 2yo Stakes, The Curragh (6f)
Year Winner Wt Trainer Jockey
2015 AIR FORCE ONE 9-3 A P O’Brien J P O’Brien
2016 CARAVAGGIO 9-3 A P O’Brien J A Heffernan
2017 SIOUX NATION 9-3 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2018 ADVERTISE 9-3 M Meade L Dettori
2019 SISKIN 9-3 G M Lyons C T Keane
2020 LUCKY VEGA 9-5 Mrs J Harrington S Foley
2021 EBRO RIVER 9-5 H Palmer S Foley
2022 LITTLE BIG BEAR 9-5 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2023 BUCANERO FUERTE 9-5 A Murray K Stott
2024 BABOUCHE 9-2 G M Lyons C T Keane
Coolmore America ‘Justify’ Matron Stakes, Leopardstown (1m)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2015 LEGATISSIMO 3, 9-0 D Wachman W M Lordan
2016 ALICE SPRINGS 3, 9-0 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2017 HYDRANGEA 3, 9-0 A P O’Brien W M Lordan
2018 LAURENS 3, 9-0 K R Burke D Tudhope
2019 IRIDESSA 3, 9-0 J P O’Brien D O’Brien
2020 CHAMPERS ELYSEES 3, 9-2 J P Murtagh C T Keane
2021 NO SPEAK
10 years)
Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes, Leopardstown (1m 2f)
Year Winner Age/Wt Trainer Jockey
2015 GOLDEN HORN 3, 9-0 J Gosden L Dettori 2016 ALMANZOR 3, 9-0 J C Rouget C Soumillon
2017 DECORATED KNIGHT 5, 9-7 R Charlton A Atzeni
2018 ROARING LION 3, 9-1 J Gosden O Murphy
2019 MAGICAL 4, 9-4 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2020 MAGICAL
LUXEMBOURG 3, 9-3
P O’Brien R L Moore 2023 AUGUSTE RODIN 3, 9-3 A P O’Brien R L Moore
2024 ECONOMICS 3, 9-3 W Haggas T Marquand
Goffs Vincent O’Brien National 2yo Stakes, The Curragh (7f )
Year Winner
9-2 D O’Brien T Marquand
Moyglare Stud 2yo Fillies Stakes,
Bar One Racing Flying Five
Irish Trained Winners Royal Ascot (last
5 years if applicable)
Albany Stakes (6f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2022 MEDITATE Tabor/Smith/Magnier/Westerberg A P O’Brien R L Moore
2023 PORTA FORTUNA Reeves/Fowler/Barry/Medallion/Parkland D A O’Brien L Dettori
2024 FAIRY GODMOTHER Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
Ascot Gold Cup (2m 4f)
Year Winner Owner
2010 RITE OF PASSAGE Dr R Lambe D K Weld P J Smullen
2011 FAME AND GLORY Hay/Smith/Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien J P Spencer
2014 LEADING LIGHT D Smith/Mrs J Magnier/M Tabor A P O’Brien J P O’Brien
2016 ORDER OF ST GEORGEWilliams/Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2022 KYPRIOS Moyglare/Magnier/Tabor/ A P O’Brien R L Moore
Smith/Westerberg
2024 KYPRIOS Moyglare/Magnier/Tabor/ A P O’Brien R L Moore Smith/Westerberg
Ascot Stakes (2m 4f)
Year Winner Owner
2014 DOMINATION Ms C Cleary
Byrnes F M Berry
2015 CLONDAW WARRIOR Act D Wagg Syndicate W P Mullins R L Moore
2016 JENNIES JEWEL A N McIntyre J P Fahey R P Whelan
2017 THOMAS HOBSON Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins R L Moore
2018 LAGOSTOVEGAS RG & JD Partnership W P Mullins A Atzeni
Blacknest Stakes (Ascot Heath, 1m 4f)
Year Winner Owner
Rider
1955 JASPE Lady Ursula Vernon J Lenehan W R Johnstone
Britannia Stakes (1m)
