De Bromhead and O'Keeffe continue rich vein of form at Punchestown
The Big Westerner, with Darragh O'Keeffe up, jumps the last on way to winning the INH Stallion Owners EBF Maiden Hurdle during day two of the Punchestown Winter Festival. Photo by Seb Daly/Sportsfile
Henry de Bromhead and Darragh O’Keeffe are enjoying a particularly rich vein of form and doubtlessly the most pleasing aspect of the run is that many of the winners are young, unexposed horses with the potential to make an impact at much higher level.
The Big Westerner, who carries the Cheltenham Festival-winning colours of Kieran Mariga, became the latest to put her name on that list of promising individuals as she travelled strongly and picked up in the style of a high-class mare to see off favourite Argento Boy in the I.N.H. Stallion Owners EBF Maiden Hurdle. The win put O’Keeffe six clear of his nearest rival at this early stage of the jockeys’ championship.
Said de Bromhead: “I think she’ll go through winter ground, and she looks really nice. She’s a big, scopey mare. We have some lovely young horses. We hoped we had, coming into the season. We felt we had bought well, but you never know until you get to race them. Touch wood, we’re very happy where we are at the moment.”
Lot Of Joy followed up last month’s Gowran Park victory with a really likeable display in the listed Frontline Security Grabel Mares’ Hurdle. Paul Townend made all the running aboard Willie Mullins’ mare and the six-year-old, who remains open to plenty of improvement in this sphere, won with authority.
“I think she enjoyed just being left alone in front today,” said Mullins. “Paul was happy that she took her breathers and jumped better. She has just settled back and is getting better. We didn’t think that she’d handle that ground but it’s good to know that she can, and we might continue with her. I had been thinking about putting her away for the winter, but I won’t put her away after that performance.”
Touch Me Not, a horse Gordon Elliott revealed was a long way down the pecking order just a few months ago, gave a tremendous display of jumping on his way to victory in the Grade Two BetVictor Craddockstown Novice Chase.
“Sam said he got as much fun riding him as he did on any horse for a long time,” said Elliott.
“I was worried about the ground, but it was a good performance, and he obviously came on from the last day. He was very, very keen as a young horse and was well down the pecking order, but he has come a long way in six months.”
Elliott and winning owners Gigginstown House Stud later doubled up when the exciting Kalypso’chance ran out a wide-margin winner of the €50,000 BetVictor Graduation Bonus Series Bumper in the hands of Harry Swan.
It is difficult to know what depth there may have been in the race, but there was much to like about the manner in which the Corbridge point to point winner stretched away in the straight to put 15 lengths between himself and long-time leader Soir De Garde, with the others 27 lengths and further behind.
That said, promotion to the head of the market for the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham might be a bit premature, especially odds as low as 6-1.
Stumptown, winner of a cross-country chase at the spring festival here, made a winning return to action in the Colm Quinn BMW Risk Of Thunder Chase. Trained by Gavin Cromwell and ridden by Keith Donoghue, he made all the running, and with little exception, jumped particularly well before digging in deep to see off the game Three By Two.
Mouse Morris made it two wins in six runners in the last fortnight when Franciscan Rock stayed on well to take the Pertemps Qualifier in the hands of Gavin Brouder.
Lightly raced seven-year-old Sonny May, trained by Denis Hickey, was an easy winner earlier this month at Gowran Park and he followed up in good style when taking the novice handicap hurdle under a confident ride by Sean O’Keeffe.
