Officials at Lingfield have admitted they will need “the best of the forecast” after calling an inspection for 8.30am on Wednesday ahead of day one of the track’s Winter Million Festival on Friday.

The Surrey circuit is due to play host to a quality three-day fixture, with high-class jumps cards on Friday and Sunday sandwiching a morning all-weather meeting on Saturday.

The Grade Two Lightning Novices’ Chase and the £100,000 Weatherbys Cheltenham Festival Betting Guide Hurdle are due to take place on Friday – but with parts of the track frozen on Tuesday afternoon and further sub-zero temperatures forecast, the card appears to be under serious threat.

“We got down to minus 7C last night and we have frost under the fleece that we used to cover the whole track on Saturday,” said clerk of the course Stephanie Wethered.

“We’ve called an inspection following that, and with the ongoing freezing temperatures this week. We’re forecast minus 2C tonight and then minus 5C on Wednesday and Thursday night.

“We’ll need the best of the forecast for Friday’s fixture.”

Temperatures are due to rise later in the week, giving Wethered optimism that the weekend action will go ahead as scheduled.

She added: “The weather is going to change for Saturday and Sunday’s racing, hopefully.”

The current cold snap will have a major impact on the jumps racing programme across the country in the coming days, with Tuesday’s National Hunt meetings at Chepstow and Plumpton both abandoned due to frozen ground.

Hopes of any racing over obstacles taking place on Wednesday hinge on a precautionary 8am check at Southwell, with the team at Newbury making an early decision to draw stumps on Tuesday afternoon ahead of their scheduled fixture.

Thursday’s meetings at Newcastle and Wincanton have already been called off, while Fairyhouse’s card on the same day is subject to a noon inspection on Wednesday.

Brendan Sheridan, IHRB clerk of the course, said on Tuesday morning: “The track is currently unfit for racing due to overnight frost.

“Parts of the track are frozen following two nights of low temperatures, with last night getting down to at least minus 3C.

“We don’t have the most favourable forecast with temperatures only rising to a high of 2C for a couple of hours today before dropping again tonight back to minus 3C.

“In light of that forecast, and due to the current ground conditions, we will have a 12pm inspection on Wednesday to assess the prospects of racing here at Fairyhouse on Thursday.”

Harry Fry is keeping his fingers crossed Lingfield’s Winter Million Racing Festival beats the cold snap to give Love Envoi the opportunity to get back on the winning trail.

Despite finishing second to Not So Sleepy on her seasonal reappearance in the rescheduled Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Sandown last month, Fry admits his star mare’s performance was laboured.

The Dorset handler is now preparing the eight-year-old to take on the boys in the Weatherbys Cheltenham Festival Betting Guide Hurdle and is hopeful she will be sharper for her comeback run.

“If you’d said when they passed the stands the first time that she’d finish second (in the Fighting Fifth), we’d have jumped at that result, as from the word go she never looked to be travelling or jumping,” Fry told Sky Sports Racing.

“It looked like she was going round with the handbrake on and Johnny (Burke) said it felt like that, so for her to get herself involved between the last two and hang on for second was not a bad result in the end, but obviously it wasn’t her very best run and we’re hoping to take a big step forward.”

Love Envoi’s main target is the Mares’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, in which she finished second to the retiring Honeysuckle last season.

Fry added: “The whole season is geared around going back for the Mares’ Hurdle. She was just ready to get started in the Fighting Fifth, she looked a bit ring-rusty and she was coming back from an injury that she picked up at Punchestown.

“I’m pleased to say she seems to have taken a step forward at home in her work and her schooling, so we’re hoping to see that on the track.”

The trainer is also beginning to formulate future plans for two of his other stable stars in Boothill and Gidleigh Park.

Boothill will look to bounce back from a fall in Kempton’s Desert Orchid Chase early next month, with a trip to Leopardstown for the Dublin Chase or the Game Spirit Chase at Newbury his two options.