Year Winner Owner
Rider
2013 ROCA TUMU Roca Tumu Syndicate Ms J Morgan W J Lee
2015 WAR ENVOY Magnier/Tabor/Smith/Allen A P O’Brien R L Moore
Chesham Stakes (7f)
Year Winner Owner
2016 CHURCHILL Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
2017 SEPTEMBER Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2020 BATTLEGROUND Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
2021 POINT LONSDALE Smith/Magnier/Tabor/Westerberg A P O’Brien R L Moore
2023 SNELLEN L Laroche G Cromwell G F Carroll
2024 BEDTIME STORY Smith/Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien R L Moore
Churchill Stakes (Royal Ascot, 1m 4f)
Year Winner Owner
Trainer Rider
1948 HERON BRIDGE J S Davies D Rogers T Burns
Churchill Stakes (Ascot Heath, 1m 4f)
Year Winner Owner
Trainer Rider
1960 SUNNY COURT W F Pinnington J M Rogers W Carr
1975 GUILLAUME TELL Mrs W Haefner M V O’Brien L Piggott
1977 TRANSWORLD Simon Fraser M V O’Brien L Piggott
1978 NOBLE QUILLO Mrs W Haefner M V O’Brien L Piggott
1984 THE MILLER S S Niarchos M V O’Brien L Piggott
Commonwealth Cup (6f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2017 CARAVAGGIO Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
Copper Horse Handicap (1m 6f)
Year Winner Owner
Trainer Rider
2023 VAUBAN Mrs S Ricci W P Mullins R L Moore
2024 BELLOCCIO Thurloe Thoroughbreds Ireland W P Mullins W Buick
Coronation Stakes (1m)
Year Winner Owner
Rider
2010 LILLIE LANGTRY M Tabor A P O’Brien J P Murtagh
2017 WINTER Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2018 ALPHA CENTAURI Niarchos Family Mrs J Harrington C O’Donoghue
2020 ALPINE STAR Niarchos Family Mrs J Harrington L Dettori
2023 TAHIYRA H H Aga Khan D K Weld C D Hayes
2024 PORTA FORTUNA Medallions/Weston/Fowler/Reeves D O’Brien T Marquand
Coventry Stakes (6f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2012 DAWN APPROACH Mrs J S Bolger/J P Spain J S Bolger K J Manning
2013 WAR COMMAND J Allen A P O’Brien J A Heffernan
2016 CARAVAGGIO Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2019 ARIZONA Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2023 RIVER
Diamond Jubilee Stakes (6f) Year
Duke
Duke of Edinburgh Stakes (1m
Erroll Stakes (Ascot
Fenwolf Stakes (Ascot Heath, 5f)
Hampton Court Stakes (1m 2f)
2018 HUNTING HORN Magnier/Tabor/Smith
2020 RUSSIAN EMPEROR Macri/Magnier et al
Hardwicke Stakes (1m 4f)
Year
IDAHO Tabor/Smith/Magnier
Jersey Stakes (7f)
Year Winner
King Edward V Stakes (1m 4f)
Kensington Palace Stakes (7f 213y)
King
IRISH FLAT WINNERS
Irish Trained Winners Royal Ascot
King’s Stand Stakes (5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1977 GODSWALK R E Sangster M V O’Brien L Piggott
1978 SOLINUS D Schwartz M V O’Brien L Piggott
1987 BLUEBIRD R E Sangster M V O’Brien C Asmussen
2013 SOLE POWER Mrs S Power E Lynam J P Murtagh
2014 SOLE POWER Mrs S Power E Lynam R Hughes
Norfolk Stakes (5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1984 MAGIC MIRROR S S Niarchos M V O’Brien L Piggott
