Aidan O’Brien out to scratch Tetrarch itch

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It has been 20 years since Aidan O’Brien has tasted success in the Coolmore Stud Blackbeard Irish EBF Tetrarch Stakes, but the master of Ballydoyle holds a strong hand as Classic credentials will be put to the test at the Curragh on Monday.

O’Brien has won this contest – which often serves as a stepping stone to the Irish 2,000 Guineas – five times in the past and saddles two this year in the form of Paddington and Drumroll.

Both have found the scoresheet already this term with Paddington winning a handicap over seven furlongs on his seasonal return while Drumroll, a brother to 2000 Guineas hero Saxon Warrior, won over a mile in heavy going on his debut at Navan

Winning connections with Paddington at Naas
Winning connections with Paddington at Naas (Brian Lawless/PA)

O’Brien said: “Paddington won over seven last time and he’s only ever run over seven to date. This is a step up to a mile so we’ll learn a lot more about him.

“We’ve been very happy with him since his first run.

“Drumroll won over a mile in heavy ground and he looked like a horse who will stay further

“We just felt we needed to get more experience into him and learn a little bit about him.

“We thought he was ready to start before his debut but we weren’t really sure what he was going to do. We had been happy with him at home, though.

Jessica Harrington’s Bold Discovery is another who heads to post for the Listed contest, stepping up to a mile having finished second to Ballydoyle’s Hans Andersen at Leopardstown on reappearance.

Bold Discovery (centre) chased home Hans Andersen at Leopardstown last time
Bold Discovery (centre) chased home Hans Andersen at Leopardstown last time (Niall Carson/PA)

“We hope he will be competitive,” said Jamie McCalmont, racing manager for owner Mark Chan.

“It’s a big day as it will tell what level you are at. He’s highly rated and long term we hope he will be a really nice horse.”

Before that the two-year-old speedsters will get to showcase their precociousness in the GAIN First Flier Stakes.

The race was won by Blackbeard 12 months ago and this time O’Brien is represented by debutants Unquestionable and His Majesty – the latter, like Blackbeard, a son of No Nay Never.

However, it could be Adrian Murray who holds all the aces as he saddles both the exciting Amo Racing-owned Bucanero Fuerte and intriguing newcomer Valiant Force.

“It’s a nice step for Bucanero Fuerte from his maiden so hopefully now he will step forwards,” said Murray.

“He has come on well since his debut, he will have improved plenty. He was quite green that day and he will be a good bit smarter and better.”

On Valliant Force he added: “He looks a real nice horse. He looks a fair tool. You don’t know until you run them, but on his homework he looks nice.”

William Haggas’ Queen Aminatu will attempt a bank holiday raid on the Coolmore Stud Circus Maximus Irish EBF Athasi Stakes.

Owned by Derby and Arc-winning owner-breeder Anthony Oppenheimer, the four-year-old was last seen plundering a huge pot at Newcastle on All-Weather Championships Finals Day and will now attempt to extend her winning run to four returning to turf.

The opposition for the UK raider includes the likes of Paddy Twomey’s Sceptre Stakes winner Just Beautiful and Henry de Bromhead’s Star Girls Aalmal.

Luxembourg adds star touch to Curragh card

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Luxembourg is the star attraction at the Curragh on Monday as the dual Group One winner makes his seasonal reappearance in the Coolmore Stud Sottsass Irish EBF Mooresbridge Stakes.

Derby favourite after rounding off his juvenile campaign with a top-level triumph at Doncaster, the Camelot colt only enhanced his Epsom claims when third in last season’s 2000 Guineas at Newmarket.

However, Aidan O’Brien’s charge did not make it to the premier Classic and was ultimately not seen in competitive action again until registering a workmanlike win in a Curragh Group Three in August.

O’Brien was adamant Luxembourg would improve significantly, though, and was once again proved spot-on as he saw off French raiders Onesto and Vadeni to secure Leopardstown’s Irish Champion Stakes, after which he got stuck in the mud in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Luxembourg had the option of returning to France for his four-year-old debut in Sunday’s Prix Ganay, but O’Brien has opted to start him off in calmer waters on home soil the following afternoon.

