Little-known trainer's joy as Willie Mullins swoops to buy stable star for £300k

Daily Mirror

22-05-2025

Mullins bought Poetisa from Toby Bulgin at the Doncaster's Goffs UK Spring Horses in Training and Point-to-Point Sale. The mare is set to join horses like Grand National hero Nick Rockett and dual Gold Cup winner Galopin Des Champs at Closutton
A trainer with only a dozen horses to compete is celebrating after Willie Mullins swooped to buy his stable star for £300,000. The all-conquering handler was determined to secure Poetisa, a first time out winner for Toby Bulgin at Cheltenham's April Meeting.
Mullins had to fend off rival Nicky Henderson in a bidding war at Doncaster's Goffs UK Spring Horses in Training and Point-to-Point Sale on Wednesday. Represented by talent scout Harold Kirk, the Closutton maestro forked out an extra £10,000 to prevent the 20-1 scorer from going to Seven Barrows.
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"It was beyond our wildest dreams to have Willie Mullins and Nicky Henderson bidding against each other for our horse," said Bulgin, who returned to winning ways in 2021 after a 32-year break from racing.
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"I think she is an absolute star and had been working so well on the run up to Cheltenham."
Over the years, Kirk has sourced numerous stars for Mullins, including Hurricane Fly - who gained legendary status with a record 22 victories at Grade One level - and 11-time top flight hero Faugheen.
Bulgin and his wife Nicola bought Poetisa from last year's Goffs Doncaster Spring Store Sale for only £42,000 and brought her along steadily. But impressive homework saw her start out at Prestbury Park with three-time champion jockey Brian Hughes in the saddle.
Settled in midfield, the daughter of Poet's Word overcame trouble-in-running in a fiercely competitive event to score in determined fashion. Poetisa is now set to join current Mullins-trained stars like Grand National titleholder Nick Rockett and dual Gold Cup winner Galopin Des Champs at his stables in Ireland.
"We took her to Kempton and Newbury on the run up to the race," said Bulgin, a former jockey who went straight from boarding school to take a job with Sir Mark Prescott in 1976.
"She has so much natural ability and it was tempting to go for the Grade Two bumper at Aintree, but we decided Cheltenham wouldn't be so much of an ask.
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"Brian said he would leave it late and it was really exciting to see her get to the front up the hill."
The couple, who farmed cattle and sheep for many years in Norfolk, have eight three-year-olds at home in Lambourn, with five yet to be broken in.
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Many years ago Toby Bulgin left racing and gained a role in a company which manufactured electrical components, earning money to support his family.
In 2021 he returned to his beloved sport after more than three decades away when Luckofthedraw hit the target in a Fontwell chase.
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"I was always going to come back to it," he said. "We usually have a dozen horses in training and others to break in.
"Selling Poetisa helped to pay last year's bills - with feed, farriers and so on it is an expensive business. We also found a nice horse for Paul Nolan called Rue Taylor, who has won maiden and novice hurdles in Ireland.
"The feeling at the sales is a mixture of nerves and excitement. It is also a relief when the right faces appear at the ringside and you get a result."
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Kirk admitted he had to dig a little deeper than he had expected to secure Poetisa, bred by Reamonn and Shauna Rice from Chars, an Old Vic half-sister to the top-class hurdler Macs Joy.
'I thought she'd make between £200,000 and £250,000, but there's always going to be somebody else on a horse like this," he said.
"If you're up against Nicky Henderson, you're going to have to be strong. I thought she was the standout here today. I hope she's lucky now.'