2001 JOHANNESBURG M Tabor A P O’Brien M J Kinane
2015 WATERLOO BRIDGE Smith/Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien R L Moore
2017 SIOUX NATION Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
2023 VALIANT FORCE Amo Racing A Murray R Ryan
Prince of Wales’s Stakes (1m 2f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2015 FREE EAGLE Moyglare Stud Farm D K Weld P J Smullen
2017 HIGHLAND REEL Smith/ Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien R L Moore
2021 LOVE Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
2022 STATE OF REST State of Rest Partnership J P O’Brien S M Crosse
2024 AUGUSTE RODIN Tabor/Smith/Magnier/Westerberg A P O’Brien R L Moore
Queen Alexandra Stakes (2m 6f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2016 COMMISSIONED Nick Bradley Racing Gordon Elliott A Kirby
2018 PALLASATOR Qatar Racing G Elliott J P Spencer
2021 STRATUM Tony Bloom W P Mullins R L Moore
2022 STRATUM T Bloom W P Mullins William Buick
2023 DAWN RISING J P McManus J P O’Brien R L Moore
2024 UXMAL Flaxman Stables Ireland J P O’Brien D B McMonagle
Queen Anne Stakes (1m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1975 IMPERIAL MARCH W F Mullady M V O’Brien G Dettori
2006 AD VALOREM Mrs J Magnier A P O’Brien K Fallon
2008 HARADASUN F Tagg et al A P O’Brien J P Murtagh
2013 DECLARATION OF WAR Magnier/Tabor/Smith/Allen A P O’Brien J P O’Brien
2020 CIRCUS MAXIMUS Flaxman/Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
Queen Mary Stakes (5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1988 GLORIELLA John J McLoughlin J J McLoughlin J Reid
2004 DAMSON Mrs J Magnier/M Tabor D Wachman J P Spencer
2007 ELLETELLE Jesse Club Syndicate G Lyons J P Murtagh
2014 ANTHEM ALEXANDER N O’Callaghan E Lynam P J Smullen
2021 QUICK SUZY Eclipse Thoroughbred G Cromwell G F Carroll
Queen’s Vase (2m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2013 LEADING LIGHT Smith/Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien J P O’Brien
2015 ALOFT Smith/Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien R L Moore
2016 SWORD FIGHTER Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien C O’Donoghue
2018 KEW GARDENS Smith/Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien R L Moore
2020 SANTIAGO Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
2024 ILLINOIS Smith/Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien R L Moore
Ribblesdale Stakes (1m 4f)
(last
5 years if applicable)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2015 CURVY Magnier/Tabor/Smith David Wachman R L Moore
2016 EVEN SONG Mrs John Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
2018 MAGIC WAND Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
2022 MAGICAL LAGOON Z Yuesheng Mrs J Harrington S Foley
2023 WARM HEART Westerbert/Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2024 PORT FAIRY Tabor/Smith/Magnier/Westerberg A P O’Brien R L Moore