He said: “We just thought this looked an easier option at home rather than taking him to France.

“The ground doesn’t look too testing, hopefully it will be just nice ground for everyone.

“We’re happy with where he is, he’s ready to start back. He will come on plenty for it, I’d have thought, but he is ready to start.”

Luxembourg’s rivals include Joseph O’Brien’s Above The Curve, who struck Group One gold in the Prix Saint-Alary last season, and her stablemate Visualisation, who was best of the rest behind Point Lonsdale in the Alleged Stakes a fortnight ago.

Aidan’s youngest son Donnacha is represented by Piz Badile, who won last season’s Ballysax Stakes before filling the runner-up spot in the Irish Derby.

Willie McCreery saddles his star mare Insinuendo. The six-year-old secured her third Group-race success in the Park Express Stakes in late March and got within a neck of Luxembourg last summer.

Jessica Harrington’s Trevaunance and Noel Meade’s Layfayette complete the seven-runner field.

Iresine downs big guns in Prix Ganay

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Champion Stakes hero Bay Bridge could finish only third as Iresine came from last to first to cause a minor upset in the Prix Ganay at ParisLongchamp.

Making his first appearance since edging out Derby and King George hero Adayar on Champions Day at Ascot in October, Sir Michael Stoute’s Bay Bridge was sent off favourite to double his top-level tally in what appeared a strong renewal of the first Group One of the year in Europe.

The five-year-old raced with plenty of exuberance for much of the 10-furlong contest before being delivered with his challenge in the straight by Ryan Moore – and while he ultimately came up a little short, connections were justifiably encouraged by his performance.

Bay Bridge (second left) winning the Champion Stakes at Ascot
Bay Bridge (second left) winning the Champion Stakes at Ascot (John Walton/PA)

“I thought he ran a very good race, a very courageous race and got a little bit tired. For his first run of the season I think it was a very good performance,” part-owner James Wigan told Sky Sports Racing.

“Ryan said he wished they’d gone a little bit faster early on, he was quite keen. He said he came there thinking he was going to win and conditions told a little bit.

“He’s a big, strong horse and I think the race will do him good.”

When asked where Bay Bridge could make his next appearance, he added: “I would think the Tattersalls Gold Cup in Ireland or else Ascot (Prince of Wales’s Stakes).”

Iresine, trained by Jean-Pierre Gauvin, won the Prix Foy at ParisLongchamp in September before successfully stepping up to just shy of two miles to win the Group One Prix Royal-Oak.

He was narrowly beaten by the reopposing Simca Mille on his reappearance in the Prix d’Harcourt three weeks ago, but raised his game to turn the tables – charging home under a well judged ride from Marie Velon to score by a length and a quarter.

Velon said: “He’s a very special horse, he was amazing today and knew his job very well.

“He’s a very good horse who can do anything (trip-wise). I don’t know if he will go the Grand Prix de Chantilly or the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud.”

Simca Mille beat Bay Bridge to the runner-up spot by a head, with Vadeni – winner of the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown last summer before being placed in the Irish Champion Stakes and the Arc – never threatening to land a telling blow in fourth.

So many great memories for John Oxx with Sea The Stars

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John Oxx has gained as much pleasure from the second career of Sea The Stars as he did from his days on the track.

Known as the quiet man of the training ranks before his retirement – every inch a gentleman – Oxx would never be one to shout his achievements from the rooftops.

But what he was able to achieve with Sea The Stars – six Group Ones in six months – will forever ensure Oxx’s name is up there with the legends of the Turf and his greatest horse has now been inducted into the Qipco British Champions Series Hall of Fame.

That Sea The Stars has produced his own champions like Harzand, Stradivarius and more recently Baaeed has given the softly-spoken Oxx a continued interest in the game.

“There was always going to be a second career for a horse like that and it’s a relief to see it going so well. We’ve all seen great horses go off to stud and not be so successful,” said Oxx.

Sea The Stars was impressive in the 2000 Guineas
Sea The Stars was impressive in the 2000 Guineas (Chris Radburn/PA)

“In his case he was such a brilliant horse, had such a good pedigree allied with a brilliant temperament – all the qualities that would have made it a surprise if he wasn’t a success at stud. But it’s still nice to see it happen.