“He’s absolutely fine, schooled on Friday and schooled again this morning, just to give him a bit of confidence again after an uncharacteristic mistake,” said Fry.

“Jumping has always been a real strong point, but even the best make mistakes sometimes. The main thing is he’s all okay and we can make plans for him again moving forward.

“The entries (for the Dublin Racing Festival) closed last week and we thought why not give ourselves the option and have a look? You’ve also got the Game Spirit the following weekend at Newbury.

“Hopefully, the Clarence House goes ahead this weekend and you’ve got the two heavyweights in the division (El Fabiolo and Jonbon) due to take each other on, so we thought we’d have a look at those two options in early February and make our minds up.

“It would be great to go over to Ireland, but you want to do so knowing you can be competitive, as it’s a pretty tough environment to go and compete in. We’ve done it in the past and with the right horse we’re prepared to do it again. We’ll see nearer the time before making a final decision.”

Gidleigh Park has been hugely impressive in winning a bumper and twice over hurdles for the team and he is set to have his sights raised in a Grade Two novice event at Cheltenham next weekend.

Fry added: “He has obviously impressed so far this season, he’s unbeaten to date and we’re looking forward to hopefully taking him to Cheltenham on Trials Day.

“He’s certainly one that gets us excited in the morning and has schooled well under Jonathan Burke today. We’re looking forward to seeing him step up in grade next weekend.”

Members of Old Gold Racing appear to have a trip to Cheltenham to get excited about with Apple Away – but connections are yet to agree on which race she will contest at the Festival following her Warwick second on Saturday.

Trained by Lucinda Russell, the Grade One-winning hurdler continued her education over fences when stepped up to Grade Two level for Warwick’s Hampton Novices’ Chase.

Although ultimately no match for an on-song Grey Dawning, Apple Away bravely plugged on once headed to finish a fair runner-up, leaving her team contemplating their next moves.

Russell is in agreement that Apple Away deserves to take her chance at Prestbury Park in the spring and is eyeing the three-mile Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase, for which she is now as big as 33-1 with some bookmakers.

However, the trainer’s partner and assistant Peter Scudamore appears to have other ideas and is keen to consider stretching out to three-mile-six for the National Hunt Chase, or even racing in handicap company at the March showpiece.

“I think with hindsight, it is a very quick track at Warwick and, as Patrick Wadge said afterwards, maybe she needs a stiffer track and a step up in trip,” said Old Gold CEO Ed Seyfried.

“Lucinda said she could think of a track that is very testing and undulating and when I asked did that begin with ‘C’, she said yes.

“So, we are very much headed for Cheltenham and Lucinda is still very much headed for the Brown Advisory, whereas Peter Scudamore is headed for every other race at Cheltenham apart from the Brown Advisory.

“He is looking at the Ultima, Scu is also thinking about maybe the Mares’ Chase and even the three-mile-six amateur novice, so there will be massive discussions at Arlary and we will be told what is going to happen.”

Seyfried went on: “With a horse like Apple, you hope you have the best horse in the world, and she didn’t get found out, but she made a couple of rookie errors jumping and this track clearly suited Grey Dawning better.

“The track and going was too quick for her and we came up against a better horse on the day. We have met Grey Dawning three times and won the time he came down, so maybe he is super special?

“The plan was here, then Ascot, then Cheltenham – and given the going here won’t have taken too much out of her, it could be that they think ‘let’s have another race’.

“She will have learnt a lot (at Warwick) and those five fences come thick and fast – it’s a proper test.”

Maughreen has bounced out of her stunning debut win in great shape but future plans for the exciting mare have still to be discussed.

Out of an unraced half-sister to 2015 Champion Hurdle winner Faugheen, there was always going to be plenty of attention on her when she hit the track.

She did not let members of the Closutton Racing Club down with a perfect performance at Punchestown, cruising clear under Patrick Mullins to win by 11 lengths.

Like Faugheen, she is trained by Willie Mullins – and James Fenton, who manages the syndicate, is happy to leave future targets up to the champion trainer.

