IT is early days still for Zanahiyr but he produced a performance in the Grade 3 Bar One Racing Price Boost Juvenile Hurdle which would suggest there won’t be too many juveniles better than him by the end of the season.
A first graded winner for the increasingly prominent owners Noel and Valerie Moran, this son of Nathaniel won nicely on his debut over hurdles at Ballinrobe.
He faced a fascinating rival in Saint Sam who won twice over hurdles in France and was making his debut for Willie Mullins.
The Jack Kennedy-ridden Zanahiyr (16/5) turned for home in company with Saint Sam but left that one toiling badly from the second last to run out an impressive 14-length winner to fuel thoughts that he could be a leading candidate for Triumph Hurdle glory.
“He’s still got some strengthening to do. I think he might be more than just a juvenile and he could be a nice horse for the flat next summer,” reported Elliott.
“It’s great for Noel and Valerie to have a horse like him and we’ll try and split him and Quilixios up. One could head to Christmas and the other for the Dublin Racing Festival.”
A memorable day for Gordon Elliott ended with four winners after Grand Paradis (6/5) made a winning debut in the Bar One Racing-sponsored four-year-old bumper.
The Andrew and Gemma Brown-owned winner found himself with work to do to catch San Salvador approaching the straight but he raised his effort in fine style for Jamie Codd and always seemed likely to collar the leader which he did with over a furlong to run.
At the line, the son of Martaline had five and a half lengths to spare over fellow newcomer Good Land.
“He’s a lovely horse and I think he’s really a chaser so we’ll kick on and go hurdling with him around Christmas or maybe a bit after,” reported the trainer.
Mega surpise
The day began with a 20/1 surprise when Mega Mindy bagged the Bar One Racing Best Odds Guaranteed Irish EBF Mares Handicap Chase for Shark Hanlon and Bryan Cooper.
The seven-year-old, who only recently returned from well over a year off, produced a thoroughly gritty display.
It took her quite some time to subdue the always prominent Cushinstown Finest but she finally took that one’s measure on the run-in to score by a neck.
The Meadows Racing Club-owned winner was moving her trainer on to the 17-winner mark of what has already been a fine season for the stable.
Good jump
“This race has been her aim since she came back. Shark fancied her. She was tough and produced a good jump at the last when I needed it,” reflected Cooper.
“It’s great to be riding a winner on a card like this.”
A RACE that looked both competitive and open beforehand was turned in an utterly one-sided affair by the Tom Mullins-trained Court Maid who bagged a lucrative success in the substantially enhanced Baroneracing.com Porterstown Handicap Chase.
This €125,000 prize over the Irish Grand National course and distance brought together an interesting field and Court Maid was one of the least experienced with just three previous chasing runs to her name. The Rory Larkin-owned mare was ridden by the trainer’s son, David.
The first two home here were both novices and had finished fourth and third respectively in a Grade 2 won by Pencilfulloflead at Punchestown two weeks previously. Court Maid was beaten over 23 lengths on that occasion but turned around that form with Brace Yourself in some style. As a thinned-out field turned for home, nothing was going as well as the winner who then sauntered clear from the second last to hand out a 13-length beating to Brace Yourself, who had finished just over nine lengths in front of her at Punchestown. Captain Cj finished well to lie a further length and a half away in third.
“I told her owner that the Irish Grand National is her aim and that is probably what we will aim towards,” stated Mullins. “She’s a quality mare from a good staying family and Rory is a very lucky owner. He tells me I rode 17 winners for him when he had horses with my father.”
The other valuable handicap on the card went to Charles Byrnes as Advanced Virgo (14/1) landed the €75,000 Bar One Racing Extra Places Handicap Hurdle to give jockey Kevin Brouder his first winner since he returned from an eight-week Covid-19 protocol breach-related suspension.
Since he was last in action over jumps in January, this five-year-old had been in good form on the flat and he could be a major force in top handicaps for the rest of the season.
The Philip McGee-owned son of Holy Roman Emperor was left in charge of this race when the challenging Eclair De Beaufeu crashed out at the second last and he kept the chasing pack at bay to defeat the top-weight, Cayd Boy, by two and three-quarter lengths.
“He went a bit left at a few of his early hurdles but he warmed up nicely. After winning that we might aim him at the Ladbroke at Leopardstown in January,” stated Byrnes.