It seems as though everything de Lageneste turns his hand to, be that breeding, training or simply owning racehorses, it is a success.

Last year he completed the rare achievement of being crowned champion National Hunt owner and breeder in the same season. Nobody has ever done that before. 

Fewer still would be capable of nurturing a horse like Il Est Francais (Fr) (Karaktar {Ire}). Not only did de Lageneste breed the superstar chaser, who could be on course for next year's Gold Cup, but he also sourced the stallion, Karaktar, who is tipped to be the next big thing in National Hunt racing in France. 

The cherry on top is the fact that Haras de Saint-Voir remain involved in the ownership of Il Est Francais, who de Lageneste compares favourably with former star graduate Vautour (Fr) (Robin Des Champs {Fr}).

De Lageneste has built up a particularly strong relationship with Champion National Hunt trainer in Ireland Willie Mullins in recent years and Tuesday's short-priced Champion Hurdle favourite State Man (Fr) (Doctor Dino {Fr}) will be bidding to fly the flag for Haras de Saint-Voir on the big stage again.

From breeding top-class National Hunt stallion Saint Des Saints (Fr), to his association with Mullins and his hopes for Cheltenham and beyond, de Lageneste makes for a fascinating Q&A.

State Man: will fly the flag for de Lageneste in the Champion Hurdle | Racingfotos.com

You became the first person in French National Hunt history to be crowned leading breeder and owner in 2023. What did that mean to you?

It gave me great satisfaction and in many ways it was a consecration of our breeding at Haras de Saint-Voir.

I can only imagine that Il Est Francais (Fr) (Karaktar {Ire}) was the highlight of last year for you. He was sublime at Kempton. How difficult of a decision was it to bypass Cheltenham with him or was the Grand Steeple Chase de Paris always Plan A?

For over two years now the plan has always been to run and try to win the Grand Steeple Chase de Paris. He has never had to fight in a race and we thought that he needed to be battle hardened in order to run in a Cheltenham Gold Cup. We have respected him since the beginning of his career, knowing that he was outstanding and a horse for the biggest challenges. Who knows what next year will bring. 

Assuming all goes well at Auteuil, what could be in store for the horse next year? I presume the King George and the Cheltenham Gold Cup will come under consideration?

Exactly. He will go back to Kempton in December and if everything keeps going well for him, we could think about that great expedition in March 2025. 

You are famous for taking a chance on little known sires and making them famous. Tell us a little bit more about why you decided to back Karaktar (Ire)?

I like to buy stallion shares when I am impressed by horses on the track. Karaktar had been so impressive at the beginning of his three-year-old career before running in the French Derby and showed great ability and fantastic movement. He got hurt in the French Derby but Alain de Royer Dupré, a great horseman, liked him so much and was still thinking about the Arc de Triomphe for him. Unfortunately, he met with another problem and his trainer never found a way to get him back. We bought him for €110,000 in a sale for horses-in-training and he has turned out to be a great success. I sent him some good mares for the first season and I am rewarded today. When you really believe in something, give it your all for the chance to be successful. That's my approach to breeding. Karaktar is for sure going to be the next top National Hunt stallion in Europe, as his book of mares has been improving a lot in only the last two seasons, and he covered 243 mares last year.

Most people will know you as the breeder of Saint Des Saints. He is making a pretty emphatic mark on the National Hunt breed. That must provide you with huge satisfaction?

Oh yes. That's another great satisfaction. I had bought the mare of Saint Des Saints for about €2,000 in a liquidation sale in a supplement of a catalogue at 9pm in Deauville. She was a Group 2 winner but was quite old and had a poor career as broodmare. She was a bad milker and, unfortunately, many of her foals died. However, she was from one of the great French thoroughbred families (highlighted by de Chambure's family). Saint Des Saints showed on the turf that he was the best four-year-old in France before getting a virus in May of that campaign and that probably weakened him. However, the genetic potential was there and we are delighted to see that he is today a successful sire of sires and probably the best National Hunt sire of broodmares.

Looking ahead to Cheltenham next week, what graduates of yours are you most looking forward to and why? State Man winning a Champion Hurdle would be very special.

State Man is a short-priced favourite in the Champion Hurdle and he must win. He is trained by the best National Hunt trainer in Europe and comes from the breeding of Guy Cherel who is a perfect horseman, breeder and trainer. Not to mention that State Man's dam was class at Auteuil, a tough mare, and his sire Doctor Dino is probably the best National Hunt stallion in France. Put the best with the best and you will have more chances to be among the best. Apart from State Man, I will not have a lot of runners at Cheltenham as my policy is now to try to keep my horses in France. French breeding will definitely be successful this year at Cheltenham, though. One of the reasons is that we breed horses more for the track than the sales ring. We use stallions with a National Hunt profile in the first choice and we are lucky to stand very good French stallions for that discipline. 

You must have many fond memories from Cheltenham? Would Vautour rank as the most spectacular horse you have bred? He was awesome when winning the Ryanair Chase.

Yes, Vautour really was a great horse, really impressive in all his Cheltenham victories. He was a potential Gold Cup winner and his premature end was very sad for everyone involved. He was an amazing jumper, such a natural, and it was a great thrill to see him flying over his fences. I have found some similarities in his own way of jumping with how Il Est Francais jumps as well.