“From day one, she was always professional. She’d been working well at home but had never shown us as much as that,” said Fenton.

“There’s never been any fuss with her, she’s been very straightforward. Obviously, she’s by Walk In The Park and she has the size, scope and pedigree to match.

“I pay a lot of heed on the cross of the stallion to the dam’s sire. Her dam’s sire is Goldmark and that cross works for me.

“I actually didn’t know what her pedigree was; once I like an individual, I like them and I just knew she was a Walk In The Park. When I looked into her pedigree, it was a bonus.

“Genuinely, I normally leave the planning up to Willie. I’d be up for keeping her to her own sex.

“There’s a lot of talk about Cheltenham but we had a very good bumper mare two years ago in Ashroe Diamond and she fits a similar profile for me (went on to win at Aintree). Ultimately, Willie will make the decision and we’ll discuss it over the next few weeks.”

Crucially, Maughreen has taken her first race in her stride.

Fenton said: “She’s come out of her race well, they are very happy with her and again, she’s just been very professional. There’s a lot of valuable mares’ bumpers and we wouldn’t be over-racing her this year in the hope she comes back good and strong next year.

“There’s 100 shares in the syndicate. Every year, we throw the few quid that we make into a dividend and start from scratch again.

“A couple came over from England yesterday and there’s great camaraderie in the club, over the last few years we’re working at a strike-rate of about 40 per cent and everyone is really enjoying it.

“Last year, we had Shewearsitwell, she was third in the Grade One but was coming towards the end of her career and I just had to say we might be a bit slow now as I needed to rebuild the stock.

“In fairness, they understood and were patient. We’ve seven mares in training and hopefully they’ll all be out in the next few months.”

Fenton was, though, keen to clear up where Maughreen’s name came from.

“There’s a lot of people think Maughreen is named after Maureen Mullins but that’s not the case, I said to her I wouldn’t like that pressure on her,” said Fenton.

“She’s named after a next-door neighbour of mine called Maureen O’Brien from Castlelyons.

“It was an emotional day for me yesterday, as she was like my mother growing up and she died a couple of years ago.

“I always told her someday I would have a horse named after her and her favourite horse was Faugheen and it just happened the way it worked out.”

Cervical cancer charities are set to receive the support of Old Gold Racing as they syndicate a horse donated by breeder Peter Pritchard in memory of his daughter Katie.

The horse in question is the four-year-old filly Katie Sunny Dancer, bred by Pritchard out of his broodmare Earcomesannie and by the stallion Passing Glance.

Katie, who the filly is named after, was an NHS nurse manager and a mother of two who was only 37 when she lost her life to cervical cancer in June 2023.

Her family are keen to raise funds for two cervical cancer charities, The Lady Garden Foundation and Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust, and honour her memory in partnership with the successful Old Gold Racing syndication company.

Pritchard has offered his home-bred mare for the Katie’s Legacy Syndicate and it is hoped the initiative will raise £40,000 to be split between the two charities.

Alex Hales will train the mare, who is yet to run, and the funds gathered will go towards research and support for those diagnosed with cervical cancer.

In addition to that, Old Gold Racing have pledged £9,000 of the fee they earn from creating and managing the syndicate to The Myton Hospice, who cared for Katie in her final days

Peter Pritchard said: “While nothing can replace the void Katie’s passing has left behind, we want to honour her life and her story by spreading awareness about this deadly disease, which so many disregard the early signs of.

“By combining Katie’s love of horses with our ambition to make a difference, we hope Katie’s Sunny Dancer will contribute to the advancement of research into cervical cancer, so others do not have to go through Katie’s ordeal.”

Jenny Halpern Prince MBE, co-founder and chair of The Lady Garden Foundation, added: “We are so moved to have been selected as the beneficiaries of this charitable drive – especially upon hearing Katie’s tragic story.

“In the UK, around 3,100 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year and it’s the most common cancer in women under 35 years old.