“Every year he’s had good horses, but with Baaeed last year – to get one at that type of level and that rating, that’s difficult for those great horses to do.”

Asked if he felt under pressure at the time to be sent a half-brother to Galileo, Oxx said: “We were excited to be sent such a nice horse with his pedigree and looks, you already think you’ve half a chance. I didn’t feel pressure, the owner didn’t put any on us.

“The pressure built later on as he started some fast work and started to show his ability – then it built and built all the time then!

“With each race and new horizon conquered, along with it came a lot of pressure and a lot of responsibility, just making sure he was all right and ready to run.”

Sea The Stars was only beaten once in his career, on debut, which at least meant Oxx did not have the extra stress of maintaining a perfect winning streak.

“I don’t know about the pressure of keeping an unbeaten record intact, you always need to be prepared for a horse to lose a race, it doesn’t always tarnish their record. I always felt first time out it was nice to give them a race where they learned something,” said Oxx.

Sea The Stars followed up his Guineas win in the Derby
Sea The Stars followed up his Guineas win in the Derby (Daniel Hambury/PA)

Having won the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket first time out at three, with Oxx eschewing a trial, only one race was then on his mind.

“Once he won the Guineas, the dream then was always to win the Derby, it was certainly mine as it is the Holy Grail in my book – to have a Guineas winner and then four weeks later win the Derby over 50 per cent further on a totally different track,” he said.

“Everything else afterwards could look after itself. We wanted him to be a Guineas-Derby winner, but then of course once you’ve won a Guineas you start to wonder will he stay in the Derby!

“He was an aggressive racer, but he was in the perfect position at Epsom and the first thing Mick (Kinane) said to me on coming back was ‘well Plan A worked anyway’.”

Having already won the Guineas and the Derby, Sea The Stars went on a Group One-winning spree which will ensure he will be remembered for decades to come.

“In the Eclipse, it was a record time after they went a ferocious pace. He followed the leaders, but the pacemakers collapsed two furlongs out and he was in front too soon, he always pulled up a bit in front as he thought he’d won,” remembers Oxx.

“A furlong out he thought he’d already won and Rip Van Winkle was a very good horse. He put it up to him, but in the end he pulled away and won nicely. Jimmy Fortune, who rode Rip Van Winkle, told me later ‘your fella was only playing with me’.

“You always worry in a horse race as anything can happen and at York in the International we had three of Aidan’s (O’Brien) to beat and that was it. Two pacemakers and Mastercraftsman and the front two made a gap for Mastercraftsman which Mick also went through.

“However, he then took a pull and he just went to sleep for a little bit and he had to say ‘go’ twice to him. He was a little bit sluggish getting back up, but in the end he won easy enough again – and that was a record time. Aidan told me afterwards that was the best he’d ever had Mastercraftsman that day.

“When Mick got off him at York it had been six weeks since the Eclipse and he said he needed that run, it would bring him on. Sure enough at Leopardstown in the Irish Champion Stakes he then put up what the handicappers said was his best ever performance.

“That was nice for the Irish crowd to see him. It was just about the only race he won by a decent margin as we could never get him to win by far! Because there was a doubt about him running the crowd might not have been what it may have been, but they certainly gave him some reception.”

As ever with a champion horse in Europe, the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe was on the horizon. But it did not all go according to plan.

“The big thing in the Arc was when he looked in that bit of bother. I didn’t mind him being back in the field because the main horses to beat weren’t that far in front of him,” said Oxx.

“It was Getaway who was in front of him and he was going for the gap that we needed to get. Mick had to accelerate to get around him, which he did. Stephane Pasquier was on Getaway and later told me he couldn’t believe a horse could do that, but when he got to the gap I was able to breathe a sigh of relief.”

Oxx believes the fact Sea The Stars was able to win the 2000 Guineas at the start of his magical season, despite an interrupted preparation, is the perfect advertisement of his greatness.

He added: “The only hold-up we had all year was back on March 17 when he had a temperature of 103, which was a huge disappointment at the time.

