F EATURE SPOTLIGHT ON TRAINERS
McFabulous “We decided to stick with him over hurdles last season, rather than going chasing. I think he’s slightly better going right-handed. Like Bravemansgame, he’ll start small and get a bit of experience into him. He’s another that could end up at Kempton on Boxing Day, though I’d like to try and keep him and Bravemansgame apart where possible. He’s a lovely horse and I’m sure we haven’t seen the best of him yet. We’ll make sure he does plenty of schooling, but I don’t see jumping a fence being a problem for him this season.”
Bravemansgame “He had a fantastic season. He started off just getting beaten at Chepstow, but he needed that for a little bit of experience. Then he won his next three starts, including the Challow Hurdle at Newbury. He ran very well at Cheltenham and at Aintree, where he got the extended three-mile trip well. For a young horse to be placed at both Cheltenham and Aintree was good. We’ll start him off novice chasing over two-and-a-half miles. We could look at the Kauto Star Novices’ Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day.”
Paso Doble “It’s hard just picking five, but I think Paso Doble is worth a mention – he’s a lovely horse. We got him from Jim Bolger, and he ran well on his debut for us. He was as green as grass, but he ran on strongly. We left him until 1 May, so will be a novice all next season, and he bolted in at Kempton. The plan is to aim at the better novice hurdles. He’s big, scopey and has a huge engine. You never know what is in the locker.”
HENRY DE BROMHEAD
Minella Times “Winning the Randox Grand National still hasn’t sunk in. I’ve grown up watching it, and having won it, I have to pinch myself. It was
fantastic to win with a JP McManus horse and for Rachael to become the first female rider to win – she was brilliant. It was Frank Berry – Racing Manager to JP McManus – who said to me after he was second in the Paddy Power Chase that he could be a National horse. He ticked a lot of boxes and although
we hadn’t tried him over that sort of trip, it worked. Winning the National is unique, and when you have a horse that fits the bill it’s great. I’ve not spoken to JP’s team about this year – we’ll talk soon about a plan for this season.”
THE JOCKEYCLUB . CO . UK 25
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