Latest news with #IlEtaitTemps
Irish Daily Mirror
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
The €800 horse Hewick travelling to France for chance at huge pot
Hewick is off on his travels again as he bids to go one better than last year in the Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil, the French Champion Hurdle. Shark Hanlon's 2023 King George winner finished second to Losange Bleu 12 months ago and the pair are on course to meet again on May 17. Should he run well, then Hanlon will give serious consideration to another crack at America's Grand National Hurdle Stakes, which he won in 2022. 'We are definitely going to France. He is in great form,' said Hanlon, who also saddled Hewick to finish fourth behind Theleme at Auteuil in 2023. 'After France, he will get his break and we'll make a decision – I'd love to go back to America. I'll have talks with the owners and see what they want to do. 'There are a few good pots around this year too, so we will wait and see. 'We have no decision on who is going to ride him yet, we will sit down and talk about it.' With regards the Auteuil feature, Willie Mullins has entered Il Etait Temps, who returned to action with a sensational win at Sandown on the last day of the season, while Joseph O'Brien could run Home By The Lee. Sign up to our horse racing newsletter here to get news direct to your inbox.
RTÉ News
06-05-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Hewick set for another French Champion Hurdle tilt
Hewick is off on his travels again as he bids to go one better than last year in the Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil, the French Champion Hurdle. Shark Hanlon's 2023 King George winner finished second to Losange Bleu 12 months ago and the pair are on course to meet again on 17 May. The 10-year-old recently finished eight in the Aintree Grand National. Should he run well, then Hanlon will give serious consideration to another crack at America's Grand National Hurdle Stakes, which he won in 2022. "We are definitely going to France. He is in great form," said Hanlon, who also saddled Hewick to finish fourth behind Theleme at Auteuil in 2023. "After France, he will get his break and we'll make a decision - I'd love to go back to America. I'll have talks with the owners and see what they want to do. "There are a few good pots around this year too, so we will wait and see. "We have no decision on who is going to ride him yet, we will sit down and talk about it." With regards the Auteuil feature, Willie Mullins has entered Il Etait Temps, who returned to action with a sensational win at Sandown on the last day of the season in the UK, while Joseph O'Brien could run Home By The Lee.
South Wales Argus
06-05-2025
- Sport
- South Wales Argus
Hewick on course for another French Champion Hurdle bid
Shark Hanlon's 2023 King George winner finished second to Losange Bleu 12 months ago and the pair are on course to meet again on May 17. Should he run well, then Hanlon will give serious consideration to another crack at America's Grand National Hurdle Stakes, which he won in 2022. 'We are definitely going to France. He is in great form,' said Hanlon, who also saddled Hewick to finish fourth behind Theleme at Auteuil in 2023. 'After France, he will get his break and we'll make a decision – I'd love to go back to America. I'll have talks with the owners and see what they want to do. 'There are a few good pots around this year too, so we will wait and see. 'We have no decision on who is going to ride him yet, we will sit down and talk about it.' With regards the Auteuil feature, Willie Mullins has entered Il Etait Temps, who returned to action with a sensational win at Sandown on the last day of the season, while Joseph O'Brien could run Home By The Lee.
Irish Times
27-04-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Willie Mullins targeting big domestic finale at Punchestown with British title under his belt
Willie Mullins is 11-8 favourite to be British champion trainer again next year, although pointing that out to him might provoke a blunt response. Amid the triumph of a second successive cross-channel championship at Sandown on Saturday the Irishman admitted to a sense of relief at it all being over. As expected, jump racing's dominant figure timed his challenge to perfection by overhauling the luckless Dan Skelton on the final day to ultimately land the title by £199,508 (nearly €232,000). Mullins ended the cross-channel season with prize money of £3,570,991 – over €4.1 million. READ MORE Valuable victories for Gaelic Warrior and Il Etait Temps swung the verdict in Mullins's direction before his horses finished second, third, fourth and fifth in the bet365 Gold Cup, won by Resplendent Grey. Just to seal the point, his runner Jump Allen beat a Skelton favourite in the concluding handicap hurdle. 'See you next year – same time, same place!' a gracious Skelton said in congratulations to Mullins who emulated the legendary Vincent O'Brien who also won the British title back-to-back 70 years ago. A campaign highlighted by his son Patrick landing the Aintree Grand National on Nick Rockett will continue at home this week with the five-day Punchestown festival, although Mullins was clearly relieved to have put the British championship to bed. Dan Skelton congratulates Willie Mullins at Sandown on Saturday. Photograph: David Davies/PA Wire for The Jockey Club 'I haven't read a paper for the last four days as there was so much stuff going on and I couldn't look at the TV or read any of the racing papers. I tried to keep away from it all or you couldn't get through it and I'm sure Dan was the same. 