“It is so important that this cause gets as much funding as possible and we are incredibly grateful to Peter and his family for helping us on our mission”.

Louise Newton, trustee at Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust, was equally grateful for the support, saying: “We are so very saddened to hear the devastating news that Katie lost her life to this cancer, as did my wonderful friend Jo, 25 years ago.

“We are honoured to be part of celebrating Katie’s life and we are dedicated to improving outcomes for people like her and her family. Our mission for the last 25 years has been to support and inform all of the many women who are diagnosed with cervical cancer every year in the UK.

“Our vision for the future is of a day when cervical cancer is a thing of the past. This initiative will help us to work towards that goal.”

Anyone wishing to find out more information about the Katie’s Legacy Syndicate can head to https://oldgoldracing.com/horses/katie-sunny-dancer

John Quinn is eyeing further top-level success with Highfield Princess after confirming his superstar sprinting mare will stay in training this year.

The seven-year-old memorably completed a Group One hat-trick in 2022 with wins in the Prix Maurice de Gheest, Nunthorpe and Flying Five Stakes before rounding off her campaign with a fourth-placed finish at the Breeders’ Cup.

Owner John Fairley sportingly elected to bring his pride and joy back for another season last year and was duly rewarded, as Highfield Princess was placed twice at Royal Ascot and blitzed her rivals at Goodwood before bagging a fourth Group One success in the Prix de l’Abbaye at ParisLongchamp.

She could only finish sixth on her most recent outing in Hong Kong, but while connections could quite easily have retired the daughter of Night Of Thunder for breeding purposes in 2024, Quinn is delighted to report her racing career will continue.

“Highfield Princess is going to stay in training this year and I’m delighted,” he told the PA news agency on Tuesday morning.

“She retained her enthusiasm all year (last year) and keeps doing it. She won another Group One, was placed in three Group Ones and won a Group Two, so it’s not as if she had one outstanding run and four or five runs below par.

“She had one disappointing run in the Curragh when she slipped, apart from that she was second in the Duke of York, placed twice at Royal Ascot, fantastic at Glorious Goodwood, second in the Nunthorpe and put up a tremendous performance in the Abbaye.

“She ran creditably in Hong Kong from a wide draw and the owners have decided they’d like to race her again this year, which is great.”

While Highfield Princess is currently enjoying a well-earned break, Quinn has already started to formulate plans for her comeback.

He added: “She’s having a break now and will be back in (training) on February 1.

“I think she’ll kick off in the Duke of York again. It might be cold and snowy this morning, but it will soon come round, and then we’ll aim for Royal Ascot.”

Charlie Deutsch feels Royale Pagaille will need to produce a performance akin to his Betfair Chase success if he is to win the Sky Bet Peter Marsh Chase for a third time on Saturday – should Haydock beat the freeze.

The Venetia Williams-trained 10-year-old came up with a career-best display last time out when winning at the highest level for the first time, beating Bravemansgame in the process.

That was his fourth win at Haydock, and he was also second in the 2021 Betfair Chase, so his love for the course is evident, but Deutsch is well aware that off a mark of 166, he will be giving lumps of weight away.

“I’ve not sat on him since the last day I rode him, but every day from what I see on the gallops he looks good and well. I’m looking forward to getting back on board him again,” said the jockey.

“You would have to be optimistic about his chances if the meeting is on, as we know he likes the track and hopefully he is in the same form as he was in the Betfair Chase.

“This will still be a test and take a bit of winning, so he needs to be in good form, as he is going to be giving a lot of weight away.

“I’d be very surprised at his age if he gets better again but, although it is easy to say now he has won his Grade One, on Betfair Chase Day he definitely felt at his best.

“It would be great if he could win this for a third time, and it would be a similar performance to his one in the Betfair Chase, as it takes a very good horse to carry that sort of weight to victory.”

Seven-time Paralympic champion Hannah Cockroft feels it is time for the world to “move on” from London 2012 nostalgia and stage another Games worthy of the athletes.

