From new young stars in the Irish pipeline to a regally bred runner at Wolverhampton - Christmas horses to follow

If any British-based trainers felt as if they might have found a nice young horse with prospects for the spring festivals, they had better look away now. Another generation of talent is about to appear over the next few days, and most of them live in Ireland.

The Christmas meetings at the likes of Leopardstown and Limerick feature plenty of bumpers and novice hurdles. A frightening array of purchases from France and the point-to-point fields hold entries, unsurprisingly usually centred around the stables of Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott.

Kainsbourg (12.58 Limerick, Thursday) was the second top lot at Arqana's Autumn Sale last year, which is a particularly competitive auction of various types of horses in training. He joined JP McManus for the lofty fee of €355,000, owing to a combination of performance and pedigree.

Bred by the Devin family and sired by its all-conquering Doctor Dino, with good jumpers such as Musica Bella and Iris Bleu on the page, he had won both starts for his other part-breeder Francois Nicolle, including a Grade 3 AQPS bumper at Nantes not long before the sale. Kainsbourg has been sent to Elliott and there should be a bit of expectation about him.

Charlie Swan, who was representing McManus along with Hubert Barbe that day, said: "He's a fine big horse, he looks like a chaser so he's done well to do what he's done at three. They're never easy to get. He's a gorgeous-looking horse with plenty of size about him. He's by the right sire and out of a good broodmare sire in Poliglote, so you can't get much better than that."

Nicky Henderson still features at the top of the list when McManus assigns horses and the trainer will have familiarity with the family of Kientzheim (3.05 Kempton, Thursday).

This filly is a half-sister to Joyeuse, who represents the same connections and shaped as if she has plenty more to give this season when a good second to Wodhooh at Cheltenham recently.

Nicky Henderson is set to unveil his sister to Joyeuse, useful filly for JP McManus who is closely related to EpatanteCredit: Zuzanna LUPA

Kientzheim ought to have a bit more toe than her sibling, being by Zanzibari rather than No Risk At All, and showed plenty of speed in winning several AQPS bumpers early last year in decisive fashion.

Her dam was a winning half-sister to Epatante, who famously took the 2020 Champion Hurdle for Henderson and McManus and locked horns with the great Honeysuckle, arriving from a similar background.

Tony Bloom is just about the cleverest man in sport, let alone horseracing, and any move he makes in this sector tends to be worth noting. Like his Champion Chase flagbearer Energumene, Is This For Real (3.25 Aintree, Thursday) is a graduate from British point-to-pointing and had looked a smart prospect in striking for Tom and Gina Ellis at Thorpe Lodge.

The son of Vendangeur was bought at the Goffs UK Aintree Sale for £80,000 by Paddy Brennan and looks an interesting investment in the Fergal O'Brien stable, one that does very well in bumpers.

Back to Elliott, who has two others in his first wave of festive runners in Theflyingking and Bective Thunder (3.08 Down Royal, Thursday) up against each other. 

The former was a pricey store by the en vogue Jukebox Jury who won at odds-on in a Loughanmore point-to-point that looks reasonably strong, while the naming of the latter by Noel and Valerie Moran's Bective Stud is interesting.

He's a Mount Nelson sibling of Grangeclare West, an eye-watering £430,000 purchase by Cheveley Park who won a Grade 1 novice chase at Leopardstown this time a year ago.

Not all of these costly pointers will fulfil lofty hopes, but there is plenty of evidence in their favour in the Grade 1 Racing Post Long Distance Novice Chase (2.20, Leopardstown Thursday). Three of the four are not only trained by Elliott but bought at boutique sales for more than £300,000.

Better Days Ahead, Stellar Story and Croke Park all have good careers over fences ahead of them on early indications.

The trainer has made entries in the coming days for other notables, headed by Kovanis, who could be out a little earlier than anticipated having topped the Tattersalls Cheltenham November Sale at £330,000.

Now in the maroon silks of Gigginstown House Stud and from the debut crop of Haras de Cercy’s Tunis, he bolted up by ten lengths at Portrush in the middle of October for Gerald Quinn. A sibling of three other winners in France, he is distantly related to Grade 1 star Jonbon.

“He came well recommended,” said Elliott. “He looks a nice, big horse so he’s one to look forward to."

Exciting prospect Kovanis brought in £330,000 at TattersallsCredit: Debbie Burt

His former connections had bought Kovanis for £50,000 from the Bleahen family at last year’s Goffs UK Spring Store Sale, and Quinn described him after the sale as "a class act".

