Trainer Cormac Farrell Buys Famous Copper Beech Stables

There is a new name over the door at Copper Beech Stables, one of the finest training establishments in Ireland, with trainer Cormac Farrell confirming that he has taken over the yard from Michael Halford.

It was last February when Halford, who had sent out almost 500 winners from Copper Beech Stables in 16 full seasons, including Group 1 scorer Casamento (Ire), announced that he had taken the decision to combine forces with Tracey Collins under the banner of Conyngham Lodge. 

Farrell, a respected trainer in his own right but perhaps best known for trading horses at the point-to-point and breeze-up sales, bought the property alongside business partner and well-known owner Douglas Taylor shortly after that announcement. 

The new owners are already up-and-running at Copper Beech Stables after Farrell sent out two winners on the track in recent months. However, the trainer explained that he will be concentrating predominantly on trading at the point-to-point and breeze-up sales rather than running horses from the famous yard for the foreseeable future.

He said, “Douglas and I are lucky that we were able to come in and buy Copper Beech Stables. It's an incredibly exciting venture and the facilities here are second to none. We have put our own stamp on the place and upgraded some of the facilities further with a schooling strip and a Wexford sand gallop to train the point-to-point horses. It's hugely exciting for us.”

Farrell, who used to form part of Leamore Horses alongside Anna Calder, enjoyed something of a banner first year when consigning under his own name as CF Bloodstock in 2023. He topped the Tattersalls Guineas Sale when his Zoffany (Ire) colt, later named Bracken's Laugh (Ire), sold for 200,000gns to Ted Durcan and Richard Hughes on behalf of Bernadine and Sean Mulryan. 

Bracken's Laugh: sold for 200,000gns | Tattersalls

Along with Bracken's Laugh, who was a stylish winner of his maiden on debut at Newbury and wasn't beaten far in a Group 1 on his only other start, Farrell secured some notable results at the Tattersalls Craven Sale when three horses sold for a combined figure of 510,000gns. 

“We've had some good horses through our hands and topped the Tattersalls Guineas Breeze-Up Sale last year,” he said. “That was my first year operating under my own name as CF Bloodstock so that meant a lot. Bracken's Laugh was bought by Ted Durcan and Richard Hughes and he could be a very nice horse going forward for connections.”

He added, “When Anna [Calder] and I had Leamore Horses, we met Douglas and have just been very lucky together. Douglas is rowing in alongside me on this venture and has invested in Copper Beech Stables. We've had some nice Jet Aways (GB) together and, the first one we bought, Jet Plane (Ire), has gone on to win plenty of races. Jet Powered (Ire) is another and, while he has had his issues, he could be a nice horse for Nicky Henderson.”

Farrell is said to have almost 60 horses fully moved into Copper Beech Stables, with the lion's share of those being prepared for the breeze-ups and the remainder for point-to-points. There are just a handful of horses to run on the track, but that is not to say the trainer would be against adding more numbers for that sphere in time.

He explained, “It's working well and, as I said, last year was my first operating under CF Bloodstock so hopefully we can build on it in 2024. Douglas is involved in many of our horses but we have lots of other investors, too. 

“We have a mixture of point-to-point and breeze-up horses here and, while we do run a few on the track, invariably they would be horses that either missed a sale or failed to sell for whatever reason. 

“I like to trade horses, predominantly, and, while we'd be open to taking more horses to train for the track, we're always looking at those who have some upside and might be traded on at some point. You have to do that in Ireland in order to survive.”

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Michael Halford Enters Training Partnership With Tracey Collins

Group 1-winning trainer Michael Halford has revealed that he is set to join forces with Tracey Collins and take out a joint-licence ahead of the new Flat season in March. 

Halford, whose Group 1 win was achieved with Casamento (Ire) in the Racing Post Trophy in 2010, has also enjoyed international success in Dubai as well as Royal Ascot glory in recent years from his Copper Beech Stables.

However, he is set to relocate from that purpose-built facility to Collins' Conyngham Lodge yard on the Curragh, where the pair will become just the second joint-licence holders in Ireland. 

Speaking about the move, Halford, who sent out 24 Flat winners last term, said, “The association between the Collins family and Irish racing goes back close to a century and is one of the proudest in our sport. I'm grateful, humbled and excited by the chance to train alongside Tracey at one of the most famous yards on the Curragh and look forward to starting this new chapter next month.”

Halford is one of the few trainers in Ireland to have sent out more than 1,000 winners. He has trained for some of the biggest owners in racing, including Godolphin and the Aga Khan, and his seasonal tally of winners has hit double figures every year since 1998. 