The wheelchair racer won T34 100m and 200m gold in the capital, a Paralympics still widely viewed as the most successful in the history of the now nearly 64-year-old event.

Cockroft, also a 14-time world champion, is optimistic the Paris 2024 Paralympics have a chance of setting a new bar, overtaking a London Games that, without sacrificing any of their considerable significance, can now also be viewed from the perspective of stalled progress.

Asked if this summer could finally establish a new exemplar, Cockroft told the PA news agency: “I hope so. I’d love that. Even though I’m so proud that I got to compete at London 2012, and I get to sit there and say that I competed at the best Paralympic Games ever, it’s also kind of embarrassing saying that an event that happened 12 years ago was the best one of that event ever.

“From what I’ve seen, the support the athletes are getting, the support I got this year, is bigger than what I had going into London, so this year is really big.

“We’re seeing big brands get involved, ticket sales are going really well, I think Paris could be huge if they do it right, and so far they’re doing it pretty well.”

Last week, three-time British-Canadian Paralympic medallist Stef Reid took to social media to express her disappointment after seeing the Olympics promoted on a list of 2024’s big events to watch, while the Paralympics were not mentioned.

Though Reid’s concern stemmed from one particular article, the omission is by no means an isolated incident. At best, Cockroft observed, “people group them together and say them as one word, ‘OlympicsandParalympics’, or they just use Olympics and assume it covers it all.”

She added: “As Paralympians we’re so proud of the movement we’ve built, so it is frustrating when that gets forgotten about and when that doesn’t get highlighted. We’re at a point where so many Paralympic athletes are household names.

“People actually know who we are and what we do, and we need to celebrate that because we’re actually one of the only countries in the world that treat our disabled athletes that way, and it’s such a privileged place to be that we need to shout about it more and celebrate it more.”

‘Hurricane Hannah’ will defend her London 2012 T34 100m gold for a third time in Paris as well as the back-to-back 800m T34 medals she won in Rio and Tokyo.

In February, Cockroft set four new world records in three days, some of which she has even already since broken.

Gold in Paris will set Cockroft on the road to an as-yet elusive and coveted feat – holding world, European, Paralympic and Commonwealth titles at the same time.

The 31-year-old, who has swapped both coach and chair since Tokyo, is certainly showing no signs of stopping, but when the time does come hopes she, like London 2012 and perhaps Paris 2024, has set an example for what happens when disabled children are dared to dream.

She added: “I just want to open up opportunities for people. I was told people like me didn’t play sport.

“I hate that we’re in 2024 and I still meet kids that are being told they can’t do sport because they have a disability. Sport is for everyone.

“We need more people bending the rules and not telling people what they can’t do, but telling them what they can.”

:: Dreams is proud to be the Official Sleep Partner for Team GB, ParalympicsGB and Special Olympics GB.

There will be no National Hunt racing in Britain on Tuesday after scheduled fixtures at both Chepstow and Plumpton were abandoned due to frozen ground.

An 8am inspection was called ahead of racing at Chepstow, but with temperatures dipping just below minus 6C overnight officials were able to make an early call.

It was a similar story at Plumpton, where frost sheets deployed across the whole courses were not enough to save the day.

An inspection was scheduled for 8.30am, but the decision was made at around 6am to draw stumps, with temperatures in Sussex also getting down to minus 6C.

Thursday’s jumps meeting at Newcastle has already been called off following a Tuesday morning inspection, while Fairyhouse’s card on the same day is subject to a noon inspection on Wednesday, with the course declared unfit for racing on Tuesday morning.

Brendan Sheridan, IHRB Clerk of the Course, said: “Ahead of declarations this morning for racing on Thursday, the track is currently unfit for racing due to overnight frost.

“Parts of the track are frozen following two nights of low temperatures, with last night getting down to at least minus 3C.

“We don’t have the most favourable forecast with temperatures only rising to a high of 2C for a couple of hours today before dropping again tonight back to minus 3C.

