BACK in March Fact To File added the Grade 1 Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase to his bloodless Dublin Racing Festival Grade 1 win, and contributed to his owner’s Cheltenham haul. J.P. McManus’ achievements as a National Hunt owner will never be bettered.

A graduate of the Irish point-to-point scene where he won his only start for handler Donnchadh Doyle and with Rob James in the saddle at Belharbour, Fact To File next appeared in the familiar McManus colours and from Willie Mullins’ yard. He won a Leopardstown Christmas bumper in the style of an odds-on favourite, but he then ran into A Dream To Share twice, finishing runner-up to that gelding in a Grade 2 bumper at the Dublin Racing Festival, and again at Cheltenham.

Significantly, after he was second to A Dream To Share at Leopardstown, McManus bought the winner, and the pair gave him a 1-2 in the Grade 1 Weatherbys Champion Bumper at Cheltenham. A hurdling career was bypassed, with justification, and a defeat to American Mike on his chasing debut has been followed by four wins, three at Grade 1 level.

Bred by Michel Pehu, Fact To File is a son of Poliglote (Sadler’s Wells) and cost Donnchadh Doyle €40,000 as a yearling at Arqana. He is the best of three winners from his unplaced Trempolino (Sharpen Up) dam, Mitemps.

The other pair were multiple winners over jumps in France. Fact To File is the second blacktype winner in his family in four generations. The only other nestles in the third dam.

That other blacktype winner was D’Vina (Smadoun), and his eight wins over jumps included the Grade 3 Prix Sagan Hurdle and two listed hurdle races at Auteuil. He was placed at Grade 1 level.

Poliglote was retired from stud duties at Haras d’Etreham after a distinguished career in which he had the rare, if not once-off, honour of being champion flat and National Hunt sire in France in the year that his daughter Solemia won the Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. She was the only Group 1 winner he sired on the level in Europe, but he did shuttle to Argentina and there he got seven other Group 1 winners.

Best performance

Among the smart winners from mares by Poliglote is I Am Maximus, the Grand National hero. Poliglote ended his juvenile career with his only Group 1 win, in the Criterium de Saint-Cloud. He failed to win at three, but put up his best performance when half a length second to Celtic Swing in the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club-French Derby, and followed home by Winged Love, Classic Cliche and Flemensfirth.

Kept in training at four, he took his tally of victories to five.

An impressive 109 blacktype winners under both rules for Poliglote includes 17 Grade 1 winners over jumps. They read like a who’s who of jump racing and, in addition to Fact To File, they are Politologue (Queen Mother Champion Chase, Melling Chase and Tingle Creek Chase twice), Sire Du Berlais (Stayer’s Hurdle and Liverpool Hurdle), So French (Grand Steeplechase de Paris twice and Prix Maurice Gillois 4yo Grand Steeplechase), Don Poli (RSA Novices’ Chase, Lexus Chase and Fort Leney Novice Chase), Saint Du Chenet (Prix Ferdinand Dufaure Chase and Grand Prix d’Automne Hurdle), Hermes Allen (Challow Novices’ Hurdle), Poly Grandchamp (Prix La Haye Jousselin Chase), Top Notch (Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase), Fleur D’Ainay (Prix Ferdinand Dufaure Chase), Hinterland (Henry VIII Novice Chase), Tanais Du Chenet (Prix Cambacérès Hurdle), Prince Oui Oui (Prix Cambacérès Hurdle), Butler’s Cabin (Irish Grand National), Polivalente (Prix Maurice Gillois Grand Steeplechase), Kiki (Prix Cambacérès Hurdle) and Lingo (Tolworth Hurdle).

How high can Brighterdaysahead go?

ANYONE who reads breeding columns regularly will know the story of Matnie, the unraced daughter of Laveron (Konigsstuhl).

She is the dam of five winners with her first five foals, all five are blacktype winners, three are Grade 1 winners, and all have at least been placed at Grade 1 level. One of Matnie’s eight offspring to date is unique – can you guess why?

That honour rests with last weekend’s Grade 1 Morgiana Hurdle winner Brighterdaysahead (Kapgarde). She is the only filly produced by Matnie, and had she been retired to stud after winning a Grade 1 at Aintree in April, you could have understood the decision.

However, Michael O’Leary’s involvement with National Hunt racing is as an owner, not a breeder, and the €310,000 Derby Sale purchase Brighterdaysahead has started the current jumps season well, winning a Grade 3 at Down Royal and claiming the scalp of Champion Hurdle winner State Man in the Grade 1 at Punchestown. She has been beaten once in nine starts, when runner-up at Cheltenham.

With a pair of youngsters by Doctor Dino (Muhtathir) in the wings, the €350,000 2024 Derby Sale graduate Ravendark, a three-year-old gelding, and the two-year-old gelding Here Be Dragons, as well as a yearling colt Recognition (No Risk At All), Matnie could become the most celebrated broodmare in National Hunt history.

All of her winners were bred by Francois-Marie Cottin. First up was French Dynamite (Kentucky Dynamite). Donnchadh Doyle received £165,000 for him as a winning four-year-old pointer at Tattersalls Cheltenham. He is trained by Mouse Morris for Robcour and won Grade 3 races at Thurles and Punchestown, among seven wins under rules, and he has been placed at up to Grade 1 level.

French Dynamite was followed by Indiana Jones (Blue Bresil), who cost bloodstock agent Alex Elliott €280,000 as a three-year-old at the Osarus Maison-Laffitte National Hunt Sale in 2019. He also races for Robcour, is trained by Morris, and when he won the Grade 3 Flyingbolt Novice Chase last year it was certainly deserved. This was his third win, two over fences, and Indiana Jones later finished third in the Grade 1 Colliers Novice Chase at the Punchestown Festival.

Another level

Matnie’s third produce took the pedigree to another level. He was the ill-fated Mighty Potter, whose death was one of the reasons that Andy and Gemma Brown took the decision to leave racing.

Mighty Potter (Martaline), trained by Gordon Elliott, won the Grade 1 Future Champions Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown and Grade 1 Champion Novice Hurdle at Punchestown. At the 2023 Dublin Racing Festival, Mighty Potter was an impressive winner of the Grade 1 Ladbrokes Novice Chase, adding to another Grade 1 success, this time in the Drinmore Novice Chase at Fairyhouse.

Joey Logan paid €200,000, the third-best price at the sale, on behalf of Andy and Gemma Brown at the 2021 Goffs Land Rover Sale for a then three-year-old Martaline (Linamix) gelding out of Matnie, sold by Walter Connors. Renamed Caldwell Potter, he went into training with Gordon Elliott. Caldwell Potter delivered, and won the Grade 1 Future Champions Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown.

He was sold at Tattersalls Ireland the day after this year’s Dublin Racing Festival ended, realising a record €740,000, and was bought by Highflyer Bloodstock. He is with Paul Nicholls, and due to race for a quartet that includes Sir Alex Ferguson. Brighterdaysahead is the fifth foal for Matnie.