First Word

Cheltenham pointers

What can we learn from a Festival that saw non-participation by amateurs, smaller field sizes and Irish dominance?

THE BEGINNING OF MARCH was a difficult time for racing, coming on the back of a very difficult year.

The Gordon Elliott photo created a pre-Cheltenham Festival ten days of intense discussion, rumour, conjecture, social media opinion, division and scrutiny.

I have not voiced an opinion, there were enough people from all sides of the debate involving themselves. The only point I would like to make now is that we are responsible for our own actions, and we have to accept and deal with those consequences, whatever it was that led to that photo being published.

The Festival did all that was hoped and more … fantastic competitive racing with top-class horses shining, the light of Rachael Blackmore as bright a beacon for the sport as could have been hoped.

The racing looked fair, with the tactics (mainly from the lady above) winning the races rather than bad falls or unfortunate incidents.

As so hoped by all of us in the sport, The Festival went by without incident on the track; the bad publicity that would have been created by a “difficult” Festival on the back of the Gordon Elliott photo could have done immense damage, in the UK anyway, to the public perception of horseracing.

The racing throughout the week just felt comfortable, the ground was ideal, but maybe also the smaller field sizes helped, and maybe we weren’t watching races such as the Kim Muir or the (Fox)Hunters’ in fear as to just what some of the less experienced jockeys would do.

I am loathe to write this having enjoyed many years of riding as a bad amateur / point-to-point jockey and growing up amidst excitement at home ahead of the amateur events at Cheltenham and Aintree, but maybe there needs to be further examination of the relevancy of those amateur-ridden races in the modern sport of horseracing so under threat from those who are looking for any opportunity to discard it to history.

This year saw reduced field sizes because many owners did not run horses at Cheltenham for social reasons.

Of course, unfancied horses can come through unexpectedly to win races or claim valuable placed prizes, but the races this year were just so straight-forward without alsorans, who perhaps should not be in the race, getting in the way.

Horses can fall however talented they are – just hit replay on Envoi Allen’s race – but if only the really very best are running then the risk chances are reduced.

It also means that horses (any horse who qualifies for an entry at Cheltenham at all is still a talented equine) might be directed to races in which they might have a better chance rather than going for the premier events.

British trainers might also become a little more proactive about persuading owners to run in the handicaps and so work harder at getting one well-handicapped aka the Irish.

A LOOK AT TIMEFORM’S table on page 19 shows just how dominant the Irish NH horses are – of the top 20 chasers, 12 are trained in Ireland, including seven of the top ten.

Of the eight chasers that are UK-based, three of them are ten-year-olds and over.

IT IS a long four days at the Cheltenham Festival – usually caused by excessive socialising – however this year, much like last year, there was opinion change as the days ticked by.

In 2020, that was due to the growing COVID grip on Europe; last year many of the masses who arrived at Prestbury Park had not heard the word pandemic since a history class on the Black Death, by Thursday last year all many wanted to do was head home.

This year it was due to the Blackmore factor.

Ahead of the meeting and over the first day, the wider world media comment regarding racing was still overwhelmingly negative – still bringing up the running of the meeting in 2020, and using the Gordon Elliott photo to show how uncaring the sport is toward its equine athletes.

Through the meeting, the wider media had to reassess its position as it began to realise just what Ms Blackmore was up to; it has been harping on about diversity and equal chances for the last few years, it could hardly sit on its hands now.

The media has been declaring what an inspiration she is for pony-riding teenage girls – she is pretty inspiring for the rest of us, too.

Of the top 21 hurdlers (includes joint rated), 14 are trained in Ireland, including a staggering nine of the top ten.

The reasons for the Irish green blitz are varying and prize-money has been discussed.

It goes a little deeper and perhaps the current British handicapping system needs greater examination. As mentioned by commentator Richard Hoiles on Luck on Sunday it can take a NH horse a long time to have mark dropped by the handicapper.