Royal Hunt Cup Handicap (1m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1966 CONTINUATION S McGrath S McGrath J Roe
2016 PORTAGE Godolphin M Halford J Doyle
2018 SETTLE FOR BAY McGettigans Mgt Services JLT D Marnane W J Lee
Sandringham Handicap (1m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2005 BEAUTYANDTHEBEAST Neil Jones J M Oxx M J Kinane
2012 DUNTLE Niarchos Family D Wachman W Lordan
2021 CREATE BELIEF RacehorseClub J P Murtagh B Coen
St James’s Palace Stakes (1m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2013 DAWN APPROACH Godolphin J S Bolger K J Manning
2015 GLENEAGLES Tabor/Smith/Magnier A P O’Brien R L Moore
2019 CIRCUS MAXIMUS Flaxman/Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2021 POETIC FLARE Mrs J S Bolger J S Bolger K J Manning
2023 PADDINGTON Tabor/Smith/Magnier/Westerberg/Brant A P O’Brien R L Moore
Windsor Castle Stakes (5f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1977 TARDOT Mrs M Kauntze M Kauntze W Carson
1980 COOLINEY PRINCE Myles O’Malley P Prendergast jun G McGrath
2015 WASHINGTON DC Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2019 SOUTHERN HILLS Magnier/Tabor/Smith A P O’Brien R L Moore
2022 LITTLE BIG BEAR Smith/Magnier/ A P O’Brien R L Moore Tabor/Westerberg
Windsor Forest Stakes (1m)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2011 LOLLY FOR DOLLY D Keoghan T Stack W M Lordan
Wokingham Handicap
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
1975 BOONE’S CABIN R E Sangster M V O’Brien L Piggott
1985 TIME MACHINE T Harty P Hughes W Carson
Wokingham Stakes (6f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2012 DANDY BOY Malih L Al Basti D Marnane P Dobbs
Wolferton Handicap (1m 2f)
Year Winner Owner Trainer Rider
2003 IN TIME’S EYE Moyglare Stud Farm D K Weld P J Smullen
2016 SIR ISAAC NEWTON Smith/Magnier/Tabor A P O’Brien R L Moore
IRISH FIXTURES FOR 2025
JANUARY
Wed 1 Fairyhouse
Wed 1 Tramore
Sat 4 Cork
Sun 5 Naas
Thu 9 Clonmel
Fri 10 Dundalk (e)
Sat 11 Fairyhouse
Sun 12 Punchestown
Mon 13 Punchestown
Tue 14 Dundalk
Thu 16 Fairyhouse
Fri 17 Dundalk (e)
Sat 18 Navan
Sun 19 Thurles
Tue 21 Down Royal
Thu 23 Gowran Park
Fri 24 Dundalk (e)
Sat 25 Fairyhouse Sun 26 Naas Mon 27 Punchestown Tue 28 Limerick
29 Dundalk Fri 31 Dundalk (e)
FEBRUARY
Sat 1 Leopardstown Sun 2 Leopardstown Mon 3 Punchestown Wed 5 Fairyhouse
Thu 6 Thurles
Fri 7 Dundalk (e)
Sat 8 Naas
Sun 9 Navan
Wed 12 Dundalk
Thu 13 Clonmel
Fri 14 Dundalk (e)
Sat 15 Gowran Park
Sun 16 Punchestown
Wed 19 Punchestown
Thu 20 Thurles
Fri 21 Dundalk (e)
Sat 22 Fairyhouse
Sun 23 Naas
Thu 27 Clonmel
Fri 28 Dundalk (e)
MARCH
Sat 1 Navan
Sun 2 Leopardstown Mon 3 Leopardstown Thu 6 Thurles Fri 7 Dundalk (e)
Sat 8 Gowran Park
Sun 9 Naas
Thu 13 Limerick
Fri 14 Dundalk (e)
Sat 15 Thurles
Sun 16 Curragh
Mon 17 Down Royal
Mon 17 Wexford
Thu 20 Cork
Fri 21 Dundalk (e)
Sat 22 Navan
Sun 23 Naas
Sun 23 Limerick
Thu 27 Clonmel (e)
Fri 28 Dundalk (e)
Sat 29 Curragh
Sun 30 Downpatrick
Sun 30 Leopardstown
APRIL
Tue 1 Limerick (e)
Wed 2 Gowran Park (e)