'It's a very public place and it's been great publicity for the sport rather than great for the protagonists. It's been tough mentally, but I'm sure it's tougher today for Dan than me,' he said. 'I'm very happy to have won it for a second time but it was probably sweeter to win it first time. But the horses have had to run out of their skin, and they have been since Christmas. Thankfully we've been in form at the right time. I won't be making any predictions about next year!' he added. Paddy Power aren't so hesitant and make the Irishman an 11-8 favourite to complete a hat-trick in 2026. Skelton is a 7-4 next best. Mullins will pick up a 19th Irish title when the domestic season concludes at Punchestown on Saturday with over €4.4 million already in the bag and almost sure to expand considerably this week. Over €3.5 million in prize money is available over the 40 races up for grabs, which include a dozen Grade One contests. In 2021 Mullins saddled the winners of 19 festival races and last year wound up Punchestown with a record 39 top-flight successes that season. He ended the 2023-24 Irish season with just over €7 million in prize money. He has made 17 declarations for Tuesday's opening day festival action including Fact To File who will take on the two-mile title holder Marine Nationale in the featured €300,000 William Hill Champion Chase. The exciting Cheltenham Festival winner Kopek Des Bordes will have a handful of opponents, including a trio of stable companions, in the KPMG Champion Hurdle. Champion jockey-elect Paul Townend has opted for Ballyburn rather four other Mullins runners in the Dooley Insurance Champion Novice Chase.
Irish Independent
26-04-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
‘I feel sorry for Dan' – Willie Mullins with words of sympathy for his rival as he defends UK trainers' championship
The master of Closutton became the first Irish-based handler since Vincent O'Brien in the 1950s to lift the UK jumps trophy on the closing afternoon of last season and came out on top once again after a titanic tussle with Skelton which went down to the final throes of the campaign. Skelton started the day over £68,000 in front of Mullins, but an easy win for Oaksey Chase favourite Gaelic Warrior and then a surprise as Il Etait Temps toppled the odds-on Jonbon in Celebration Chase saw the defending champion seize control. Training the second, third, fourth and fifth-placed horses in the bet355 Gold Cup set the seal on another success for Mullins, with Skelton having to settle for second again. Mullins had trailed his rival at every stage of the campaign, but his usual strong Cheltenham performance was supplemented by Nick Rockett leading a one-two-three in the Grand National at Aintree and Captain Cody taking home another big pot in the Scottish National at Ayr. That put him firmly on the hunt for a title defence, with both trainers taking in the likes of big meetings at Cheltenham, Perth and Plumpton as well as less high-profile cards to chase the money – a pursuit Mullins is relieved is now over. He said: 'It's relief and it's been tough work the last few weeks. 'I feel sorry for Dan who has been leading the whole way and then we've had a fantastic last few months which made this a possibility. 'It's tough when you are beaten in almost a photo finish but we're very happy to win. I know what the last few weeks have been like for me and Dan will have been hoping for the best and it's tough, you win some you lose some.' The title battle has captured the headlines in recent days, but Mullins has preferred not to pay too much attention. He said: 'I haven't read a paper for the last four days as there was so much stuff going on and I couldn't look at the TV or read any of the racing papers – I tried to keep away from it all or you couldn't get through it and I'm sure Dan was the same. ADVERTISEMENT 'It's a very public place and it's been great publicity for the sport rather than great for the protagonists. It's been tough mentally, but I'm sure it's tougher today for Dan than me.' O'Brien, who went on to dominate as a Flat handler, was a dual British jumps champion and Mullins feels the initial achievement last year possibly meant more. He added: 'I'm very happy to have won it for a second time but it was probably sweeter to win it the first time, but the horses have had to run out of their skin and they have been since Christmas. Thankfully we've been in form at the right time. I won't be making any predictions about next year! 'I'm happy for all our horses and connections who have allowed us to bring their horses to England and it shows they are all sportsman and all good people to have on your side. It's who I like training for – good people who are good for the sport. I'm lucky to have a lot of those people. 'It's out of this world to be thinking that I have done similar to Vincent O'Brien, but then he went and did it again on the Flat which I can assure you I won't – I'm very happy doing what I am doing and lucky to have the team that I have, starting with Jackie my wife and then the whole way down, I'm thrilled.'
