Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
SAME OLD STORY IS STIFLING
THE Dublin Racing Festival has quickly established itself as one of the must-see events for National Hunt fans.
Last weekend’s action, which was the third time the two-day Leopardstown fixture has been staged, was no exception.
Honeysuckle was devastating in the Irish Champion Hurdle, while the likes of Chacun Pour Soi, Monkfish, Energumene and
Kilcruit had us all salivating.
Willie Mullins (right) dominated the meeting, capturing nine of the 14 races, six of the eight Grade 1 events and both of the Grade 2s.
This is some feat of training, but the fact that racing’s most cherished prizes are now in so few hands is a genuine cause for concern.
Roughly speaking, there are two differing elements to the way sport is reported in the broadcast and print media. And the press plays a crucial role in showcasing its appeal to new fans.
There is what happens on the playing surface and then the human interest aspect of why it is significant to those who are taking part or watching.
The victory of Frankel in the 2012 Juddmonte
International at York gives us an eloquent illustration. On the pitch, Frankel was once more imperious, winning by seven lengths.
From the human interest point of view, the colt’s trainer Sir Henry Cecil was visibly ailing, and the Knavesmire crowd showed its affection for the Warren Place great with a stirring reception.
The difficulty for racing’s future is that the human angle is disappearing fast.
The same names — Mullins, Gordon Elliott, Nicky Henderson, Aidan O’brien, John Gosden — crop up time after time.
Those trainers are doing what they are employed to do — win — but, when it comes to telling an audience why they should give a tinker’s cuss about what they’ve just witnessed, we are suffering the law of diminishing returns.
Having won a big race for the umpteenth time, even Sammy Davis jnr would struggle to give journalists an interesting quote. Short of enacting laws limiting the number of horses connections can enter — and restricting competition is bad for any sport — it’s hard to know what can be done.
But what the horses do on the track is only half of racing’s story.
THE once-raced Jungle Boogie is a confident choice to make a successful start to his hurdling career in a division of the Happy Birthday Sarah Ann Madden Maiden Hurdle in Punchestown tomorrow.
The Willie Mullins-trained Gold Well gelding carries the familiar colours of Malcolm Denmark. And he looked a decent prospect when scoring on his debut in a Clonmel bumper in November.
Sent off an odds-on favourite he raced prominently under Patrick Mullins and brushed aside Angels Dawn with the minimum of fuss.
Jungle Boogie scored by three and a quarter lengths and, although the runner-up is still a maiden, the leading duo stretched 19 lengths clear of the remainder and the selection looked a decent stayer-in-themaking. It’s no surprise he’s set to start his hurdling career over two and a half miles. And he shouldn’t be opposed.
In the first division, the consistent Jessica Harrington-trained Lifetime Ambition might deservedly open his account.
Runner-up to Fighter Allen and Clondaw Secret on his initial excursions over flights, the Kapgarde gelding then finished fourth behind Stattler in a hot Leopardstown maiden over Christmas.
Last time, he made most of the running before finishing third behind Frere Tuck and Hurricane Cliff (rated 125) in a two-mile maiden at this track.
Back up in trip tomorrow, Lifetime Ambition, the mount of Robbie Power, sets the standard.
Tomorrow’s feature is the €80,000 Punchestown Grand National Trial, a virtually impossible puzzle to solve.
And my tentative choice is Bill Durkan’s Screaming Colours, a dour stayer, beaten by Atlantic Shore on this track last month.
Shouldering just 10-3, less Conor Orr’s 3lb claim, the consistent 10-year-old might reward each-way support.