“Because of his constitution he was back and did a bit of fast work two weeks later. Other horses couldn’t have done that. The fact he could win the Guineas the first Saturday in May is very unusual after a temperature like that. That shows you a lot about him.

“We knew he was one of the greats after he won the Guineas and the Derby, so we had to run him in all those races. He missed the King George, but he had to have a little pause and that was the only one he missed. He had to win a sequence to prove himself as one of the greats. It’s a rarity and thank goodness it happened, there won’t be many in 100 years that do it.”

‘One in a million’ – Sea The Stars means so much to Tsui family

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To own a champion racehorse must be the thing of dreams. When said racehorse is a son of your own champion mare it must mean so much more.

That is what happened to Christopher Tsui, a prominent figure in the brilliant career of Sea The Stars, the latest equine inductee into the Qipco British Champions Series Hall of Fame.

What the John Oxx-trained Sea The Stars achieved in his three-year-old season in 2009, winning six Group Ones in six months, in three different countries over distances ranging from eight to 12 furlongs, has rightly gone down in racing folklore.

But given his family also owned the remarkable Urban Sea, herself a Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner and the dam of the great Galileo, Sea The Stars did have every chance of reaching the very top.

“We were always very hopeful, he was a half-brother to Galileo and we’d already had a lot of success with the family of Urban Sea. Most of his siblings were stakes winners so we were very hopeful he would do well on the racecourse,” said Tsui.

“Obviously you never know quite how good they might be until the day they start racing. I remember his first race very well, when he was fourth. I was a little disappointed, but John did tell us his first time out two-year-olds often ran like that.

“When he won his maiden next time John told us he thought he was good, but as people know, John is always very careful and he would never jump to conclusions before he started seeing results.

“I do think between him and Mick Kinane they knew quite early on he was something special.

“John didn’t push him at two, he did run him in the Group Two Beresford Stakes which he won, but it was a nice, easy start for him I guess – not too intense but building up nicely.”

Having decided not to keep a champion like Galileo, Tsui said it was almost inevitable they would keep his half-brother, especially with Urban Sea advancing in years.

Sea The Stars with John Oxx
Sea The Stars with John Oxx (Niall Carson/PA)

“I think we always wanted to keep hold of him when he was born as by that point Urban Sea was getting older and we thought by 2006 when she had Sea The Stars she was 17 so we were keen to keep some of the progeny, we kept his little brother Born To Sea, too,” said Tsui.

“I couldn’t think of another mare like Urban Sea. Not only did she produce Galileo and Sea The Stars but Born To Sea was second in an Irish Derby, All Too Beautiful was second in the Oaks, Black Sam Bellamy won two Group Ones – her consistency was incredible. Don’t forget she won the Arc herself.”

Not only was Sea The Stars a champion on the track, he has gone on to enjoy an incredible second career at stud too, producing a Derby winner in Harzand, an Oaks heroine in Taghrooda and more recently Baaeed, rated in the realms of his sire.

“I think given her genes there was a good chance he was going to be a success at stud, but we’re also very fortunate to link up with the Aga Khan, having access to such wonderful mares throughout the years. It all contributes to the success,” said Tsui.

Horse Racing – Christopher Tsui leads in Sea The Stars after winning the Derby
Christopher Tsui leads in Sea The Stars after winning the Derby (Steve Pasrsons/

“The range of horses he has produced, from Baaeed to Stradivarius, shows just how versatile he really was. John told us he could have won races over seven furlongs had we wanted to, but we didn’t. John always said the distance didn’t matter, he could have gone for the Leger if we wanted, it was more a question of picking the right schedule.

“What he did was very rare, six Group Ones in six months, in different countries as well so you have to factor in all the travelling, it was incredible. I don’t know if it will ever be replicated. It was a hell of a season, for sure.

“It was quite nerve-wracking watching him. In the Guineas we didn’t know how good he was, his first race was just excitement. We had some expectations, but when he won it was quite a surprise.

“As the races built up, he won the Derby and the Eclipse, the expectations went up with every race and he was always in the media. By the time of the Arc all I could think was ‘just finish the race and get it done’. It was a relief, more than anything, when he won the Arc.”