Tell us a bit more about your relationship with Willie Mullins. He has trained a lot of excellent horses that you have bred. How has that relationship developed?

Willie is just the best. An amazing man. I am a long-time good friend of Pierre Boulard, who used to buy for Willie and when I have a horse who could be exported, Willie has the first preference. We have full confidence with Willie. I have visited him twice and was very impressed by the quality of his training, by his gallops and by his staff. I am drawn by his humanity and humility. 

I understand that Willie and Jackie Mullins have a few mares in partnership with you, including a half-sister to Benie Des Dieux (Fr) (Great Pretender {Ire}). That must be exciting.

I take care of a few mares owned by Jackie and when the owner of Grace Des Dieux (Fr) (Blek {Fr}) [a half-sister to Benie Des Dieux) asked me to buy her, as he knew that I loved the family, I thought that this mare might please Jackie. She immediately agreed and we bought the mare in partnership. The first produce is for Jackie, a very good colt by Great Pretender. She is in foal to Karaktar and is due on April 1. The second foal is mine and that is very exciting. I am very much enjoying this venture with Willie and Jackie. 

You have a soft spot for Ireland and have been there many times. What is it about Irish racing and bloodstock that you like so much?

I like the atmosphere in Ireland and love Irish people. I feel well over there with some good friends I like to meet. It's a country I would have loved to live in.

It's not all about National Hunt racing for you. You have also had some fun on the Flat and Knock On (Fr) (Zelzal {Fr}) won a Listed race for you last October. What are the plans for her this year?

I stand with only one Flat mare by Acclamation (GB) and I have a share in Zelzal (Fr) as well. So the cross is simple each year, and has been successful with J'Acclame (Fr) (Zelzal {Fr}) [five wins in Longchamp and Chantilly] and Knock On [Listed winner and Listed-placed]. Knock On could go for Listed races over less than a mile. She is very easy and quiet in the morning, but on the track she is a lion with a lot of speed.

Finally, despite your huge success, you have never forgotten your roots and you remain closely connected to the grassroots of your sport in France. What is your philosophy to racing and breeding and what advice would you impart on others?

When I took the management of the stud at the beginning of 1990s, we worked hard, standing stallions-usually four-and improved each year our genetics in broodmares. This period was difficult but we have learned our job as breeders. When I stopped standing stallions, I invested a lot to improve the land and select the mares, and today we are hopefully reaping the benefit of all these years of work. Nothing happens by itself. I can't pretend to teach others as I myself learn everyday something new about horses. My principal advice can be to always keep [one's] humility and stay observant.

The post ‘State Man Must Win’ – Q&A With Haras de Saint-Voir Boss Nicolas de Lageneste appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The unbeaten and defending Champion Hurdle hero worked poorly at Kempton Park last Tuesday, putting his participation at the showpiece meeting in major doubt.

A scope showed mucus in his lungs and despite slightly more positive news in the following days, results of a blood test on Thursday proved to be another blow.

However, Henderson stressed that another blood test on Monday would probably prove to be the “acid test”, and on receiving the results he posted on his Twitter account, “Very sadly we are going to have to admit defeat in the battle to get Constitution Hill ready for the Champion Hurdle and therefore have to declare that he will not be running there this year.

“He has undoubtedly improved over the weekend and seems noticeably brighter than he was at the end of last week and I really did think he was much perkier when ridden this morning.

“Unfortunately the all important blood test shows that although the figures have also improved, they are quite a way from being satisfactory for a horse to commence serious training and to race in a week's time.

“There are three significant markers on the blood test all of which have come down since Thursday's sample but are still raised enough to indicate that he has not fully recovered from whatever was ailing him.

“The only way to continue the improvement is not to stress him and he obviously cannot run in these Olympic games if he's not trained sufficiently.

“This is very sad for all of us and particularly Michael [Buckley, owner] but it is in everybody's best interests that we ensure we have a fit and healthy Constitution Hill to win back his crown next year.”

The Willie Mullins-trained State Man (Fr) (Doctor Dino {Fr}), who was the nine-length runner-up to Constitution Hill in last year's Champion Hurdle, is now the 1-3 favourite for the race.

The post Champion Hurdle Favourite Constitution Hill to Miss Cheltenham appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The sire of the reigning Champion Hurdler Constitution Hill, Blue Bresil was responsible for four of the top eight foals through the ring on Monday, including a €97,000 colt that was sold by Ballykineally Stables to Coolmara Stables.

Mossy Barry of Ballykineally Stables commented, “He is out of the mare Beautiful War-we bought her and she was well-named as she is beautiful. She is the loveliest mare and this foal was like a lamb. He was the quietest foal.

“We have supported Blue Bresil all the way through since he stood at Cork and Beautiful War is back in foal to him. It is a fierce-looking family.”

Blue Bresil has enjoyed a strong opening two days at Tattersalls Ireland with 26 lots by sire selling for just shy of €1 million at €987,500. That equates to an average of €37,981 while Walk In The Park is also performing well with a €41,447 average for 19 lots sold.

Outside of those top-tier stallions, Irish Derby winner Santiago (Ire) has made a promising start with his first foals and a colt foal by the stallion was knocked down to Charles Shanahan and Glenvale Stud for €65,000. He was consigned by Kilbarry Lodge Stud.

