BRRRRR. You know that winter is coming when the National Hunt runners are back on the track, and blacktype races are beginning to appear with more regularity.

This week I am going to gallop through the pedigrees of a few recent winners, some of whom you will know, and others are making their first appearance in print.

Best known of the quintet is Minella Indo, and this 10-year-old son of Beat Hollow (Sadler’s Wells) added the Grade 3 Carvills Hill Chase to victories at Grade 1 level in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, Albert Bartlett Spa Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham and the War Of Attrition Novice Hurdle in Punchestown.

Though he has been on the radar for a while, being placed in the Grade 1 Henry VIII Novices’ Chase at Sandown and the Grade 2 Future Champion Novices’ Chase at Ayr, victory for the French-bred Unexpected Party in the Listed Dunraven Novices’ Chase at Chepstow was the first blacktype win for this eight-year-old son of Martaline (Linamix).

Brian Grassick

His pedigree will not be completely unfamiliar to readers, as he is one of six winners out of Reform Act (Lemon Drop Kid). She was purchased as a yearling by Brian Grassick for $130,000 and went into training for owner Joe Higgins with Dermot Weld.

Her three wins included the Listed Give Thanks Stakes at Cork, and she was placed many times at the same level. She was sent to the USA in search of a graded stakes success, but failed by a length and a half to win the Grade 2 Long Island Handicap at Aqueduct.

Reform Act’s six winners have been successful in Britain, France, Spain, China and the Czech Republic. This is the immediate family of the 2020 Grade 1 Arkansas Derby winner Nadal (Blame), and he is out of a half-sister to Reform Act.

Arqana graduate

Carrying the familiar colours of JP McManus, Hercule Du Seuil is continuing to pay off with prizemoney the €185,000 he cost at Arqana as a three-year-old in 2020, when he sold to Horse Racing Advisory. Bred and raced by Catherine Boudot, the now six-year-old had been runner-up on his debut at Strasbourg, beaten a short head.

Now, for Willie Mullins, the son of Saddler Maker (Sadler’s Wells) has won eight races over hurdles and fences, and only twice failed to earn any money in a career total of a dozen outings. His victories include the Grade 2 Hardy Eustace Novice Hurdle at Fairyhouse, the Grade 3 For Auction Novice Hurdle at Navan, and a trio of Grade 3 chases, at Galway, Roscommon and, most recently, at Punchestown.

Hercule Du Seuil and his year-younger half-sister, Infinity Du Seuil (Triple Threat), are the first two foals and winners from Cibelle Du Seuil (Saint Des Saints) who had shown little in four starts over jumps. The winners are followed by an unraced four-year-old filly, Japan du Seuil (Doctor Dino), and a two-year-old colt, Lewis Du Seuil (No Risk At All).

There are winners in every generation of this family, but you have to go back to descendants of Hercule Du Seuil’s fourth dam Favorite (Laniste) to find familiar names. Though distantly related, this is the family of multiple Grade 1 winning hurdler and chaser Defi Du Seuil (Voix Du Nord).

Bargains

A bargain €2,800 purchase at the Tattersalls Ireland August National Hunt Sale three years ago, when he was sold by breeder Christy Maye through Ennel Bloodstock, Typical Thomas gave his purchaser, trainer James Fahey, his biggest success in the training ranks when he won a listed chase at Cork, taking his winnings to €50,000.

The six-year-old son of Dylan Thomas (Danehill) is one of three racecourse winners, and a point-to-point winner, out of Lady Singspiel, a daughter of Singspiel (In The Wings). One of the others is Nell’s Well (Gold Well), and this Grade 3-winning hurdler in Cork cost only €1.200 as a three-year-old. Who says you can’t get value in the sale ring?

Successful pinhook

The Corrib Racing-bred Captain Teague is a name to watch for this season. A €19,000 foal purchase at Tattersalls Ireland and a successful €70,000 pinhook as a three-year-old at the Goffs Land Rover Sale, he won his only start in a point-to-point and joined Paul Nicholls.

Successful on his bumper debut, he was third in the Grade 1 Weatherbys Champion Bumper at Cheltenham to A Dream To Share.

Now, on his hurdling debut, he has won the Grade 2 Persian War Novices’ Hurdle at Chepstow in outstanding fashion, giving the trainer his fourth win in the race in the past decade. While it is some way in the distance, you cannot blame connections if they are dreaming of Cheltenham in March, and it was there that Captain Teague’s half-brother, Sky Pirate (Midnight Legend), won the Grade 3 Grand Annual Chase.

Captain Teague and Sky Pirate are out of the Supreme Leader (Bustino) mare Dancingwithbubbles, and she was placed in a listed bumper and hurdle race. She, in turn, is a daughter of Cheltenham’s Grade 1 Cleeve Hurdle winner Kate’s Charm (Glacial Storm).