Thu 3 Naas
Fri 4 Dundalk (e)
Fri 4 Wexford (e)
Sat 5 Bellewstown (e)
Sun 6 Cork
Sun 6 Fairyhouse
Tue 8 Navan
Wed 9 Leopardstown
Thu 10 Limerick
Fri 11 Dundalk (e)
Sat 12 Curragh
Sat 12 Bellewstown
Sun 13 Down Royal
Sun 13 Tramore
Mon 14 Tramore (e)
Wed 16 Gowran Park
Thu 17 Clonmel (e)
Sat 19 Cork
Sat 19 Fairyhouse
Sun 20 Fairyhouse
Sun 20 Cork
Mon 21 Cork
Mon 21 Fairyhouse
Wed 23 Gowran Park (e)
Thu 24 Tipperary (e)
Thu 24 Kilbeggan (e)
Fri 25 Kilbeggan (e)
Fri 25 Limerick
Sat 26 Navan
Mon 28 Naas (e)
Tue 29 Punchestown
Wed 30 Punchestown
MAY
Thu 1 Punchestown (e)
Fri 2 Punchestown (e)
Sat 3 Punchestown
Sun 4 Sligo
Mon 5 Curragh
Mon 5 Down Royal
Tue 6 Cork (e)
Wed 7 Gowran Park (e)
Thu 8 Tipperary (e)
Fri 9 Ballinrobe (e)
Fri 9 Downpatrick (e)
Sat 10 Cork
Sat 10 Naas
Sun 11 Killarney
Sun 11 Leopardstown
Mon 12 Roscommon (e)
Mon 12 Killarney (e)
Tue 13 Killarney (e)
Tue 13 Sligo (e)
Wed 14 Tipperary (e)
Thu 15 Clonmel (e)
Fri 16 Kilbeggan (e)
Fri 16 Leopardstown (e)
Sat 17 Navan
Sat 17 Wexford
Sun 18 Naas
Mon 19 Roscommon (e)
Tue 20 Cork (e)
Wed 21 Gowran Park (e)
Thu 22 Limerick (e)
Fri 23 Downpatrick (e)
Fri 23 Curragh (e)
Sat 24 Curragh
Sun 25 Curragh
Mon 26 Ballinrobe (e)
Tue 27 Ballinrobe (e)
Tue 27 Tipperary (e)
Wed 28 Wexford (e)
Thu 29 Fairyhouse (e)
Thu 29 Limerick (e)
Fri 30 Down Royal (e)
Fri 30 Tramore (e)
Sat 31 Tramore (e)
Sat 31 Listowel
JUNE
Sun 1 Listowel
Sun 1 Kilbeggan
Mon 2 Gowran Park
Mon 2 Listowel
Wed 4 Curragh (e)
Thu 5 Leopardstown (e)
Fri 6 Clonmel (e)
Fri 6 Fairyhouse (e)
Wed 11 Limerick (e)
Thu 12 Leopardstown (e)
Fri 13 Cork (e)
Fri 13 Fairyhouse (e)
Sat 14 Downpatrick
Sun 15 Downpatrick
Sun 15 Gowran Park
Mon 16 Kilbeggan (e)
Thu 19 Leopardstown (e)
Fri 20 Down Royal (e)
Sat 21 Down Royal
Sat 21 Limerick
Mon 23 Ballinrobe (e)
Wed 25 Naas (e)
Fri 27 Curragh (e)
Sat 28 Curragh
Sun 29 Curragh
JULY
Tue 1 Roscommon (e)
Tue 1 Tipperary
Wed 2 Tipperary (e)
Thu 3 Tipperary (e)
Thu 3 Bellewstown (e)
Fri 4 Bellewstown (e)
Fri 4 Wexford
Sat 5 Bellewstown (e)
Sat 5 Naas
Mon 7 Roscommon (e)
Tue 8 Tramore (e)
Wed 9 Fairyhouse (e)
Thu 10 Leopardstown (e)
Fri 11 Kilbeggan (e)
Fri 11 Cork (e)
Sat 12 Dundalk
Sat 12 Limerick
Sun 13 Navan
Sun 13 Sligo
Mon 14 Downpatrick
Mon 14 Killarney (e)
Tue 15 Killarney (e)
Wed 16 Killarney (e)
Thu 17 Killarney (e)
Thu 17 Leopardstown (e)
Fri 18 Killarney
Fri 18 Down Royal (e)
Sat 19 Curragh
Sun 20 Curragh
Mon 21 Ballinrobe (e)
Tue 22 Ballinrobe (e)
Wed 23 Naas (e)
Wed 23 Wexford
Thu 24 Wexford (e)
Thu 24 Leopardstown (e)
Fri 25 Cork (e)
Fri 25 Kilbeggan (e)
Sat 26 Gowran Park
Mon 28 Galway (e)
Tue 29 Galway (e)
Wed 30 Galway (e)
AUGUST
Fri 1 Galway (e)
Sat 2 Galway
Sun 3 Galway
Mon 4 Cork
Mon 4 Naas
Tue 5 Roscommon (e)
Wed 6 Wexford (e)
Wed 6 Sligo (e)
Thu 7 Sligo (e)
Thu 7 Leopardstown (e)
Fri 8 Wexford (e)
Fri 8 Tipperary (e)
Sat 9 Curragh
Sat 9 Kilbeggan (e)
Sun 10 Downpatrick
Mon 11 Ballinrobe (e)
Wed 13 Gowran Park (e)
Sat 16 Tramore (e)
Sun 17 Tramore
Tue 19 Roscommon (e)