However, the day two figures took a slight dip. Of the 236 lots offered, 171 were sold, representing a clearance rate of 72%. That figure was the same as last year but the aggregate was down 11% to €3,464,200 , the median down a further 11% to €16,000 and the average down 10% to €20,258.

The post Progeny Of Blue Bresil And Walk In The Park Dominate Day Two At Tatts Ireland appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Among those honoured on the night was eight-time champion jump jockey Peter Scudamore, who received the Outstanding Contribution accolade, and Constitution Hill (GB) (Blue Bresil {Fr}), awarded the 2023 Horse of The Season as well as Leading Hurdler.

The post 2023 The Jockey Club The McCoys Awarded appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The sale comes on the heels of the two-day Spring Store Sale, and opening day Wednesday is dedicated to more than 200 point-to-pointers and young form horses. Day two is dedicated to a mix of horses-in-training with promising younger horses, proven performers and breeding opportunities.

“Success on the racecourse is the ultimate barometer of any sale and the incomparable Constitution Hill (GB) (Blue Bresil {Fr}) is the very best reminder of what can be found at the time-honoured Spring Sale,” Goffs UK Managing Director Tim Kent commented. “In addition to the champion hurdler, Corach Rambler (Ire) (Jeremy) is another graduate of our PTP sales who went on to win this year's Grand National and both horses help to identify the quality and diversity which is found at Goffs UK.”

Supplementary catalogues for the Doncaster Spring HIT/PTP Sale will be available onsite.

The post Goffs UK Spring Sale Catalogue Available Online appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Included in the catalogue are Illico De Cotte (Fr) (Kitkou {Fr}) (lot 112), who ran out to a 12-length victory in his maiden score at Ballynoe; fellow 12-length winner Garde La Peche (Fr) (Kapgarde {Fr}) (lot 114), who clocked a time in her debut win at Durrow which was 11 seconds faster than the average time on the day; and Worldwide Fury (Ire) (Jukebox Jury {Ire}) (lot 101), the half-brother to Grade 1 Gordon Elliot winner Fury Road (Ire) (Stowaway {GB}), who won at first-asking.

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Just forty minutes earlier the new king of the hurdling division, Constitution Hill (GB), had delivered exactly the performance expected of him but one which can never be guaranteed in the hurly-burly of championship races at the Festival. Plenty of commentators are already suggesting that the son of Blue Bresil (Fr) is the greatest hurdler of all time after he has made just six spotless starts under Rules. Whether he is or isn't is almost irrelevant. The horse who gave Nicky Henderson his record ninth win in the Unibet Champion Hurdle is the best there is right now by a long way: nine lengths, in fact, if we take his winning margin as a measure. And on any other day, in any other week, his superb round under Nico de Boinville would have been the stand-alone performance that gave all comers at Prestbury Park that special I-was-there moment. 

Who, after all, will forget that flamboyant, spring-heeled leap at the last, not because he needed to but just because he could? The image of that split second alone will linger on, serving as it did to underline the untapped reserves of Constitution Hill at the end of a race that had his rivals hard to the pump in fruitless pursuit. Then along came Honeysuckle.

“This is just a horse race and a bit of fun, it's not real life,” said the great mare's owner Kenny Alexander in the aftermath of the Close Brother Mares' Hurdle, and his may have been the coolest head there, for all around him others were losing theirs. “We knew it would be Honeysuckle's final race, and those who have adored her and Rachael Blackmore–because, let's face it, this is a dream double act–will have shared the pain of her two defeats this season, even though her mighty record now stands at 19 for 17. Honeysuckle owed us nothing, but there was a score to be settled nonetheless. 

When the headstrong Love Envoi (Ire) (Westerner {GB}) looked as though she would have her freewheeling way all the way to the line, there was for a moment a feeling of resignation, that this would be okay, to see Honeysuckle finish second for the second time; an honourable swansong. But Honeysuckle herself, driven by Blackmore and responding all the way from the back of the last, had other ideas. 

“She's tried to kill me for five years now,” said her trainer Henry de Bromhead, and you could see that feisty mare dig deep to give everything she had left to power up the hill for one glorious last hurrah. Four runs at the Cheltenham Festival: two Champion Hurdles, two Mares' Hurdles. What a girl. 

With Blackmore still breathless after her own heroic effort, she immediately understood that this was about more than just winning a horse race. 

“We all wish a very special kid could be here today, but he's watching down on us,” she said, with thoughts of Jack de Bromhead, the 13-year-old son of Honeysuckle's trainer and his wife Heather, who lost his life last September in a pony racing accident. He is officially commemorated at Cheltenham on Thursday with the running of the Jack de Bromhead Mares' Novices' Hurdle in which his father will field five of the 21 runners. 

For the de Bromhead stable, Honeysuckle's work is done, but she will remain very much within the Alexander fold. The owner-breeder, who some years ago bought New Hall Stud in Ayrshire from the Thom family, has, with the help of Peter Molony, set about establishing an elite band of National Hunt broodmares. Now that colony has its queen, who will head to Scotland eventually once she is safely in foal. Molony confirmed in the winner's enclosure, lump in throat as he spoke, that Honeysuckle would return to Ireland to his Rathmore Stud initially, and that she is already booked for a first tryst with Coolmore's Walk In The Park (Ire).

