THE Gain Mares’ Final remains one of the highlights of the season, and this year’s series reaches its conclusion at what is always a much-anticipated fixture at Ballynoe next Sunday (March 23rd).

External events have played havoc with the final in recent years, as a combination of Covid-19 and weather has resulted in the final only taking place in two of the last five years.

Following those disruptions, there is a considerable effort being made to re-establish the race this year. The owner of the final winner will once again be awarded a €3,000 bonus, but there’s an exciting new incentive for 2025.

Now in its 35th year, the upcoming series final will be closely linked to the Easter Monday mares’ point-to-point bumper this time around.

The winning horse at Ballynoe will not only receive a free entry to the Easter Monday contest at Cork racecourse, but if that horse is able to go on and double up on April 21st, Gain Equine Nutrition will offer an additional €3,000 bonus.

That will bring the total bonus pot up for grabs to €6,000, in addition to the prize money already on offer for the mares’ point-to-point bumper itself.

Enticing

All combined, it ensures that connections are being set a really enticing challenge, particularly with Easter falling late this year, which leaves a four-week gap between the two races.

That is not always the case, thanks to the ever-changing Easter date, and it is likely the reason behind why few series winners have contested both races.

In the last 20 years, the 2019 victor, Dime A Dozen, is the only winner of the Ballynoe final, who has gone on to contest that mares’ point-to-point bumper. Shark Hanlon’s charge finished a 15-length third in Mallow, before then also going close in a similar event at Tipperary.

However, it is possible to win on both cards at Ballynoe and Mallow, as Mikey O’Connor’s Make It Better proved in 2011. She followed up her victory in that year’s Gain Mares’ Final by emphatically winning the mares’ hunter chase in Mallow by 17 lengths.

The coming weeks will tell all as to whether the carrot being dangled to connections entices them to take up the challenge.

New bonus

“We are incredibly proud to continue our support of the Gain Mares’ Series, which has become one of the most important races in the point-to-point season,” John Hore, Business Manager for Gain Equine Nutrition, stated.

“The new bonus for the mares’ bumper at Cork racecourse is an exciting addition, ensuring that the competition remains at the highest level. Our commitment to supporting the grassroots of the industry is stronger than ever, and we look forward to another thrilling final. Best of luck to all connections involved!”

To qualify for the Gain Mares’ Series final, mares must have started the season with their maiden status intact, and have gone on to finish in first, second, third or fourth at any point-to-point fixture throughout the season.

Separately, there will also be a €1,000 bonus for the winning owner of the five-year-old and upwards mares’ maiden, run as the James O’Keeffe Memorial, on the Ballynoe card.

That particular prize boost is being put forward by the O’Keeffe family. Entries for both races at Ballynoe close on Tuesday.

Point-to-point ratings

ACTION on the weekend preceding the Cheltenham Festival is renowned for throwing up more than its fair share of future track stars and, from the outset of last weekend’s racing, that looked to be the case once again.

Katkoriko (94+) kickstarted it in style in the Kirkistown opener on Saturday, when making all of the running on debut. He appears to possess a high cruising speed, as he was able to stretch the field along the back straight. Maintaining that pace pressure from the front, he lengthened clear, with the race in safe keeping some way out.

At Nenagh, Le Frimeur (92+) made a notable error five-out, but having overcome that, he was steadily introduced into the race under patient tactics over the next half-mile, before picking off the protagonists in between the final two fences to see it out best of all. Both four-year-old races at Lingstown on Sunday were won by horses who had raced from the front. In a steadily-run four-year-old mares’ maiden, Sapphos Word (84+) made a race-winning move three-out, and that swiftly caught her rivals flat-footed, as they struggled to play catch-up from that point.

Keep believing

That was also the point in the race that If You Believe (93+) kicked on and, once left clear by the departure of the challenging Gaelic Rover at the penultimate fence, he was able to kick again in the home straight to win snugly.

There were just three runners in the four-year-old geldings’ maiden at Castlelands, making the race quite tactical, with a slow pace for much of the race. Midnight Jukebox (90+) looked best suited to that, as he had the most potent turn of foot entering the straight, but his lead was run down significantly in the closing stages.

There was a lot to unpick in the mares equivalent in the age group, as it proved to be particularly dramatic. Burds Of A Feather had a share of the lead when exiting two-out, an incident which hampered the eventual winner Caoimhe (81+), whilst leaving Dance Again with the race seemingly at her mercy.

However, she then made a bad blunder at the last, which allowed Caoimhe to come through and win going away. At Belclare, Smokehouse (91+) was left in front with a mile to race. Having had a five-length lead turning in, his advantage was whittled down late on, although the visual impression suggested there was more to come.