Intriguing rematch on the cards at Fairyhouse Winter Festival
First and second in the race a year ago, Lossiemouth and Teahupoo are set for an intriguing rematch in the Grade 1 Bar One Racing Hatton's Grace Hurdle on the second day of the Fairyhouse Winter Festival on Sunday, November 30.
The Gordon Elliott-trained Teahupoo was out to become the fourth horse after Solerina, Apple’s Jade and Honeysuckle to win three consecutive renewals of the race but his hat-trick bid came up short when losing out to Willie Mullins’ star, subsequently the winner of Cheltenham’s Grade 1 Mares’ Hurdle and the Grade 1 Aintree Hurdle. If going a place better this time, Teahupoo would also join Limestone Lad as a three-time winner after his victories in 1999, 2001 and 2002.
Teahupoo, which went on to take the runner-up spot in the Stayers’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival before gaining a season-ending Grade 1 success at Punchestown, could be joined in the Bar One Racing Hatton's Grace Hurdle by his stable companions The Yellow Clay, Wodhooh and Ndaawi, winner of the Galway Hurdle.
If anything, champion trainer Mullins has a stronger team of his own to call upon with the likes of State Man, Ballyburn, Irancy and Jade De Grugy all featuring among an overall entry for the race of 18.
The Solerina and Limestone Lad colours of the Bowe family could be carried this time by the Harry Kelly-trained Glen Kiln, a handicap hurdle winner at the Fairyhouse Easter Festival in April and successful again at Punchestown last month after a luckless defeat at Tipperary previously.
The 14 entries for the Grade 1 Bar One Racing Drinmore Novice Chase are headed by Gordon Elliott’s Brighterdaysahead. She was quite the star over hurdles, adding to significant novice success when landing the Grade 1 Morgiana Hurdle and a spectacular win at the Leopardstown Christmas Festival last year.
Elliott could also call upon Romeo Coolio, the impressive winner of a beginners' chase at Down Royal last weekend, the more experienced Pied Piper, already a three-time winner over fences and Wingmen, placed in Grade 1 novice hurdles at Naas and the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown last season.
Willie Mullins has a squad of five to choose from with the Scottish Grand National scorer Captain Cody, Grade 3 winners Gold Dancer and Westport Cove plus You Oughta Know and Blizzard Of Oz entered up.
Winner of the Grade 1 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in 2024, Slade Steel is one of two entries for Henry de Bromhead. He finished second in two starts in beginners' chases late last year but hasn’t run in 11 months in contrast to his stable companion July Flower which made a winning debut over fences on her seasonal return at Limerick last month.
Eoin Griffin could run his Galway beginners' chase and Cork Grade 3 winner Ol Man Dingle while Colm Murphy and Tom Gibney could be represented by the Punchestown Festival Grade 1 novice hurdle runner-up Lovely Hurling and Raffles Dolce Vita, a French import yet to make his Irish debut, respectively.
John Sheridan, General Manager at Fairyhouse Racecourse, said: “It’s really encouraging to see such strong entries for the Bar One Hatton’s Grace Hurdle and the Bar One Racing Drinmore Novice Chase. To have the rematch from last year’s Hatton’s Grace with Lossiemouth and Teahupoo along with the potential addition of Ballyburn, Glen Kiln and Cheltenham winner Wodhooh in the mix, not to mention some of last season’s top novices, makes it a very enthralling renewal.
"We are really looking forward to this year’s Winter Festival. Ticket sales are going really well and are ahead of where we were this time last year. We are also down to the final few seats in hospitality, so it’s really exciting. This year we have some new initiatives, highlighted by a book signing with Rachael Blackmore on Sunday. There will be plenty of music and entertainment over the weekend and we are looking forward to welcome racegoers for a great two days of racing.’’