Alexander added, “She's retired now and I've had an absolute blast owning her. I'm lost for words to be honest, the celebration was out of control. If you can't lose it a bit after winning a race like that though, you probably shouldn't own racehorses.

“It just shows you how great the sport is when she's getting a cheer like that. They don't love me, that's for sure. They may love Rachael, and even Henry a bit, but they really love that horse.”

As one industry stalwart put it as Honeysuckle took a final lap of honour of the Cheltenham parade ring: “What an hour of magic.”

At times, it is easy to get ground down by some of racing's woes, from major issues to petty bureaucracies. But on days like Tuesday, when the winter sun finally showed its face after weeks of brutal weather, as if to say, “Go on then, have your fun”, the fun never felt so good. From Marine Nationale (Fr) (French Navy {Ire}) in the opening Supreme Novices' Hurdle and two victories on the day for his engaging young jockey Michael O'Sullivan, to a dust-up in the last between another three of the best amateurs in the game, it was a day to remember exactly why we love this great sport. A day that belonged, equally, to Constitution Hill and Honeysuckle. 

The post There She Goes: Honeysuckle Leaves Cheltenham in Raptures appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The Prosser baritone is certainly much easier on the ears than the newly released 'Roar-Remix'. In a rather unlikely development, the Jockey Club has gone clubbing in collaboration with someone known as DJ Cuddles. A less cool name for a DJ it is hard to imagine, but this pairing of the tweed brigade with the TikTok generation has, we are told, led to “a dance anthem like no other”.

The actual roar, which will be let out around at around 1.30pm on Tuesday as the tape pings back for the Sky Bet Supreme Novices' Hurdle, will be followed, in all probability, by victory for the first favourite of the week, who has a stronger claim to the Cheltenham winner's enclosure than most other horses. In fact, Facile Vega (Ire) (Walk In The Park {Ire}) already has one Cheltenham crown to his name thanks to his victory in last year's Weatherbys Champion Bumper. But he still has a long way to go if he is to emulate his celebrated mother, Quevega (Fr), Queen of the Mares' Hurdle.

The tiny daughter of Robin Des Champs (Fr) scampered up that hill to glory six years in a row. Yes, she was sparsely campaigned in between, but boy did she come alive at Prestbury Park. It is hard to believe that Quevega is already 19, but in Facile Vega, her second foal, she has written yet another chapter to her captivating story. 

There are still a lot of boring old Doubting Thomases out there when it comes to the Mares' Hurdle but one really couldn't ask for more than what is on offer in this year's race. Honeysuckle (GB) vs. Epatante (Fr). There's a corker of a prize fight if ever there was one. The two mares have won the last three Champion Hurdles and, both now nine, are appearing at what may well be their final Festival before perusing the stallion books in a kind of equine Tinder-fest. Swipe right for Blue Bresil (Fr) or Getaway (Ger). 

Before that they will of course have to do battle with last year's Close Brothers Mares' Hurdle winner Marie's Rock (Ire) (Milan {GB}). The eight-year-old is another wonder for the successful cross-code Middleham Park Racing syndicate. She went on to score at the Punchestown Festival and her only outing so far this season ended in triumph at Cheltenham on New Year's Day.

Those cribbing the expansion of the mares' National Hunt programme in Britain and Ireland have clearly never stood outside a box on a sales ground on a cold winter's day and tried to sell a filly foal. It matters that jumping fillies and mares have just as much of a clear pathway to the top as their Flat counterparts, and great work has been done on both sides of the Irish Sea in improving this situation. Yes, once they get near the top we want to see the mares mix it in open company, and the best of them have done so. Witness the fact that four of the last seven Champion Hurdles have been won by a mare, a run started by Annie Power (Ire) in 2015. But you have to scroll back to Flakey Dove (GB) in 1994 to find the last female winner before this mighty trio. Alas, we have no mare in the seven-strong Champion Hurdle this year, which surely is a coronation for the mighty Constitution Hill (GB) (Blue Bresil {Fr}). 

It is an increasingly rare thing these days to see homebred runners in the major National Hunt races, which is what makes Edwardstone (GB) (Kayf Tara {GB}) a little extra special, aside from his extraordinary talent. In last year's Arkle Trophy, he provided one of the feel-good stories of the week, and was a much needed early home winner in the auld battle of England vs. Ireland, which has been so lopsided in the favour of the raiders of late. Edwardstone is currently favourite to add Wednesday's Queen Mother Champion Chase to his record and to give his small breeders, the Abrey and Thurtle families, another big day in the spotlight. 

Similarly, there would be much joy attached to a win for Queens Gamble (Ire) (Getaway {Ger}) in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper, which rounds off Wednesday's card. The part the five-year-old mare has played in helping her trainer Oliver Sherwood through his tortuous battle with cancer has been well documented and she represents the brothers-in-law Alex Frost and Ed Galvin, who bred her at Galvin's Ardmulchan Stud in Ireland. Frost has of course been busying himself in recent years with rebooting and revitalising the Tote. He deserves a day off from those endeavours, and hopefully it will be one spent celebrating a special homebred winner at the track not far from his Wiltshire-based Ladyswood Stud.