Wed 20 Sligo (e)
Thu 21 Leopardstown (e)
Thu 21 Killarney (e)
Fri 22 Kilbeggan (e)
Fri 22 Killarney (e)
Sat 23 Killarney
Sat 23 Curragh
Sun 24 Naas
Mon 25 Downpatrick
Mon 25 Ballinrobe (e)
Tue 26 Bellewstown (e)
Wed 27 Bellewstown (e)
Thu 28 Navan
Fri 29 Down Royal (e)
Fri 29 Wexford (e)
Sat 30 Curragh
Sun 31 Tipperary
SEPTEMBER
Tue 2 Gowran Park
Thu 4 Laytown (e)
Fri 5 Kilbeggan (e)
Fri 5 Down Royal (e)
Sat 6 Navan
Mon 8 Galway (e)
Tue 9 Galway (e)
Wed 10 Cork (e)
Thu 11 Clonmel (e)
Fri 12 Ballinrobe (e)
Sat 13 Leopardstown
Sun 14 Curragh
Tue 16 Punchestown
Thu 18 Naas
Fri 19 Dundalk (e)
Fri 19 Downpatrick
Sat 20 Navan
Sat 20 Gowran Park
Sun 21 Listowel
Mon 22 Listowel
Mon 22 Fairyhouse (e)
Tue 23 Listowel
Wed 24 Listowel
Thu 25 Listowel
Fri 26 Listowel
Fri 26 Dundalk (e)
Sat 27 Listowel
Sat 27 Curragh
Sun 28 Curragh
Mon 29 Roscommon
Mon 29 Down Royal
Tue 30 Cork
April 24
May 8
May 14
May 27
July 1
July 2
July 3
August 8
August 31
October 5
OCTOBER
Wed 1 Sligo
Wed 1 Bellewstown
Thu 2 Bellewstown
Thu 2 Clonmel
Fri 3 Dundalk (e)
Fri 3 Gowran Park
Sat 4 Gowran Park
Sat 4 Curragh
Sun 5 Killarney
Sun 5 Tipperary
Mon 6 Tipperary
Mon 6 Killarney
Tue 7 Galway
Wed 8 Navan
Thu 9 Thurles
Thu 9 Tramore
Fri 10 Dundalk (e)
Fri 10 Downpatrick
Sat 11 Fairyhouse
Sat 11 Naas
Sun 12 Naas
Sun 12 Cork
Mon 13 Roscommon
Tue 14 Punchestown
Wed 15 Punchestown
Thu 16 Curragh
Thu 16 Thurles
Fri 17 Dundalk (e)
Sat 18 Limerick
Sat 18 Leopardstown
Sun 19 Leopardstown
Sun 19 Limerick
Mon 20 Gowran Park
Tue 21 Curragh
Wed 22 Navan
Thu 23 Clonmel
Fri 24 Dundalk (e)
Fri 24 Sligo
Sat 25 Galway
Sun 26 Galway
Sun 26 Wexford
Mon 27 Wexford
Mon 27 Galway
Wed 29 Dundalk
Thu 30 Thurles
Fri 31 Dundalk (e)
Fri 31 Down Royal
NOVEMBER
Sat 1 Down Royal
Sun 2 Cork
Sun 2 Curragh Tue 4 Fairyhouse
Tipperary (Flat) to Dundalk
Wed 5 Dundalk
Thu 6 Clonmel
Fri 7 Dundalk (e)
Sat 8 Gowran Park
Sun 9 Naas
Tue 11 Fairyhouse
Wed 12 Dundalk
Thu 13 Punchestown
Fri 14 Dundalk (e)
Sat 15 Navan
Sun 16 Navan
Tue 18 Limerick
Wed 19 Dundalk
Thu 20 Thurles
Fri 21 Dundalk (e)
Sat 22 Punchestown
Sun 23 Punchestown
Sun 23 Cork
Tue 25 Tramore
Wed 26 Dundalk
Thu 27 Thurles
Fri 28 Dundalk (e)
30 Fairyhouse
DECEMBER
9 Punchestown
10 Dundalk
12 Dundalk (e)
13 Fairyhouse
14 Navan
15
Fri 11 Ballinrobe (e)
Sat 7 Navan
Sat 7 Punchestown
Sun 8 Punchestown
Mon 9 Roscommon (e)
Tue 10 Sligo (e)
Thu 14 Cork (e)
Thu 14 Tramore (e)
Fri 15 Tramore (e)
Fri 15 Dundalk
Sat 16 Curragh
October 6
Tipperary (NH) to Galway ALTERNATIVE TIPPERARY FIXTURES should Tipperary close for
Tipperary (NH) to Listowel on May 6, with Cork moving from May 6 to May 8
Tipperary (NH) to Punchestown
Tipperary (Flat) to Dundalk
Tipperary (NH) to Wexford
Tipperary (Flat) to Fairyhouse
Tipperary (NH) to Limerick
Tipperary (Flat) to Gowran Park
Tipperary (Flat) to Cork
Tipperary (Mixed):
• Listed Concorde Stakes to move to the Curragh and alternative fixtures found for remaining two flat races. Curragh to move to October 5 from October 4.