As so often the Arc attracted a big field, and Kinane found himself in an uncompromising position. It was a testament to horse and jockey he was still able to win.

“The Arc is always a messy race with a big field so anything can happen. He was a long way back and had a lot of traffic in front of him. He started weaving around and it was difficult to watch, but once he got in the clear he was gone, it was a tremendous race – I must have watched it 1,000 times since and I’m still amazed how he got out!” exclaimed Tsui.

“The Arc was an amazing race, it always is, all the best horses in Europe congregate there. It has to be my favourite as I was also there when Urban Sea won it, I would have only been 10 or 11, so to be there 16 years later in that situation was very special.

“I think the Irish Champion Stakes was a race where he never looked in trouble, he was always relaxed and in control and when Mick let him go, he was just that much better, it was a much easier race to watch than most – especially the International at York.

“That was a four-runner race, three from Aidan O’Brien, and he still ended up squeezing through a gap, that was a bit more difficult to watch but he still won, and he broke the track record.”

Having achieved so much at three, Tsui said there was little temptation to continue with him at four, knowing in racing nothing can last forever.

“It was a hard decision to retire him as he became so popular. It wasn’t a decision like any I’d made before. People wanted him to go to the Breeders’ Cup, some wanted him to stay in training but ultimately we spoke to John and he said his coat was coming through,” said Tsui.

“We spoke about it, but ultimately made the decision to retire him. So much can go wrong with a racehorse, especially at that time of year when all the races are abroad. Taking horses on an aeroplane is always risky and everything had gone so smoothly we didn’t want to push our luck.

“Obviously Sea The Stars was one in a million. We hope to find another, but it will be very difficult. We do have some nice horses in the pipeline so hopefully we have some good winners this year.”

Dubai Honour third as Warrior steals show in QEII

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British raider Dubai Honour had to make do with minor honours in third as Romantic Warrior successfully defended his crown in the FWD QEII Cup at Sha Tin.

Following a successful winter in Australia with Group One wins in the Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick, the William Haggas-trained Dubai Honour headed for the Far East bidding to become the first British-trained winner in Hong Kong in over 10 years.

The five-year-old had run at Sha Tin before, finishing a close-up fourth in the 2021 Hong Kong Cup, and having seemingly taken his form to another level this year Haggas had high hopes his charge could provide him with a maiden Hong Kong success.

Ridden by Tom Marquand, Dubai Honour moved nicely in midfield for much of the 10-furlong contest and appeared well positioned behind local favourite Romantic Warrior.

However, he was ultimately unable to go with the brilliant winner and while he stayed on admirable, he was also narrowly beaten to the runner-up spot by Prognosis.

Haggas said: “I’m not putting it up as an excuse, but Tom said the gallop was a bit slow and the ground was a bit quick for him.”

Romantic Warrior, who since his success of 12 months ago had also added the Hong Kong Cup to his impressive CV, was bidding to bounce back to winning ways after being beaten in his last two races by Hong Kong legend Golden Sixty – who earlier in the day had won his third Champions Mile.

On the strength of that form Danny Shum’s five-year-old was a hot favourite to make it back-to-back QEII wins and a jubilant James McDonald was able to stand up in the stirrups and salute the crowd before passing the post, such was his dominance at the line.

McDonald, who is now three from three aboard Romantic Warrior, said: “He’s such a beautiful horse. He’s electric out of the gates and is a push button operator with a great will to win.

“He is so relaxed and put on a spectacular performance. His Hong Kong Cup win in December was huge and will be hard to replicate but he was just perfect today – he’s a star.”

Romantic Warrior proved too good for Dubai Honour at Sha Tin
Romantic Warrior proved too good for Dubai Honour at Sha Tin (Neil Morrice/PA)

Shum added: “I’m a bit relieved to be honest and I would like to thank my stable team and especially Gary Lau his work rider.

“Before his last run the vets had to look at him as he developed a mild fever and since then I’ve checked him every morning.

“I’m now keen to take him to Japan for a first start there in October.”

Sir Michael Stoute and Sea The Stars latest to join Hall of Fame

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Sir Michael Stoute and Sea The Stars are the two most recent inductees into the Qipco British Champions Series Hall of Fame.