It now appears to be the law of the bloodstock sales calendar that no week can pass without an auction taking place, whether online or IRL (I'm told that's what the kids say).

Those still standing by the end of Thursday's action who have no wish to spend an hour trying to exit the car park may as well stick around for what has now become a regular fixture on the boutique jumps sales calendar. 

There can be no more aspirational venue for those in love with jump racing than to stage a sale in the winner's enclosure at Cheltenham. Brian Sheerin spoke to Jamie Codd last week about his twin role during the Festival as both crack amateur rider and a driving force behind the Tattersalls Ireland Cheltenham Festival Sale. 

If you missed that interview, you can read it here, and in the meantime, please forgive us while our attention is temporarily diverted from all things Flat to quite a few things National Hunt over the next four days.

The post One Safe Bet For Jump Racing’s Spectacular  appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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   Son of the legendary Martin Molony, widely regarded as the best dual-purpose jockey of all time, Peter is one of the most respected judges in the game.

   He opened the gates of Rathmore Stud to TDN Europe this week and revealed why Leopardstown is D-Day for dual Champion Hurdle winner Honeysuckle and explained that retirement would be the preferred option to running in the Mares' Hurdle at Cheltenham for Henry de Bromhead's star.

   Molony also shares that, for when Honeysuckle is retired to the paddocks, she will visit Walk In The Park (Ire). He also discussed in great detail his role at Goffs, concerns for the industry, Oisin Murphy's eagerly-anticipated return and much more in this week's Starfield Stud-sponsored Q&A.

Brian Sheerin: With your Rathmore Stud hat on, how do you reflect on 2022?

Peter Molony: It was a great year for us. The first big sale was the Land Rover and our horses sold really well there. We'd a good Milan (GB) filly of our own who sold well. We gave 50 grand for her as a foal and we got 150 grand for her at the Land Rover, so that was lovely. The yearlings sold well as well and, considering what's happening in the world, the market held up really well–especially for the quality horses. We were lucky enough to breed a nice winner last year, Wren's Breath (Ire) (Elzaam {Aus}), who Henry [de Bromhead] trained for us. We'd a half-sister to her at the Orby by Zoustar (Aus) and she made 300 grand, which was phenomenal. She is a beautiful filly. Our pinhooks went quite well this year so we got stuck in again in November. But, as I said, the market was quite strong so it was hard to buy the ones you wanted.

BS: Any air of trepidation about getting stuck in again? This was a phenomenal year but some people are worried that we might feel a bite in 2023.

PM: We've had a few very good years with the pinhooking on the Flat. We decided that we'd step off the beaten track a little bit because, when we went in for the big, fancy, obvious foals, we had to give too much for them and we just haven't been lucky with them recently. We bought later foals, a few end of April and even May foals, which pinhookers seem to step away from, but they've done very well for us so we did the same again. We didn't just plough on regardless. We thought about what we were going to do and went for that type of foal again. Hopefully it will work out. On the National Hunt foals, we decided to concentrate a little bit more on quality. John Bleahan is a great friend of mine and we were chatting away recently about what the market is going to look like in the next couple of years and his summarisation was good. He said, 'it's either this or sheep,' in that we don't know anything different, so we may as well keep going at what we know best.

BS: The National Hunt market is going through a strange period at the moment. You need to be by Walk In The Park, Blue Bresil (Fr) or one of the good French sires to get well paid. When you were concentrating on the top end, what stallions were you honing in on?

PM: It's very tight. There are only a small number of top-end stallions that people seem to want. We bought a couple of Walk In The Parks (Ire), we could only get our hands on one Blue Bresil (Fr), we got a No Risk At All (Fr) and took a chance on a couple of foals by Order Of St George (Ire)–I really like them, they're really good-looking horses and they seem to have lovely temperaments. But it's a risky time for him as he has a couple of crops ahead and, if they don't work out, it's not ideal. I bought a Soldier Of Fortune (Ire) but didn't give huge money for it and we bought a Maxios (GB) and a Vadamos (Fr), so we have a bit of a spread.

BS: I suppose the best horse you ever bought was outside the box in that she was by Sulamani (Ire).

PM: The difference with her was that she was bought to race. All of those foals are bought to be sold on. There's a big difference between buying a racehorse and a sales horse which shouldn't make sense but it does. You have to buy what the market is going to want in the future.

BS: And speaking about Honeysuckle (GB), there has been a lot said and written since she lost her unbeaten record but what's your own feeling on the whole thing.

PM: All the ratings people seem to believe it was her best ever run in the Hatton's Grace and normally her first run of the season is always her worst run. I suppose she's getting older and it's going to take a little more to get her ready first time out so, taking everything into account, it was one of her highest-rated runs for her first start of the season so we'd have to be happy. If we weren't protecting an unbeaten run, I think we'd have left Fairyhouse cock-a-hoop with ourselves. We haven't lost faith in her. Leopardstown here we come.

BS: Everyone wants that match between Honeysuckle and Constitution Hill (GB) in the Champion Hurdle. Is that still the dream or has the Mares' Hurdle become a more appealing target than it was previously?

