#Jack de Bromhead Christmas Hurdle

The Churchill gelding was a neck superior to Dixon Cove in the Grade Two event at Chepstow over Christmas. The JP McManus-owned four-year-old had previously finished third at Fairyhouse to Triumph Hurdle favourite Lossiemouth, who subsequently franked that form by winning a Grade Two at Leopardstown on Boxing Day. The Owning Hill handler is keen to…

It was another fantastic festive period of equine action as Leopardstown and Limerick took centre stage at the end of December. Not surprisingly, Kilkenny trainer Willie Mullins continued to dominate the training sphere over the days after Christmas as he saddled 16 winners, of which were five Grade 1's. In total Mullins had 73 runners over the…

Picking up from my last column to cover the remainder of the holiday program (December 28 to January 1) in what was the busiest post-Boxing Day period for some time, the narrative seemed to me more of the same - some horses enhanced their reputations, a bigger number diminished theirs, and a standout performance to breathe new life into some…

Emerging forces and established stars of the Irish National Hunt scene are set to come out and play at the Leopardstown Christmas Festival. The four-day racing bonanza takes place between Monday, December 26 and Thursday, December 29 and it is set to offer plenty of clues ahead of the big spring meetings. We're sponsoring all seven races on the…

Conflated put himself firmly in the Cheltenham Gold Cup picture with a dominant success in the Savills Chase at Leopardstown. The Gordon Elliott-trained eight-year-old was a surprise winner of the Irish Gold Cup over the course and distance last season and went on to run well before falling two from home in Cheltenham's Ryanair Chase before pushing…

Home By The Lee proved his surprise victory at Navan last month was no fluke with a battling success in the Jack de Bromhead Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown. Joseph O'Brien's charge was a widely unconsidered 28-1 shot for the Grade Two Lismullen Hurdle in mid-November, but knuckled down to see off the strong-travelling Bob Olinger, with Ashdale…

2022-12-28Conflated in the Cheltenham Gold Cup picture after dominant win at Leopardstown The Gordon Elliott-trained eight-year-old was a surprise winner of the Irish Gold Cup over the course and distance last season and went on to run well before falling two from home in Cheltenham's Ryanair Chase before pushing Clan Des Obeaux close in the Bowl…

There's another action-packed day of top quality National Hunt racing in front of the ITV Racing cameras and our in-house tipster Steve Chambers picks out his best bets from Leopardstown and Leicester on Wednesday afternoon... Reigning dual Stayers' Hurdle hero Flooring Porter will be a warm order for the Grade 1 Jack De Bromhead Christmas Hurdle,…

Newsboy's Nap selection for Wednesday, December 28, is the Dan Skelton-trained Unexpected Party at Leicester (12.45). The next best is Leopardstown runner Flooring Porter (1.45) Frankie Dettori announces retirement as horse racing legend confirms farewell plans Dan Skelton's UNEXPECTED PARTY (12.45. nap) appeals over fences at Leicester in the…

Few people, if any, have had to confront the jumble of emotions Henry de Bromhead looks set to face on Wednesday. From a purely racing point of view, the Co Waterford trainer is throwing some of his greatest names at day three of Leopardstown's Christmas festival. They are topped by the brilliant Cheltenham Gold Cup winner A Plus Tard in the…

1pt win Eric Bloodaxe in 1.10 Leopardstown at 12/1 (bet365) 1pt win Washington in 2.35 Leicester at 11/2 (General) ITV's Christmas Festival rolls on to Wednesday with six races on ITV4 headed by four from Leopardstown and the 28-runner Pertemps qualifier kicks things off in typical head-scratching style. There has been one single-figure price…

A scroll through Twitter on the evening of December 26 in recent years has tended to reveal Paul Nicholls celebrating King George success with a McDonald's on the way back from Kempton. The Ditcheat maestro, who is seeking a record-extending 13th win in the race, could well be lovin' it again on Monday with Bravemansgame and Hitman among the main…

It was when winning the Christmas Grade One in 2020 that the eight-year-old first announced himself as a leading player in the staying division and although having to settle for second behind stablemate Minella Indo at Prestbury Park later that season, got his crowning moment earlier this year when romping away with the blue riband in the hands of…

We're into the festive season and that means lots of brilliant horse racing meetings to enjoy, with thousands of Irish racegoers descending on Leopardstown between December 26-29. The Christmas Festival is a hugely popular event and will be taking millions of bets throughout the four-day meeting. William Hill are one of the biggest bookmakers in…

Galvin, Conflated and Fil Dor are among the big names set to be in action for Gordon Elliott over the festive period as the Cullentra handler shuffles his pack for Leopardstown's Christmas Festival. Elliott has enjoyed huge success at the four-day meeting in recent years, with Galvin's thrilling Savills Chase victory over A Plus Tard a clear…

The winner was alongside Ashdale Bob tracking the pace early on in the contest, as dual Stayers' Hurdle champion Flooring Porter took his usual position at the head of proceedings - but looked to have a mountain to climb with a circuit to run as he drifted back through the field and traded at 1000 on the Betfair exchange. Remarkably JJ Slevin was…