• Grade 3 Tipperary Hurdle, Grade 3 Joe Mac Novice Hurdle and Grade 3 Like-A-Butterfly Novice Steeplechase to move to Gowran Park
IRISH POINT-TO POINT FIXTURES
DECEMBER 2024
Mon 30 Duhallow (F) Kanturk • Dromahane, Mallow, Co. Cork.
JANUARY 2025
Sun 5 Shillelagh & District (F) Fairwood, Tinahely, Co. Wicklow.
Sun 5 United Hunt (F) Lisgoold • Watergrasshill, Ballindenisk, Co. Cork.
Sun 12 Clonmel (H) Turtulla, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.
Sun 12 Muskerry (F) Aghabullogu, Dromatimore, Co. Cork.
Sun 19 Ballinagore (H) Ballycrystal, Kiltealy, Co. Wexford.
Sun 19 Killeagh (H) Carrigarostig, Killeagh, Co. Cork.
Sat 25 East Down (F) Tyrella, Downpatrick, Co. Down.
Sun 26 Lismore (H) Dungarva, Kilossera, Dungarvan, Co. Waterford.
Sun 26 Stonehall (H) Cragmore, Askeaton, Co. Limerick.
FEBRUARY 2025
Sun 2 Co. Clare (H) Belharbou, Belharbour, Co. Clare.
Sun 2 United Hunt (F) Carrigtwohill, Ballyvodock, Carrigtwohill, Co. Cork.
Sun 2 Wexford (F) Moorfields, Ballinaboola, New Ross, Co. Wexford.
Sat 8 North Down (F) Kirkistown, Portavogie, Co. Down.
Sun 9 Scarteen (F) Comea, Kilfeacle, Co. Tipperary.
Sun 9 West Waterford (F) Tallow Shanakill Cross, Waterford.
Sat 15 Ward Union (S) The Folly, Palmerstown, Oldtown, Co. Dublin.
Sun 16 Avondhu (F) Knockanard, Fermoy, Co. Cork.
Sun 16 Bray (H) Fairwood, Tinahely, Co. Wicklow.
Sun 16 North Tipperary (F) Lisboney, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary.
Sat 22 Kildare (F) Punchestown, Naas, Co. Kildare.
Sat 22 Tynan & Armagh (F) Farmacaffley, Co. Armagh.
Sun 23 Duhallow (F) Kildorrery, Rockmills, Co. Cork.
Sun 23 Tipperary (F) Lisronagh, Lisronagh, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary.
MARCH 2025
Sat 1 East Down (F) Tyrella, Downpatrick, Co. Down.
Sun 2 Carbery (F) Kilpatrick, Bandon, Co. Cork.
Sun 2 Carlow Farmers (F) Borris House, Borris, Co. Carlow.
Sun 2 Limerick (H) Ballycahane, Crecora, Co. Limerick.
Sat 8 North Down (F) Kirkistown, Portavogie, Co. Down.
Sun 9 Killinick (H) Lingstown, Tomhaggard, Co. Wexford.
Sun 9 North Galway (F) Belclare, Tuam, Co. Galway.
Sun 9 West Waterford (F) Lismore, Castlelands, Lismore, Co. Waterford.