PM: First of all, I think the Mares' Hurdle is getting a bit of a slagging off, which I think is totally unfair. If we didn't have the mares' programme that has been built up over the past 20 years, Honeysuckle probably wouldn't be running right now–she'd be out in a field with a foal at foot somewhere. The amount of top-class mares who have come through the system in the past 10 to 15 years, most of those, if not all of them, would never have hit the track if it wasn't for the mares' programme. I think people are missing the point, to be honest, and I think the mares' programme is hugely important. We got a lot of slagging when we ran Honeysuckle in the Mares' Hurdle first time round but, as it happened, we probably ended up running in the tougher race by taking on Benie Des Dieux (Fr) (Great Pretender {Ire}). People were saying we were ducking the challenge of the Champion Hurdle but we just felt she wasn't quite ready to run over two miles at championship pace and that the two-and-a-half-mile option was better at that stage in her career. Her jumping was a bit slow at that time–she was big and novicey when winning her first Irish Champion Hurdle the time before so we did what was best for her. That will be the same this year.

We will always do what's best for Honeysuckle. That's the number one thing. I suppose I will give you a bit of a scoop here, if we don't think that she is up to running to her best, she probably won't run full stop–she'll be retired. Kenny said that last year, that we were going to give her one more season but, if we don't feel she is up to doing herself justice, she is not going to be risked. She is too important to us. We are not going to risk her. We have to think that she will be up to running to her full ability if she runs again.

BS: Is Leopardstown D-Day in that, if she doesn't run right up to her best, she could be retired?

PM: That is a distinct possibility, yes. It's not about ducking competition. There are three scenarios. Number one is that she runs in the Champion Hurdle, number two is that she is retired and number three is that she goes for the Mares' Hurdle. The least likely scenario is that she would run in the Mares' Hurdle. That's where we are at with her. It's all about Honeysuckle. We are all dreaming and we really want to take on Constitution Hill. Nicky Henderson is a great friend and has been a wonderful supporter of mine. We've been slagging each other all summer and nothing would give me more pleasure than going out and beating Constitution Hill as I think he is a phenomenal horse. That's what we really want to do. But let's see what the next few weeks bring. Both horses have to get there in one piece.

BS: Kenny seems to be a great character. From saying he was extremely confident on Racing TV the evening before Honeysuckle won her first Champion Hurdle to being magnanimous in defeat after the Hatton's Grace, he is quite refreshing.

PM: He is genuinely a lovely guy and very down to earth. After Honeysuckle won the Champion Hurdle last season, he led her in with his shirt hanging out and the Racing Post rolled under his arm. I think some people had thought that some interloper had run into the winner's enclosure to lead Honeysuckle back in. But that's him–no airs or graces about him. I am very lucky to have met him and to be working for him.

BS: How did that relationship come about?

PM: The first time I met Kenny was at this kitchen table 12 or 14 years ago. He rang David Redvers around the same time Sheikh Fahad got involved. David told him that he was concentrating on the Flat but recommended that he come and visit us here at Rathmore Stud. He told me about his dream to breed top-class National Hunt horses and I told him he was nuts. I advised him to buy foals so at least he'd know what he was getting and therefore he could concentrate on the thing a little bit. The first thing we did was buy two National Hunt foals at the Tattersalls February Sale to pinhook together. We bought a Kalanisi (Ire) and a Flemensfirth.

At the time, we had been buying National Hunt foals to pinhook as yearlings but the National Hunt yearling market fell flat on its face. This was about the time when that happened. They cost 17 grand each and, when we brought them back to the November Sale, we couldn't get what we paid for either of them. Kenny must have been thinking, 'oh my God, what idiot am I after getting involved with?' I told him that we had two lovely horses on our hands but the National Hunt yearling market had gone. We kept them on as 3-year-olds and sold the Kalanisi privately. He paid for himself and the Flemensfirth and went on to be named Champagne Express (GB) for Nicky Henderson. He was a good horse. We brought the Flemensfirth to the Land Rover Sale, I think it was the first year I was working as an agent for Goffs, and he made 130 grand. We sold him again to Nicky Henderson and David Minton, funnily enough, and he turned out to be O O Seven (Ire). From thinking I was an eejit, Kenny must have suddenly thought that I was a genius, but maybe the truth was somewhere in the middle.

For the next few years after that, I was only doing bits and pieces for Kenny and I bought him a mare called Asturienne (GB) (Sleeping Car {Fr}) off Alan King. She was his first broodmare and ended up breeding his first black-type horse, Carrie Des Champs (Ire) (Robin Des Champs {Fr}), and she's also bred Doddiethegreat {Ire}) (Fame And Glory {GB}). Typical of Kenny, he named that horse after Doddie Weir and all of his prize money will go towards the Doddie Weir foundation for motor neurone disease.

It was five years ago when I went up to Kenny's box at Cheltenham. I'd noticed he'd started to spend a few quid through different agents, which was all fine, but he wasn't having any success. He'd given a lot of money for a few horses with no results. There was another bloodstock agent there that day chatting him up. He's actually a friend of mine and I've told him this story since and he laughs about it. But I kind of saw red a bit that day. I just felt that the whole thing was disorganised and that Kenny was going to get cheesed off with the whole thing because he'd things coming at him from every direction. It was just too disorganised.