A presentation at the Qipco Guineas Festival at Newmarket on Saturday will mark the occasion after both were chosen by an independent panel of industry experts.

Stoute, 77, becomes the first active trainer to be inducted and is just the third overall as he joins Vincent O’Brien and Sir Henry Cecil in receiving the honour.

Also a 10-times champion Flat trainer, Stoute has saddled more than 4,000 winners in Britain since 1972 and has enjoyed six Derby victories – including the mighty Shergar, who won by a record 10 lengths in 1981, and Workforce in 2010, who still holds the record time.

Desert Crown winning the Derby
Desert Crown winning the Derby (Tim Goode/PA)

Stoute’s most recent Derby success came just last season, as Desert Crown claimed Epsom glory in the hands of Richard Kingscote.

Stoute has also accumulated a record 82 winners at Royal Ascot, including Estimate’s unforgettable Gold Cup triumph for the late Queen in 2013, and no one has trained more winners of prestigious prizes such as the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes (six), Juddmonte International (six), Eclipse (six), Lockinge (eight), Falmouth Stakes (six) and Yorkshire Oaks (nine).

“I am very flattered and most grateful to have been inducted into the Qipco British Champions Series Hall of Fame. Of course, it has only been made possible by good horses, talented and dedicated staff, and loyal owners,” said the Freemason Lodge handler.

“To be inducted into the Hall of Fame and joining Vincent O’Brien, who was my hero and probably the greatest trainer that has ever lived, and Henry Cecil, who was also a very good friend. I’m very, very grateful.

“You never forget your first Derby winner. Shergar had won his Derby trials in outstanding fashion. So he was odds on, he was expected to win, we expected him to win, but it was still a great thrill. I think he won by about ten lengths and (Walter) Swinburn was pulling him up by the last furlong.”

Mick Kinane with the incomparable Sea The Stars at Epsom
Mick Kinane with the incomparable Sea The Stars at Epsom (Daniel Hambury/PA)

Sea The Stars was a superb racehorse whose only loss came on his first ever start, after which he was trained by John Oxx to eight successes that gained him nearly £4.5million in prize-money.

As a three-year-old he dominated the sport with a remarkable run of six consecutive Group One races, all of which he won.

He secured back-to-back Classic wins in the 2000 Guineas and the Derby, after which he claimed the Eclipse, the Juddmonte International, the Irish Champion Stakes and the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

His second career at stud has been equally successful, with the now 17-year-old having sired a whole host of top-class performers including Baaeed, Stradivarius, Crystal Ocean and Harzand.

Mick Kinane, who was ever present in the saddle during Sea The Stars’ racing career, said: “The first time I rode him, he was the first horse I sat on that morning. I turned him in and did a half speed back, I popped off him and said ‘This fella finds going quick very easy, he’s a beauty’. That’s exactly what I said, the first time I sat on him.”

Lossiemouth puts the seal on highly successful campaign

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Lossiemouth demonstrated her dominance over her Willie Mullins-trained stablemates to win the Ballymore Champion Four Year Old Hurdle.

The grey claimed two juvenile contests impressively at the start of the campaign but was then defeated when hindered in the Spring Juvenile Hurdle at Leopardstown.

Her conqueror was Gala Marceau and the two fillies met again in the Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, where Lossiemouth prevailed by two and a quarter lengths and set the record straight.

Under Paul Townend at Punchestown she backed up that success when pulling away to a length-and-a-half victory over Zarak The Brave and Gala Marceau as the 1-2 favourite.

“We bought her in France from Yannick Fouin and he was full of her when he had her. We were lucky enough to get her,” said Mullins.

Paul Townend and Lossiemouth
Paul Townend and Lossiemouth (Niall Carson/PA)

“You think you are buying nice horses all the time but this filly looks to be a cut above, for a filly to go through the whole season and come out at every festival.

“Christmas, the Dublin Racing Festival and to get hammered there, back to Cheltenham and back here today, that’s incredible for a four-year-old filly.

“She’ll need a long break now after that to recover. She’s been very good to us.