Sun 16 Kilworth & Araglen (H) Knockanohill, Kilworth, Fermoy, Co. Cork.
Sun 16 Longford (H) Daramona House, Cornacausk, Streete, Co. Westmeath
Sun 16 North Kilkenny (F) Parksgrove, Ballyragget, Co. Kilkenny.
Sat 22 Island Hunt (F) Ballycrystal, Kiltealy, Co. Wexford.
Sat 22 Route (H) Loguestown Road, Portrush, Co. Derry.
Sun 3 Streamstown (H) Durrow, Tullamore, Co. Offaly.
Sun 23 Tipperary (F) Lisronagh, Lisronagh, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary.
Sun 23 United Hunt (F) Ballynoe, Garryanne, Killavorilla, Kilclare, Co. Cork.
Sat 29 Co. Down (S) Derrydrummuck, Loughbrickland, Co. Down.
Sun 30 Ballymacad (F) Newcastle, Oldcastle, Co. Meath.
Sun 30 Bree (F) Monksgrange, Rathnure, Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford.
Sun 30 Duhallow (F) Liscarroll, Knockardbane, Liscarroll, Mallow, Co. Cork.
APRIL 2025
Sat 5 Newry (H) Taylorstown, Co. Down.
Sun 6 Co. Limerick (F) Athlacca, Rathcannon, Athlacca, Co. Limerick.
Sun 6 Duhallow (F) Dromahane, Dromahane, Mallow, Co. Cork.
Sun 6 Westmeath (F) Castletown-Geoghegan, Mullingar, Co. Westmeath.
Sun 13 Doneraile (H) Dromahane, Mallow, Co. Cork.
Sun 13 Laois (F) Stradbally Hall, Stradbally, Co. Laois.
Sun 13 Louth (F) Tattersalls, Fairyhouse, Co. Meath.
Wed 16 Killeagh (H) Inch, Ballyknock, Killeagh, Co. Cork.
Sat 19 East Antrim (H) Loughanmore, Dunadry, Co. Antrim.
Sun 20 Co. Clare (H) Dromoland @ Quakerstown, Quakerstown, Boston, Co. Clare.
Sun 20 Waterford (F) Curraghmore, Portlaw, Co. Waterford.
Mon 21 East Antrim (H) Loughanmore, Dunadry, Co. Antrim.
Sat 26 Stonehall (H) Ballysteen, Askeaton, Co. Limerick.
Sun 27 Kilkenny (F) Tullaherin, Dungarvan, Co. Kilkenny.
Sun 27 Killeady (H) Dromahane, Mallow, Co. Cork.
Sun 27 Meath (F) & Tara (H) Fairyhouse Racecourse, Ratoath, Co. Meath.
MAY 2025
Sat 3 Mid Antrim (H) Moneyglass, Toomebridge, Co. Antrim.
Sun 4 East Galway (F) Stowlin, Eyrecourt, Ballinasloe Co. Galway.
Sun 4 Muskerry (F) Ballindenisk, Watergrasshill, Co. Cork.
Mon 5 Muskerry (F) Dawstown, Birch Hill, Grenagh, Co. Cork.
Fri 9 Fermanagh (H) Necarne, Irvinestown, Co. Fermanagh.
Sat 10 Fermanagh (H) Necarne, Irvinestown, Co. Fermanagh.
Sun 11 Galway Blazers (F) Dartfield, Kilreekill, Loughrea, Co. Galway.
Sun 11 United Hunt (F) Bartlemy, Hightown, Bartlemy, Co. Cork.
Sun 18 North Kerry (H) @ Tralee Racecourse, Tralee Racecourse, Tralee, Co. Kerry.
Sun 18 United Hunt (F) Ballindenisk, Watergrasshill, Co. Cork.
Sat 24 Ormond (F) Southpark, Ballingarry, Roscrea, Co. Tipperary.
Sun 25 Carbery (F) Clonakilty, Inchydoney, Clonakilty, Co. Cork.
Sun 25 Ormond (F) Southpark, Ballingarry, Roscrea, Co. Tipperary.
2025MAJOR RACING FESTIVALS
- 2 February
April - 3 May
– 13 May
- 25 May