When that bloodstock agent left the box, I pulled Kenny aside and told him that he needed to get somebody to pull it all together and organise it for him. I can tell you, I was not looking for the job myself because I had Rathmore, Qatar and Goffs to concentrate on. He asked me to do it and, after saying no a good few times, I rang my wife Sarah to see if she thought we could take it on or not, and we decided to give it a go. The following day, I was walking through the Cheltenham enclosure and met Henry and Heather de Bromhead. I invited them up to meet Kenny and they got on like a house on fire. We bought Sinoria (Ire) (Oscar {Ire}) at the Cheltenham sale that week and then we bought Honeysuckle the following month at the Goffs Punchestown Sale.

BS: It has snowballed, hasn't it?

PM: Yes, and the idea is to concentrate on well-bred National Hunt mares, which is why I had no interest in Honeysuckle initially because I didn't think her pedigree was good enough. The idea is that they go back to Kenny's stud as broodmares. With those mares, you might have to give a lot of money for them after they win their point-to-point but, if they stand on a nail in the morning, they still have a residual value whereas the geldings don't. There's a certain safety net.

BS: Halka Du Tabert (Fr) (Balko {Fr}) was impressive at Naas on Tuesday and looks another smart recruit for Kenny. What other running plans are there for over Christmas?

PM: She was very good and she'll go to Fairyhouse for the Solerina Mares Novice Hurdle next. We've a nice juvenile hurdler, Gala Marceau (Fr) (Galiway {GB}), who won a listed juvenile hurdle for fillies impressively at Auteuil. She's smart. Gauloise (Fr) (Samum {Ger}) is also back from injury and will hopefully run over the Christmas as well.

BS: And you must be sick of re-telling the story of how you came to buy Honeysuckle at this stage.

PM: Our scouts told us about how impressive she was in winning her point-to-point and, I'll have to be honest, I didn't even look at her race. I took one look at her pedigree and didn't think it was good enough. As a Goffs agent, I wanted to show support to the sale so I went down to look at her and she was a big, raw and narrow thing–she was like two boards slapped together. I thought, 'if she could win as impressively as they are all telling me that she won, she must be good.' I went and watched the race and she was unbelievable. I rang Henry and Kenny and told them that maybe we should reconsider her.

BS: Being by Sulamani she could go to any stallion, couldn't she? Have you thought that far ahead or do you want to get her racing career over and done with first?

PM: I have already talked to a stallion master. All you need to do is look at the National Hunt sales to figure out who she will be going to see. She's booked in to Walk In The Park, all going well. That's the plan.

BS: And what about Henry's role in the whole thing? I know that you are very close with him.

PM: I can remember the first time I met Henry and it's probably not far off 40 years ago when we were in school. I was in fifth year and I think he was in first year. I can remember that he had a pudding bowl haircut! I remember him because he was a de Bromhead and we all knew his father Harry as being a successful trainer. Henry was a cheeky little pup! We've always been friendly and, I've said before, great horses bring people together and between Honeysuckle, Sinoria, Minella Melody (Ire) (Flemensfirth), we've had huge success with the de Bromheads and have become closer and closer with them and the kids down through the years. They are such a lovely family. They are phenomenally strong people. I am full of admiration for them.

BS: What will the next few months entail with a view towards the Land Rover? A lot of work has gone into that sale in the last number of years and it's amazing how much the quality has risen as a result.

PM: There is a great team at Goffs and everyone is really enthusiastic. The first thing we did was target the horses. The year we sold O O Seven, we also had Tombstone (Ire) (Robin Des Champs {Fr}) in our draft and a lot of people at the time were asking me why I didn't have them in the Derby Sale. My attitude was, Eddie O'Leary, David Minton and Nicky Henderson were all at Goffs, so why would I need to go anywhere else. John Bleahan and I had a horse four or five years prior to that, Virginia Preuil (Fr) (Saint Preuil {Fr}), and we got €120,000 for him at the Land Rover. I think he was the first ever National Hunt store to make €100,000 or more at Goffs. So I had confidence that, if you had the right horse at Goffs, you were going to get well-paid for it. It took seven or eight years but slowly the confidence in the sale began to grow and people started to send better horses. The marketing team does a great job at getting the trainers and the agents in and the momentum has really grown.

BS: And obviously a huge amount of work went on behind the scenes to attract the American buyers to Goffs for the Orby and it told with the record-breaking trade. Could you see that sale developing further?

PM: A couple of years have passed since the Orby debacle at Doncaster and it was a debacle, it was an absolute disaster and nobody is denying that, so there was a lot of soul searching after it. A lot of Irish vendors were really good to us the following year and brought some lovely horses to the Orby to help revitalise it and it worked. It worked really well. This year was a step up again. The one thing people will say to you, and they said it when we were trying to build the Land Rover, is that traditionally, all the best horses have been sold at the Derby Sale or that, throughout history, all the best yearlings have been sold at Newmarket. My question is why? If the horses are in the Orby well then the buyers will come. It's an awful shame that millions of euros worth of yearlings pass the door at Goffs on their way up to the ferry every year. I believe there's no need for that. Since I have joined Goffs, I've sold everything there–at the Orby, Sportsman's and the Land Rover.

BS: The Goffs Million was reintroduced this year and I think people recognised that. Is there anything else in the pipeline or do you think they are gimmicks?

