Cheltenham Festival

Venturing fearlessly into jumps territory this week, this correspondent would never be so bold as to offer tips or predictions for the Cheltenham Festival. There is only one safe bet to be had, and that is that Keeneland's indefatigable European representative Ed Prosser will be up with the larks to cook the finest Full English for his housemates, and at some stage over the next four days will serenade us with his inimitable version of Rhinestone Cowboy. The Prosser baritone is certainly much easier on the ears than the newly...

Five years ago this week, Katie Walsh took Relegate (Ire) from going nowhere to the Cheltenham Festival winner's enclosure when galvanising the mare to come from last to first to take the Champion Bumper in pulsating fashion.  Little did we know at the time, but that Cheltenham success was to be Walsh's last, as she bowed out on a winner at her beloved Punchestown Festival the following month. A lot has changed in those five years since. Along with her husband Ross O'Sullivan, a prominent trainer in his own right...

   Jamie Codd is an amateur jockey in name only. One of the finest National Hunt riders that Ireland has ever produced, Codd can count 10 Cheltenham Festival winners to his name, and has strong claims of adding to his tally next week.    But it's not just about the action on the track with Codd. In his role with Tattersalls Ireland, Codd will put in many hours behind the scenes to ensure the smooth running of the Cheltenham Sale, of which Gold Cup livewire Bravemansgame and Brown Advisory Novice...

No shortage of hard work and bundles of perseverance lie behind Johnny Collins's achievement in turning his Brown Island Stables into one of the finest nurseries of equine talent there is. It is all the more remarkable in that he achieved this with no racing background and just his own eye and pocket to get the whole thing off the ground. Competitive and ambitious, the 46-year-old counts several million euros worth of stock at his County Cork base, which is the culmination of over 15 years producing top-class horses over...

The previously announced new whip regulations will go into force on Monday, but the way penalties are calculated has been "marginally adjusted" according to the British Horseracing Authority (BHA). Following feedback from jockeys, there were further amendments to the rules, and the bedding in period for jumps racing was extended by a week. Under the new regulations, use of the whip in the forehand position will be allowed, with the BHA having reversed a previous decision to ban it after riders' objections. However, use of the whip has been reduced...

Kenny Alexander's dual Champion Hurdler Honeysuckle (GB) (Sulamani {Ire}) will make her swansong in the G1 Close Brothers Mares' Hurdle at next month's Cheltenham Festival. The 9-year-old was beaten for the first time in 16 starts when tackling the Hatton's Grace Hurdle at Fairyhouse in December, in which she was third. She went on to finish runner-up to State Man (Ire) in last weekend's Irish Champion Hurdle, a race she had won for the three previous seasons. A 12-time Grade 1 victrix, Honeysuckle is also a treble winner at the...

Ian Kellit, the joint-breeder of Lossiemouth (Fr), a short-priced Triumph Hurdle favourite who is expected to extend her unbeaten record to four for Willie Mullins and Paul Townend at the Dublin Racing Festival on Saturday, has revealed that he was totally unaware that a jumps filly could be so valuable before the gorgeous grey came along.  Lossiemouth bolted up in the Prix Geographie Hurdle at Auteuil for Yannick Fouin on debut, at which time she was part-owned by Kellit, the Scottish native who has resided in France for over 30...

Is it just me or should France be known as the bloodstock land of opportunity? This is the country that saw Wootton Bassett (GB) and Walk In The Park (Ire) pull themselves up by the bootstraps after entering the stud book at relatively modest sums. There are few serious racing nations that provide as much of a chance for a stallion to flourish than France does. Take Kauto Star (Fr), the greatest staying chaser of the modern era, as an example. He hailed from the largely unheralded Village Star (Fr)...

No trainer in Ireland has farmed France for top-class talent quite like Willie Mullins has in recent times. Superstars Hurricane Fly (Ire), Douvan (Fr), Un De Sceaux (Fr), Vroum Vroum Mag (Fr) and Benie Des Dieux (Fr) are all a product of that hugely successful resource.  It seems as though not one week goes by where Mullins fails to unleash a leading French prospect, which was evident at Clonmel on Tuesday when Ireland's dominant National Hunt trainer sent out Night And Day (GB) and Gaelic Warrior (Ger) to record emphatic...

Widely regarded as one of the best dual-purpose trainers in Ireland, Charles Byrnes has taken over the training of classy Flat stayer and 2021 G1 Irish St Leger scorer Sonnyboyliston (Ire) (Power {GB}), who could make his debut for his new connections in the G2 Dubai Gold Cup on Mar. 25. Sonnyboyliston has not been seen since finishing second in a valuable handicap at Riyadh almost a year ago for Johnny Murtagh, who guided the gelding to six career wins, including an epic in the valuable Sky Bet Ebor before...

Sean Doyle pulls Monbeg Park (Ire) (Walk In The Park {Ire}) out of his stable and says proudly, "That's the type of horse the likes of Willie Mullins and Eddie O'Leary want to buy."  It begs the question, why is Monbeg Park lining out for Doyle and not any of the powerhouse stables in Sunday's G1 Lawlor's Of Naas Novice Hurdle? After all, Doyle has earned a reputation for selling future stars rather than racing them and can count a Cheltenham Festival-winning graduate to his roll of honour almost every...

A large part of the fun that comes with following racing and the bloodstock game is predicting the future. Who will win the Derby? Who might top the Orby Sale? What freshman sires are here to stay and which ones will drift into the abyss? Well, we've looked deep into the TDN Europe crystal ball for 2023 to see if we can come up with the answers to the burning questions for the year ahead. Enjoy! January If you think he had a good Christmas, wait until you see how...