Tracey Collins | Racingfotos.com

Collins has enjoyed notable success in her own right, notably with stable star Captain Joy (Ire), and hails from a family steeped in Irish racing history. Her grandfather, M.C. Collins, sent out Windsor Slipper to win the Irish Triple Crown in 1942 and trained five Classic winners from Conyngham Lodge. Her father, Con, will forever be associated with Sandy Creek, the Classic-winning Princess Pati and the Moyglare S. heroine Chelsea Rose. 

Collins, who sent out two winners last term, commented, “There is a long and proud tradition here at Conyngham Lodge and I'm greatly looking forward to the next chapter in the yard's history by teaming up with Michael from the start of March. It's an exciting venture and one full of potential and I hope we have much to look forward to over the coming months and years.”

Father-and-son team Eddie and Patrick Harty are the only other joint-licence holders in Ireland but Danny Murphy is understood to be in the process of joining Kieran Cotter on the licence.

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Phil D’Amato Q&A: ‘You Don’t Have To Spend A Lot To Find A Going Global’

   One of the finest turf trainers in America, Phil D'Amato has done exceptionally well with his European imports in recent years, highlighted by Grade I winner Going Global and more recently American Oaks scorer Rhea Moon. 

   In this week's Q&A with Brian Sheerin, D'Amato explained how, with the help of Niall Dalton, Craig Rounsefell and BBA Ireland's Michael Donohoe, he has built one of the most competitive stables in America.  

   Read about his approach to finding 'diamonds in the rough' on a budget, his training methods and much more. 

Brian Sheerin: You do extremely well with your imports from Britain and Ireland. What is it that you look for in form horses when you go about recruiting them from Europe?

Phil D'Amato: There are a number of factors. First and foremost, you need a horse that you think will handle a firm turf course and you can gauge that by the tracks that they have been running at in Europe and how they are handling that. If you don't have a good gauge on how they would handle the American turf, then you can check how the pedigree has done in the States and if that suggests they are prone to do better on firm ground. Number two, they definitely need a turn of foot. All turf races over here, from the quarter pole home, you need to show a good turn of foot. I definitely like to see that over horses who are more staying types in Europe. Horses who go to the lead in Europe and try to make all, those horses don't tend to do well in America, you need something with acceleration. Those are the big things for us. Conformation is another. I don't think conformation plays as big a part in Europe, especially with the amount of homebreds that race and the forgiving training surfaces, but in the States, conformation plays a much bigger role as our courses are not as forgiving. You need a horse with good conformation over here, one that's going to hit the ground square, so that it will be able to stay sound for you. 

You've built up a top-class recruitment team with Michael Donohoe and Niall Dalton coming up with a lot of the goods. 

You have to give them a lot of credit. I've also had a lot of good luck with Craig Rounsefell-all of those gentlemen know what to look for. They are trying to find the diamond in the rough and prove that you don't have to spend a lot of money to find a Going Global (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}).They have good connections with the trainers and know who the sellers are. There are a lot of sellers in Britain and Ireland, as that's how a lot of these guys make their money given the prize-money over there, and not everyone can train for a Sheikh or somebody who is very wealthy. They need to trade so, in that respect, Niall, Michael and Craig know the people who will lead them the right way. They continue to buy horses from those people. 

And is it purely form horses that you buy from Europe or have you ever dipped your toe into breeze-up or even yearling markets?

We have bought a breeze-up horse or two but it's mostly horses who have run. I prefer to see a horse who has run at least twice and I am not a big fan of the horses who have run just once. To me, it seems like the horses who have run at least twice or more, they come over here to America and they seem to be hardier horses. You have a better handle on them and they tend to cope with the training better as well. They are better than the one-off horse who's run third or fourth. I just like horses who have been able to show their form a couple of times but, the flip side of that means that, getting to see a bit more often means that you have to pay that bit more. It has its pluses and minuses. 

I'd love to know what expectations you had for Going Global when you bought her after she won a Dundalk nursery off a mark of 70. Could you ever have envisaged that she'd improve to the level that she has?

Well, you know what, Michael Donohoe is really good friends with her former trainer Michael Halford, and we had bought horses from him before. Going Global had gotten sick previously and hadn't run well before she won at Dundalk but they had good reasons as to why she hadn't been running well. We knew that story coming into the race and then, when she did produce at Dundalk, it was time to strike. We had a little bit of extra insight into buying her and Halford liked the way that filly had been training for a while so he guided us in the right direction. That was the story there. 

You touched on the fact that a lot of trainers over here in Ireland where I am based, their business model accounts for trading horses, and Michael Halford would be up there with one of the best at that. Are there certain trainers you like to return to?

We have a good rapport with a lot of people and there are a lot of people who lead us the right way. It's the people who are going to leave a little extra in the tank who we are interested in buying off. That's the way I train my horses and I don't like to have them fully cranked first-time up. I like to let them develop through their races and I try to buy my horses off like-minded people. You need to try and buy a horse who is likely to continue to develop over here in the States. You know the yards that are crack first-time out specialists and I try to stay away from those trainers because all of their horses usually show everything they have first-time out. It's the guys who leave a little extra in the tank and like to let them develop race to race, those are the guys we like working with. 