“In light of that forecast and due to the current ground conditions, we will have a 12pm inspection on Wednesday to assess the prospects of racing here at Fairyhouse on Thursday.”

Bahamian Olympic and World Championship 100m hurdles finalist Devynne Charlton opened her 2024 season with a 60m hurdles win at the UK Rod McCravy Memorial in Louisville on January 12 and 13.

Charlton, who took 60m hurdles silver at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade in 2022, won the event in 7.88 on Saturday ahead of Masai Russell (7.89) and UCF senior Rayniah Jones (8.09).

This was after she produced times of 7.99 in the heats and 7.98 in the semi-finals.

Charlton, who also won 100m hurdles silver at the 2022 Commonwealth games in Birmingham, also ran one heat of the 60m, running 7.38 to win heat eight.

Reggae Girlz midfielder Kiki Van Zanten will get to showcase her talent in this season’s NWSL after being selected by the Houston Dash 21st overall at the NWSL College Draft on Saturday.

Houston traded $120,000 in allocation money to Utah Royals FC in exchange for the No. 21 overall pick and selected Van Zanten.

The midfielder scored 27 goals and tallied nine assists in 95 appearances for the Fighting Irish.

She helped Notre Dame reach the NCAA tournament four times and reached the semifinals of the ACC Women’s Soccer Tournament in 2022. 

Internationally, Van Zanten made her debut for the Reggae Girlz against Bermuda in a CONCACAF Women’s World Cup Qualifier in February 2022.

Van Zanten was also a member of Jamaica’s history-making squad at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

In total, she has one goal in nine appearances for Jamaica.

 

Last year’s Dubai World Cup runner-up Algiers has been retired from racing.

Trained by Simon and Ed Crisford, he improved from winning a handicap at York in October 2022 to be beaten only by the Japanese winner Ushba Tesoro just six months later in one of the richest races in the world.

The Shamardal gelding excelled on dirt, winning two rounds of the Maktoum Challenge before his World Cup effort.

Just touched off in a Grade Three at Woodbine on his only outing since, he had been thought to be all set for another Dubai Carnival.

But in a statement on X (formerly Twitter), Simon Crisford said: “Unfortunately, Algiers is not showing the same sparkle in his work and we have decided to retire him.

“He was a very consistent horse who loved Meydan. He showed his brilliance in Rounds 1 and 2 of the Maktoum Challenge before running a close second in the Dubai World Cup.

“He will now enjoy a happy retirement and I would like to thank his owners Sultan Ali and Hamdan bin Sultan Ali Alsabousi for their support.”

Junior Sinclair won the Lasco Food Drink Emerging Player award at the 2023 Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League, but he made his T20 debut in 2022. He had to wait for his second game for the Guyana Amazon Warriors, against the Barbados Royals. to claim his first wicket. A muted celebration followed his claiming of the wicket of Rahkeem Cornwall. It was when he dismissed Kyle Mayers that we saw Sinclair celebrate with a remarkably athletic flip. 

“That started back home,” Sinclair says. “Growing up in the countryside, in Berbice, we were always playing cricket in the streets, backyard cricket. It was a very competitive home with my brothers and family. When there was no school and you had free time, it was cricket.  And so, we would go on the ball field to play cricket and when you finish you get tired, there is a lake nearby we would go and swim and you practice those flips there. And I thought why not try it in the CPL.” 

A tall off-spinner, Sinclair is 22 and has performed well enough to make it into the West Indies Emerging team that took on Ireland in 50 over games recently, and he relished the chance to represent the region. 

“I always wanted to put on that maroon. It was good, definitely a learning experience for me. I learned a lot, the coaching was very helpful. I was trying to get as much as I can while I was over there working with the coaches on all aspects of my game.” 

Sinclair was just 12 years old when the first CPL match took place, and he has always wanted to be part of the Amazon Warriors setup, so getting to represent his home franchise is a dream come true. 