Has it become so difficult now to get one “well handicapped” in the UK that the avenue is impossible for British trainers and owners to compete against Ireland?

Daily races are run much faster in Britain, does that mean it is more difficult to bring a novice gently through the ranks? Is that taking a toll? Does the poorer prize-money mean that trainers and owners are stepping up horses too quickly, pushing them too early, in order to try and chase a better pot?

Some have said that Irish horses run more frequently and are more “race hardened”; I don’t believe that holds much weight. A quick glance comparing runs against the runners for the leading Irish and British-based trainers shows no difference whatsoever.

Irish trainers are just so cash rich at the moment due to the fact that currently the large-scale owners want to have horses trained in Ireland.

That cash weight of ownership allows them to move quickly for talented horses. A good novice winning in France can be bought for a significant sum by a Willie Mullins-attached owner within half an hour of it crossing the line.

If anyone from the BHA is going to look into this the first port of call is to stop by Cheveley Park Stud or call in to see Rich Ricci and ask why do they prefer to have their top horses in Ireland’?

Is it just down to the financial funding as Irish racing means there is some return on investment? If you are spending north of €300,000 to buy a NH horse then a winning gallop around Gowran Park in maiden hurdle could be worth a handy €15,000, and a mid-range handicap success could be worth €50,000.

But is it deeper than that? Is there a better programme? Is it more of a craic? Are those trainers just better at securing a cash-rich owner to join their ranks?

Once again on Luck on Sunday, Minella Indo’s owner Barry Maloney reported that when he had made some money he was always going to invest in horses to try and find Cheltenham success. How many self-made business men and women are there in the UK with that built-in passion to own top-class NH horses?

While De Bromhead and Mullins won six races each, the remaining Irish-won races were won by “smaller” Irish trainers and ownership entities.

Unlike the UK, there appears to be strength and ownership depth in the Irish NH ownership rank.

Due to the prize-money and the expensive long-term nature of NH ownership are UK owners, who may have once put £20,000 to buying a horse and having in it training with a top 20 NH trainer, turning to the Flat?

And even though British racing gets reproached that it is too focused on The Festival, is that really correct? Irish racing is surely even more about building a horse’s career to get to that meeting in March.

As Rachael Blackmore said on her return to Ireland: “It is all about Cheltenham, and being able to get on the calibre of horse I was on over there.”

Is the criticism that is often levelled at Irish NH racing that it is uncompetitive and that races are often in “two parts” unfounded, if a view is taken that those races are all about producing Festival winners?

And we might be seeing this trend for some years to come yet – as the table left shows, a lot of these leading Irish-based horses are youngsters.

Shishkin aside the British horses are so much older – this dominating Irish success at the top level might be here for a while yet.

WE WILL FINISH WITH THE prize-money discussion and a glance at the trainers’ table reveals the stark differentials in prizemoney earnings.

Current leading British trainer Paul Nicholls is nearing £2 million in earnings having had 570 runners, Dan Skelton is £500,000 down on him from 600 runners and Nicky Henderson’s team has won just over the £1 million from 84 wins and 438 runs.

De Bromhead is now the fourth-leading trainer in the UK, and the next best is a £300,000 drop down to Jonjo O’Neill on £778,000 (63 wins, 423 runs).

In Ireland, Willie Mullins now has prizemoney earnings over €3.5 million (500 runners, similar to Nicholls), Gordon Elliott had 155 wins from over 1,000 runs for €2.8 million.

There are then staggered leaps down to De Bromhead on €1.7 million (88-577), Joseph O’Brien on €990,000, Noel Meade and Gavin Cromwell on the €700,000 and €600,000 marks and then another massive drop to Thomas Mullins on €350,000.

So let’s take the example of a middle-ranking trainer such as Mullins.

He has had 13 wins this season (from 114 runs) to collect that amount of prize-money – conversely in the UK, Neil Mulholland, who has won approximately the same amount in earnings for his owners, has had to have horses run 381 times to win 51 races.