He said: "He’s always been a very relaxed horse and whenever you asked, he delivered. His home work was very good so we were expecting that sort of performance on his debut. You buy them as stores and you hope they’ll keep improving, but from day one he’s always shown his class."

The Queen Of Zim is among the early wave of Bective Stud homebreds and has had a strong standard set by her half-brother. This daughter of Getaway is a year younger than The Yellow Clay (by Yeats), who was sharp enough to win both of his first two starts in bumpers and later finished second to Redemption Day at Punchestown. 

The Yellow Clay has already worked his way up to Grade 1 engagements, having landed novice hurdles at Navan in both Grade 3 and Grade 2 company this season.

Mullins is, of course, mob-handed through this period and one to note when he runs is Final Demand, a son of Walk In The Park bred by the famed Ken Parkhill academy who cost Joey Logan and trainer Matty Flynn O'Connor a punchy €230,000 at last year's Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale.

Final Demand, seen when an in-demand store at last year's Tattersalls Ireland Derby SaleCredit: Healy Racing/Tattersalls Ireland

After an eyecatching six-length victory in a point-to-point at Lingstown, Final Demand did not go through the ring and you suspect it cost a pretty penny for the free-spending Professor Caroline Tisdall and Bryan Drew to acquire him.

Likewise, his stablemate Introversio is one for the notebook. Having been last seen through the ring when bought for €25,000 by Jonathan Fogarty and his Gaynestown Stud at the Goffs Arkle Sale, the daughter of Vadamos's half-sister Honky Tonk Highway has been very much on the right road for Dan Skelton.

Successful in a Listed bumper at Sandown in March, her first start for the operation after landing a Tattersalls bumper for Colin Bowe and changing hands for £165,000 through Tattersalls Cheltenham, she is now progressing well in novice hurdles and took the Listed Claremont Novices' Hurdle back at the Esher track this month. Their other sibling, Moon Over Mexico, was also a winner for both Bowe and Charlie Longsdon.

With the reputation of French jumps breeding at an all-time high, there will be widespread attention on the appearance of Nietzsche Has in the Grade 2 Coral Finale Juvenile Hurdle (1.40) at Chepstow on Friday.

The three-year-old son of Zarak, a Grade 3 winner and Grade 1 runner-up for trainer Marcel Rolland and Edward James's Highbourne Stud, has already been announced on the roster at Haras de Montaigu and plenty will be keen to see what you might get for his €7,000 fee.

Rolland said: "We decided on this race after he was second in the Cambaceres at Auteuil. His owner is English and it's a great pleasure for him to see the horse run in Britain. Also, for Haras de Montaigu, if he can win a Grade 2 over there, it adds to his profile internationally."

Wolverhampton's meeting on Friday, even with the rival attraction of some of the finest jump racing of the year, still has a colt entered with the pedigree to stop traffic.

Mallorca, set to carry the pink colours of Lord Lloyd-Webber for John and Thady Gosden, hails from the very best family created by Watership Down Stud. He is a Lope De Vega half-brother to a list headed by champion juvenile, multiple Group 1 winner and now one of the most in-demand sires in the world, Too Darn Hot.

The pair are, of course, bred out of champion racemare Dar Re Mi, who has also produced Middleton Stakes winner and Group 1-placed Lah Ti Dar and plenty of other decent winners.

Mallorca is a half-brother to top-class sire Too Darn HotCredit: Darley

Watership Down tends to offer its colts, an activity which has raised more than 5,000,000gns alone from Dar Re Mi. Mallorca was bought back for 400,000gns at Tattersalls Book 1 and has evidently been given plenty of time to turn into a racehorse for a late juvenile debut over an extended mile.

Even if Mallorca has inherited the ability only of his weakest siblings, it could still be enough for him to make his presence felt here.

The card at Dunstall Park could also feature a filly with regal connections in the earlier novice event over seven furlongs. Purple Rainbow, by Night Of Thunder, is from a family that served the late Queen well. 

Her dam, Daphne, won the Listed River Eden Fillies' Stakes at Lingfield over a mile and a half for Purple Rainbow's trainer William Haggas, and is a sibling of some other good ones in the royal colours, such as Bold Sniper, from a family that includes 2001 Oaks runner-up Flight Of Fancy.

Haggas was also the trainer of Purple Rainbow's half-sister by Le Havre, Perfect Alibi, who took another staying Listed event on her final start at Yarmouth a couple of years ago.

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