PM: I think gimmick would be an unfair word and those incentives are needed. Thinking outside the box is needed. Henry Beeby is such an enthusiast and such a hard worker. He's passionate about the whole game and is desperate to get the Orby where it should be. I've no doubt that there's going to be a lot thrown at the sale over the next five years.

BS: If you were to think big, look at how well a race like The Everest has been received in Australia. I'm not saying something like that would work here but I do think there's a bit of a disconnect between racing and bloodstock and the more we can fill in those blanks, it has to have a huge upside for the industry.

PM: Absolutely. When you mention Australia, I think that is where we need to look towards. I know they have a different funding model but one man I hugely admire, and what he did for Magic Millions and how they caught up on Inglis, is Gerry Harvey. He's done something that should be admired hugely and maybe even mimicked.

BS: And how do you view the future of Irish racing?

PM: With the way society is going and with the demonisation of gambling from certain sections, I think we need to be looking at different ways of funding the industry. I'm not sure if I am bright enough to figure it out but I think racecourses–with notable exceptions–are relying a little too much on media rights and not working hard enough on getting people through the turnstiles. There were suggestions that there might be racing behind closed doors in Britain not too long ago because it would be easier on the racecourse in question not to employ staff etc for punters on the track. I asked the question recently about what the GAA's main revenue stream was. It's people through the turnstiles. That's something we need to work on big time. If you look at Australia and the crowds that go racing and the atmosphere they can generate on course, I think it's something we need to try and emulate. The racetracks really need to work on this. I've a very good friend who doesn't have anything to do with racing and he asked me recently if our industry was totally reliant on gambling. When I told him it was, he made an interesting face, and that's the way society is going so we need to be aware of that. We really need to be actively thinking about different ways of funding the industry.

BS: And speaking about international jurisdictions, Sheikh Fahad has had heightened success in America this year.

PM: Fergus Galvin and Adrian Regan in Hunter Valley Farm have done a wonderful job. Sheikh Fahad has done a good bit of trading there recently as well. The likes of Ocean Road (Ire) (Australia {GB}), who was a high-class filly in England but goes over there and wins a Grade I. The prize-money over there is phenomenal and, when you win your Grade I over there, you can see what they are worth. She made $1.6 million at the sales. It's hard to argue with that model.

BS: And closer to home, can you tell me a bit more about Rathmore Stud? There is great history to this place.

PM: Apparently the first mention of us here is back in 1682–so we've been here a while! My grandfather William trained a couple himself. He'd a good horse Hill Of Camas and another called Timber Wolf, who I think won a Galway Plate. My grandmother owned Knight's Crest who my father rode to win the Irish Grand National when he was just 16 years' old. That was his first major win as a jockey. So there was Martin, my father, and his brother Tim, who won four Champion Hurdles in a row and I'm pretty certain he's the only person to have done that. He was crowned champion jockey five times in England and was actually left this place but decided to move to England and sold it to my father.

BS: Martin was arguably the greatest dual-purpose jockey of all time.

PM: He had already retired 13 or 14 years by the time I was born. He was only 26 when he retired and we couldn't really appreciate all that he achieved in the saddle but we certainly saw it here at home. He was gifted and was still riding 2-year-olds for me here when he was 75. People used to say to me that I was nuts to put him up but the answer was that he was much less likely to get a fall than anyone else. I think he was a horse whisperer. What he could do was phenomenal. The likes of Paul Carberry and Ruby Walsh, they have something, it's a gift. Horses just relax for them. You'd put my father up, aged 75, on a 2-year-old who'd been bucking and kicking and, as soon as he'd sit up on him, the horse would just relax. It was phenomenal to watch. He used to drive us mad as kids. He'd send us out to get a horse from the field and we'd be running around for an hour trying to catch it. He'd come out and, next thing, the horse would walk over to him. It used to drive us bonkers! He wasn't very generous with his talent–he didn't pass it on!

BS: I suppose we're seeing something similar with Rachael Blackmore in that horses seem to just run for her.

PM: When Rachael rode Honeysuckle to win the Grade 1 novice hurdle at Fairyhouse, Richard Pugh came up to me and told me that, in his reckoning, she was the first lightweight jockey to be as successful over jumps as my father was. Horses are so balanced under her and she's got a phenomenal tactical brain. I can't really compare her to my father because I never saw him ride in a race.

BS: Speaking of jockeys, a certain Oisin Murphy is back next year.

PM: Listen, he's a brilliant rider. He's stayed here a few times this year and we've gone around looking at breeze-up horses together and things like that. Please God he can keep on the straight and narrow and realise his full potential because he's a wonderful rider. He's seriously gifted.

BS: That famous Kieran Fallon anecdote from an interview with David Walsh comes to mind. He described Pat Smullen as being “the person who gives his whole life to the job to the best of his ability,” before adding, “no distractions. Great professionalism. I don't know how they do it. I've had my quirks. Pat has had his tractors.”

PM: Oisin is not alone in that a lot of supremely talented people, be that riders, footballers, musicians, actors, whatever, seem to have a bit of a kink. My father certainly had one. He was incredibly religious. It's about channeling their talent as best they can. Sheikh Fahad, David Redvers and Andrew Balding, they've all been unbelievably patient with him and he's got a great support team. It's up to him now to make the most of it.

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