“I’m looking forward to maybe the Mares’ Hurdle next year. Normally those juveniles work into staying hurdlers which would be the Mares’ Hurdle or the Stayers’ Hurdle, but I’m just wondering could she be a Champion Hurdle filly in two years’ time?

“She has huge reserves and she’s sound as a pound. Half the battle of being a good horse is being sound.

“We’ve so many talented horses, but they’re not sound and they miss a year. Look at the likes of Monkfish and Asterion Forlonge this week, if they were sound they could win a lot more but it’s a high level of training and racing and it’s tough.

“In any sport the top players pick up injuries and careers are done because they pick up injuries. Racing is no different.”

Select performance sees Knappers Hill on top

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Knappers Hill spoiled the Tom O’Brien farewell as Paul Nicholls’ charge landed the bet365 Select Hurdle at Sandown.

O’Brien, who had announced he was hanging up his riding boots after a stellar career with trainer Philip Hobbs, looked to have a solid chance aboard Thyme Hill, who on official ratings had 10lb in hand on his rivals as he switched disciplines following a modest run in the Brown Advisory at the Cheltenham Festival.

And O’Brien looked well-poised as he tracked the sedate pace set by the mare Theatre Glory in the extended two-mile-five-furlong affair.

However, there was to be no fairytale farewell for O’Brien, as the race turned into something of a sprint.

O’Brien and Thyme Hill were tight for room and tapped for toe at the second-last, where Knappers Hill and Bryony Frost picked up well, having initially sat at the back of the quintet.

Frost, replacing Harry Cobden, who stood himself down following a fall earlier in the afternoon, seized her chance, with the seven-year-old, winner of the Elite Hurdle at Wincanton in November, picking up in great style.

Knappers Hill (11-2) stayed on well up the hill after the last and just had enough to repel the late thrust of Goshen, who had to be switched to challenge.

Gary Moore’s runner, who was a neck behind, could be considered somewhat unlucky not to record a third course success. O’Brien bowed out with a third-place finish.

Celebrating a winner on the day he was officially crowned champion for the 14th time, Nicholls said: “We were a bit worried about the ground and we were in one mind whether to run him or not, because the only time he’s been disappointing was here in the EBF Final on soft ground.

“We rode him different today and just took our time, I said to Bryony to let him creep into things and hope they don’t go too quick and see if he gets the trip and he did. He’ll go chasing next year, he’ll be a nice type for things like the Rising Stars at Wincanton so we’re looking forward to that now.”

Frost added: “We just took our time. He’s got so much ability and it was very easy. We cruised through in a little field and I enjoyed every moment of his jumping.

“Turning in the speed we hit was awesome, he’s a quality horse and he’s going to make some chaser next year. I couldn’t believe it was going our way, it’s probably the first race all day that has. It’s fantastic for the owners and this crowd is great.”

Echoes In Rain wins as she likes at Punchestown

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Echoes In Rain cruised home to land the Coolmore N.H. Sires Mogul Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle for Willie Mullins and Paul Townend at Punchestown.

The seven-year-old was the 13-8 joint-favourite for the Grade One contest after finishing fourth in the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle when last seen at the Cheltenham Festival.

Harry Fry’s Love Envoi was the other market leader, but was beaten around the final bend and faded to come home last in an unusually poor performance under Danny Mullins.

Echoes In Rain and stablemate She Wears It Well were left to share the lead and it was the former who pulled away easily to score by nine and a half lengths from John McConnell’s Anna Bunina, with She Wears It Well in third.

“She was very impressive,” said Mullins of the winning dual-purpose mare.

Paul Townend on Echoes In Rain
Paul Townend on Echoes In Rain (Niall Carson/PA)

“Once again Paul just rode her with complete confidence, he’s transferring his confidence through to his horses and they are on fire with it.

“She’s improving all the time. She’s hard on herself, but she’s just about learning to settle now.

“We’ll probably go back on the Flat with her, but Flat racing does upset her a little bit, it gets her too geed up for this job. We’ll see and have a good chat with the owners. She’s done the job here today and that’s what counts.

“She got very wound up in Cheltenham, but I think she’s maturing and some year she might be good enough to go back there.

“She’ll be aimed at it next year anyway.”