What would be the key differences between the European horses compared to the American-breds who you have grown up with?

Size and conformation are the big things. To buy a dirt horse versus a grass horse, it's apples and oranges. You are looking at the horse totally differently. A dirt horse has a big thick bone, and a big hind end, gaskins and forearms, that can withstand training and pushing through the dirt. Your turf horse is a bit more angular, lighter of body and bone, just a little bit more agile. You need to put two different caps on when you are looking to buy a dirt horse versus a grass horse. 

And when it comes to acclimatising a European import, what is your approach to that?

They are all different and all treated as individuals. I like to gradually build them up and let them tell me when they are ready to do more and start breezing. Some horses take a month before you breeze them and others are ready to go within two weeks. They are all different. You can't put them in a cookie-cutter training style as they all needed to be treated differently. 

When you go down through the imports that you have done well with in America, there are no Galileos, Frankels or Dubawis in there, which makes the achievements all the more impressive. 

We mostly have horses by mid-range stallions, because we can afford them. We're not looking to buy a Galileo (Ire), Frankel (GB) or Dubawi (Ire) for half a million dollars, our budget is much less than that. Those are the stallions we look at, the ones that produce the goods but who are within our price range. We bought horses by Mehmas at the right time but now that stallion is moving up the ladder. It's all about leaving that to Michael and Niall, who are great at that. What's an advantage is, they work the yearling sales as well and watch these horses develop through all of the different yards. They have keen insights from when they hit the sales ground right up until when they race. That's a big advantage. 

American Oaks winner Rhea Moon (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) is the latest star European import to grab the headlines for your stable. How did she come on your radar? In many ways she was quite unexposed given she'd only had the two starts in Ireland for Ken Condon. 

She ran a really good second to a Juddmonte colt [Straight Answer (GB) (Kodiac {GB})] on her second start at the Curragh and that horse came out and won a stakes race not too long afterwards. She had good sneaky form in that she came out of a live race and ran a good second. Again, she came from a good yard that develops them the right way instead of having them cranked to the gills first-time out, so she looked a nice prospect. We went after her and thankfully we were able to get her.

You touched on how important a turn of foot is on the American turf racing scene. She showed that when winning the Oaks. Where next for her now?

She's in steady training right now and we will probably run her some time in March or April with a view towards a prep for the Gamely S., that's a Grade I, which we have in late April. Hopefully that will launch her 4-year-old campaign and lead us towards the Breeders' Cup in November. 

Given the prize-money situation in Britain and Ireland, have you had much interaction with owners from this part of the world who are interested in placing their horses in training directly with you rather than selling them abroad?

I actually have started to get overseas owners going that route as opposed to me buying them. We'll see how that goes. I got a filly sent to me, called With Love (GB) (Territories {Ire}), who is owned by Atomic Racing in Ireland. 

Look at a filly like Bellabel (Ire) (Belardo {Ire}); she won a race worth €6,490 on her final start for Jessica Harrington in Ireland but has won almost $200,000 in America which is borderline insane. 

She was another nice pick by Michael Donohoe. He has many clients who have horses in training with Jessica and she recommended us to buy her as the owner wanted to sell. We were in the right place at the right time. We gave her a little break and she'll also be back towards the end of the month. Hopefully she's another nice prospect for us. 

Has it been a conscious decision for you to concentrate on turf racing in America over the dirt?

The concentration on turf has really come down to budget. In America, if you want to compete with the Bob Bafferts, Todd Pletchers and Steve Asmussens of the world, it costs a lot of money. Those gentlemen have many million-dollar yearlings to work with and, to try and compete against that, you have to have a ginormous budget. I am lucky to have good owners with good budgets but nowhere near that. You can buy a good European horse for a fifth or a tenth of that price. It seems that, in turf racing, too, these horses seem to have a little more longevity and can be campaigned for an extra year or two. The racing is really more about that last quarter burst over the punishing grind from start to finish on dirt. That's why these horses seem to last longer and get the chance to develop into stakes horses or, for the fillies, into breeding prospects. 

Where do you see the future of turf racing in America? It seems to be expanding and growing so it could be an exciting position to be in.

I really see that. I see an expansion of turf racing across the country for many of those reasons; the longevity of the horses and people seem to like the last quarter mile compared to dirt races that can be decided right out of the gate sometimes. People like to enjoy seeing their horses run over a long period of time and so turf racing fits that category. 

Could we ever see a Phil D'Amato-trained runner at Royal Ascot?

One day. That definitely is a dream. I know Wesley Ward has been successful at Royal Ascot. You definitely need to bring the right horse but, one day, it would be a dream for me to do something like that.

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