“Growing up I was wanting to be a part of the Warriors team. I always want to be here, my style of game, and also the format. It is great that I could actually be a part of such a franchise and the CPL setup. The CPL gave me a call for the West Indies Emerging team earlier this month, so it has played a significant part.”

Having been a Warriors fan for so many years, Sinclair describes being part of the team that won the title in 2023 as “surreal.”

“Prior to me getting into this squad I was always looking forward to that championship moment for the Warriors. From the inception in 2013, Guyana was regarded as one of the most consistent franchises but never place hands on that trophy.  To actually be a part of that team that won it for the first time, that was a dream come true. When I get home after the tournament, reflecting back on it, it was like “wow”, it's such a beautiful thing to actually be a part of that team.

“It is a very, very, friendly environment. Everybody is so loving and camaraderie between everybody. So, you know, it's very good. I enjoy every moment, every second of it.” 

Sinclair is full of praise for everyone involved in the triumphant Warriors team, but he picks out the captain, Imran Tahir, as someone who has played a big part in this year’s success and in terms of helping him with his career. 

“Imran Tahir is someone you can approach. We had a lot of talks and he asked me questions and he tried to pick my brain and see where I'm at and stuff like that. He has a very outgoing personality which I love. You could go up to him, he is like a father figure. He makes it so easy to chat to him. He's willing to share his knowledge and makes you feel welcome.” 

Sinclair has been part of the Amazon Warriors squad as a Lasco Emerging Player and won the award for the best youngster at the 2023 tournament.  He says the Emerging Player programme at the CPL is important to young cricketers like him. This ensures that there is a minimum of 30 appearances across the tournament for the 12 Emerging Players. 

“It's very good, it gives us as youngsters a good platform to rub shoulders with senior guys in the region and international guys. You could pick their brain and try to implement stuff from their game into your game. As a youngster it is all about development and I saw that as a big step, a big part of my development, so I think it's very good inclusion. In my view it as a great opportunity. I saw it as an opportunity for me to showcase my talent.” 

 

Maughreen – a mare out of a half-sister to the brilliant 2015 Champion Hurdle winner Faugheen – made a most impressive racecourse debut at Punchestown.

Trained like Faugheen by Willie Mullins, the five-year-old was sent off the 1-2 favourite in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares Flat Race and the result was never in any doubt.

Kept wide throughout by Patrick Mullins, it was not until the field straightened up for home that Maughreen gave an inkling of what she could do.

The moment she was asked she immediately picked up and without any real effort from the saddle, she had shot 11 lengths clear of Harrys Annie.

Maughreen was swiftly cut in the Champion Bumper market by Paddy Power to 10-1 from 20s.

Patrick Mullins said: “She was very impressive. She was very professional, settled great and quickened up lovely. She handled the ground well.

“Her work was good, but that is probably even better than what she was doing at home. With that pedigree the owners are entitled to get more than a bit excited.

“We’ll go for black-type bumpers and everything is on the table. The DRF (Dublin Racing Festival) might come a bit soon and there is Fairyhouse, Punchestown and Aintree. I think she is entitled to take her chance.”

Maughreen completed a double on the day for the champion trainer, who also took the opening Bet Victor Proud To Support Irish Racing Maiden Hurdle with Highwind.

The juvenile effectively had to win the race twice, as with the race seemingly in the bag he made a hash of the final flight.

It was to his credit that when Sean O’Keeffe asked him again he still had plenty left and the 6-4 favourite beat Pigeon House by two and three-quarter lengths.

The winner was cut to 16-1 from 25s for the Triumph Hurdle by Betfair.

“It wasn’t without a scare, but he has a nice engine and a bit of class. He did it nicely at the finish,” said O’Keeffe.

“He knuckled at the back of the second-last and the same at the last. He went and won his race before doing that at the last but once they came to him, he picked up well again.

“He’s a laid-back horse and stays well. He’s a horse with a nice future and there will be plenty of improvement in him.”

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