Gordon Elliott enjoyed a milestone final day of Leopardstown’s Christmas festival as Brighterdaysahead gave him a 100th Grade One career success in Sunday’s feature.
Carrying the colours of Michael O’Leary’s Gigginstown Stud, Brighterdaysahead routed her opposition by 30 lengths in the €150,000 Neville Hotels Hurdle.
Billed as a head-to-head with the reigning Champion Hurdle winner State Man, it turned into a scintillating solo show that might persuade Elliott and O’Leary to target their star mare at Constitution Hill in Cheltenham’s championship in March.
Numerical evidence that Elliott gets such calls right much more often than wrong had come earlier in Leopardstown’s opener. Another Gigginstown runner, The Enabler, became the Co Meath trainer’s 2,000th National Hunt winner in Ireland.
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“You dream about doing something like that, but it’s a testament to all the owners and our staff,” said Elliott.
There was no shaking Brighterdaysahead’s status as centrepiece, though. And considering how precarious Elliott’s career looked just three years ago, she was an aptly named winner to bring up the ‘century’ landmark.
The ramifications of a notorious image resulting in a six-month license suspension prompted a period of public notoriety that took Elliott to some dark places as he contemplated his future.
Crucial to his return was O’Leary’s staunch support and the Ryanair boss made a rare appearance on Friday to welcome home the landmark winner.
“It’s good to get if for the lads (Michael and Eddie O’Leary) who’ve supported me through thick and thin,” said Elliott. “I’ve got a brilliant bunch of owners, great staff, but these men have backed me the whole way.”
Elliott had already won a Grand National through Silver Birch (2007) before lifting his first Grade One through Jessie’s Dream 14 years ago. His meteoric run of top-flight success since then has only been eclipsed by his great rival Willie Mullins.
“I’m very proud to be associated with Gordon and Cullentra and 100 Grade Ones is a remarkable achievement in such a short period of time,” said O’Leary.
However, the nature of how the most important race is the next one meant O’Leary and Eliott were quickly quizzed about Brighterdaysahead and Cheltenham.
Her only defeat in 10 starts came at last year’s festival and much of the coming weeks will centre on what race she lines up in. She and Lossiemouth dominate the Mares Hurdle betting but are also rated as Constitution Hill’s main threat in the Champion.
“I just want to have a winner on the Tuesday at Cheltenham, whichever race that is,” said Elliott. “We’ll enjoy today and make a plan. I don’t see why we wouldn’t go to the Dublin Racing Festival (Irish Champion Hurdle) but let’s see.”
O’Leary flexed his inner-Grinch and grinned: “I’d go for the Mares Hurdle! But we’ll have a chat about it closer to Cheltenham. Ultimately Gordon and Eddie will probably decide, and I’ll be overruled!”
Doubts about the form of Mullins’s runners looked justified as State Man could never get close to the pace set by Brighterdaysahead’s stable companion King Of Kingsfield. The only blip in a tactical master plan was the latter’s mistake at the third last as nothing else landed a blow.
“Never travelling,” was Paul Townend’s summation and State Man was run out of second by his 66/1 stable companion Winter Fog. Mullins failed to land a winner on Sunday and his overall Christmas tally was seven compared to 16 in 2023.
Separately, Rachael Blackmore returned to the winners’ enclosure for the first time since mid-September, guiding French recruit July Flower to Grade Three success in the Mares Hurdle.
Having come back from a serious neck injury earlier this month, Blackmore endured a fallow Christmas period until July Flower’s winning Irish debut.
Having gone through the sales ring at over €400,00 on the back of finishing third in the French Champion Hurdle during the summer, Henry De Bromhead’s runner proved much too strong for Kala Conti in the closing stages.
It was a timely boost for Blackmore, who said: “I was off for a long time. It’s brilliant to get back doing what you want to be doing.
“The doctors were, rightly so, very cautious, but I’ve been very lucky with some fantastic consultants. And our chief medical officer is just so good at her job, we’re very lucky and the Injured Jockeys’ Fund are so good to us.
“I kept, stupidly, setting myself an unachievable target. But being back for Christmas is important so at least I’m back for that.”
There was no fairy-tale final ride for Daryl Jacob in the €100,000 handicap hurdle as Mr Percy was unplaced behind the 20/1 winner Al Gasparo. Another 20/1 surprise came in the novice handicap hurdle when Ol Man Dingle proved a dominant winner under jockey Ricky Doyle.
An official attendance of 62,748 was recorded across the four days of the Christmas festival, up 699 on the 2023 tally. Sunday’s crowd of 10,838 was down from 11,804 last year.
The biggest single attendance over the festival was 17,735 on Day Two. Saturday’s programme, featuring Galop Des Champs’ Savills Chase victory, was watched by 17,156 people, an 8.7 per cent jump on the corresponding 2023 figure.
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