WILLIE Mullins was responsible for the only blip on the race record of Lossiemouth when, in the Grade 1 Spring Juvenile Hurdle at Leopardstown in February 2023, he saddled the first three home, Gala Marceau, Lossiemouth and Tekao.

That has been the only defeat in 10 starts for the five-year-old daughter of Great Pretender (King’s Theatre) who took her haul of Grade 1 victories to six with a bloodless win in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle at Fairyhouse over the weekend. She is within half a length of taking her winnings to £500,000. Bred by Elevage des Vallons and Ian Kellit, Lossiemouth was unsold when offered as a yearling, and a bid of just €15,000 might have bought her.

She won on her only start in France at three, racing for a partnership of her breeders and trainer Yannick Fouin, and that day Lossiemouth had 10 lengths to spare over a pair of runners who did nothing afterwards. If the quality of the field that day left much to be desired, the manner of Lossiemouth’s win was so impressive, and she was never in danger throughout the mile and seven-furlong trip.

Lossiemouth will likely face the best of the British hurdlers over Christmas at Kempton, and she currently stands at the head of the betting market for Cheltenham’s Champion Hurdle in March. Mullins-trained mares have a fine record in this race – who can forget the great Dawn Run who won in 1984 for Paddy, and then in 2016 his son Willie saddled Annie Power to land the championship contest. No doubt there will be the annual call for the removal of the mares’ allowance were Lossiemouth to win – but this columnist will support the current situation given how it has helped to ignite more interest than ever in racing fillies and mares.

Useful runner

Great Pretender was a useful runner, winning listed races on the flat and over hurdles in France, and he ran second in the Group 2 Prix Noailles. He is among the senior members of the stallion ranks in France, and in addition to his big race winners there he is also well-known in Britain and Ireland for the likes of triple Grade 1-winning chaser Greaneteen, three-time Grade 1-winning hurdler Benie Des Dieux, Dortmund Park, Great Field, and Ptit Zig.

Lossiemouth is out of a mile and a half-winning daughter of Gentlewave (Monsun). She is the fourth foal and second winner from Mariner’s Light, herself one of 10 winners out of Lady Glitters (Homme De Loi) who failed to win, in spite of being placed nine times, twice at listed level. As a 15-year-old, and having once sold for €100,000, Lady Glitters failed to find a buyer for just €7,000. Incredibly, she was carrying her best offspring at the time, Lord Glitters (Whipper).

Winner of almost £2.2 million, Lord Glitters was successful in four countries and in 11 races. At Group 1 level he visited the winners’ enclosure following the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot (he also finished second too) and the Jebel Hatta Stakes in Meydan.

Stakes performer

Lady Glitters is responsible for a second stakes performer, and that is the current three-year-old Shamrock Glitter (Shalaa). A winner last year, after which he sold for €250,000 at Arqana’s Autumn Sale, he transferred to Francis Graffard and the ownership of Team Valour, and has twice finished second in listed races. It would be no surprise to see him develop in time into a stakes winner.

With Constitution Hill’s reappearance still to come, the market for the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham is currently led by Lossiemouth, and another who won at the weekend, Sir Gino (It’s Gino). The latter was due to make his chasing debut recently, but when Constitution Hill was ruled out of the Grade 1 Fighting Fifth Hurdle. Sir Gino was substituted, and delivered. With trainer Nicky Henderson and jockey Nico de Boinville both agreeing that Sir Gino is an outstanding chasing prospect, it now looks as if that plan is on the back boiler for now.

In fairness, the four-year-old would hardly have been put over the larger obstacles so early were he not in the same yard as Constitution Hill, and his victory on Saturday means that he is now unbeaten in five starts. Bred in France by Jean-Paul and Marie-Odile Deshayes, he, like Lossiemouth, raced there for his breeders and trainers, Carlos and Yann Lerner, winning on his debut at Auteuil in a listed hurdle at three.

Winning start

Now owned by Joe and Marie Donnelly, Sir Gino made a winning start in England at Kempton two days after Christmas last year, beat Burdett Road by 10 lengths in a Grade 2 at Cheltenham, and ended last season with a win in the Grade 1 Boodles Anniversary Four-Year-old Juvenile Hurdle at Aintree.

He is one of just three offspring of Anzi Star (Anzillero), a winner twice in France, including at two. Her other winner is Sir Gino’s full-brother, Gino Star (It’s Gino).

Anzi Star is the only winner on the track from four named offspring of L’Eclipse Francaise (Jeune Homme). She is, however, also dam of the 2023 point-t0-point winner Legostar (Legolas). L’Eclipse Francaise was successful three times in France, again also as a juvenile, and she earned some blacktype when placed in a listed race at La Teste De Buch.

As you go back two more generations you find more winners, though none of special merit. L’Eclipse Francaise was one of three winners from the unraced Lambada Eighteen (In Fijar), while Sir Gino’s once-raced fourth dam Tango In Paris (Dom Racine) has five successful offspring – though none won a second time!

Claim to fame

It’s Gino’s main claim to fame as a racehorse was to dead-heat for third place in the Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe with Soldier Of Fortune, behind the brilliant Zarkava and Youmzain. A Group 2 winner in Germany and a listed winner in France, It’s Gino (Perugino) did place in a couple of Group 1 races in his native country, though well beaten by Kamsin and Adlerflug.

He has sired some stakes winners on the flat in Germany, but his better runners have been over hurdles and fences. Lalor, a Grade 1 hurdle winner who was successful at up to Grade 2 level in a bumper and over fences, emerged from his second crop, while Victtorino won a couple of Grade 3 chases in England. Datsalrightgino was another to do well, successful in a Grade 2 novices’ chase. Now, Sir Gino has taken his record as a stallion to a new high.