Cheltenham - More than luck of the Irish?
The Facts
Although the Irish were expected to have the upper hand at The Cheltenham Festival last month, it is probably fair to say that no one was predicting the level of supremacy shown, hindsight is a wonderful thing but the writing has been on the wall for a while. Since the middle of the last decade, racehorses trained in Ireland have become increasingly dominant at Cheltenham, with more winners coming from Ireland in 5 of the past 6 seasons. It is no surprise therefore, that the leading trainer award has also gone to Ireland every year in the past decade, except for 2012 when it was won by Nicky Henderson. The facts from this year couldn’t paint a clearer picture. The Irish won 23 of the 28 races, including all 4 Championship events, 6 of the 8 novice contests, 7 of the 9 handicaps and the bumper. Worryingly, it could have been worse for the home team, as Irish trainers were responsible for 17 of the 20 beaten favourites and 60% of the placed horses.
Not surprisingly, there has been an outcry from trainers, owners and commentators in Britain, all demanding change. Dan Skelton described Cheltenham as the perfect illustration that NH racing in Britain is on the slide. Richard Forristal of the Racing Post was even more scathing calling the Festival mauling “the consequence of British Racing’s shocking race to the bottom”.
The Cause
No one is seriously suggesting that the Irish trainers are better than their British counterparts. Therefore, the focus has been on the difference in quality of the horses trained in Ireland. Many theories have been put forward but by far the most common is that the discrepancy in prize money leads to the best horses racing in Ireland. Analysis by Pro-form Racing shows the average winner of a NH race in Britain receives £6,412, compared to £10,169 in Ireland (a difference of 59%). Further, the minimum prize-money level in Ireland is Euro 10,000 per race, which in Britain is the equivalent of Class 3. Ruby Walsh identified paltry prize money in the UK as a key factor when asked about the Cheltenham results on ITV Racing. British-based bloodstock agent Tom Malone, whose past purchases include Gold Cup winner Native River and Envoi Allen, points to the fact that many wealthy owners, including those in the UK, are increasingly looking to Ireland, where the rewards are better and the costs cheaper. When you look at the top owners in NH racing, the simple fact is that increasingly many elect to have their horses trained in Ireland.
However, it would be wrong to consider prize money as the only factor. Many in the industry look to the bigger, stronger breeding industry that exists in Ireland and also the excellent Irish Point to Point structure, as the foundation for the quality of Irish horses. Three times more NH foals were born in Ireland than Britain last year and these young horses are developed through a competitive Point to Point programme, which acts as a nursery for finding and developing equine talent. Compare this approach to Point to Point racing in Britain, which is largely an amateur, recreational affair. This recipe for success appears to be supported by the results at Cheltenham last month, with no less than 13 former pointers winning races, including 8 Grade 1 victories. With the wealthy owners increasingly choosing to race in Ireland, these Point to Point winners now fetch the type of sales price that was once considered the exclusive domain of Flat racing. Monkfish the winner of the Brown Advisory and Sir Gerhard, who won the Cheltenham bumper, were sold for £235,000 and £400,000 respectively having both won an Irish Point to Point races. It seems that increasingly, it is the Irish owners and agents who are operating at the top end of the market.
The simple fact is that the best NH racehorses are in Ireland. Its no great secret that the best racehorses cost the most money and the most money is being spent by racehorse owners who want their horses trained in Ireland, where the programme is structured to support excellence. Compare this to Britain where racing is organised to promote betting and fund the levy. This inevitably means as many fixtures and races as possible and is a clear case of prioritising quantity over quality, both in terms of horses and competition.
The Surrey Racing View
Surrey Racing syndicate owners have enjoyed NH success with Nicky Henderson, Warren Greatrex and Dan Skelton and we will continue to support leading British trainers. After all, most of our NH racehorse owners are based in the UK and understandably want to watch their horses as often as possible. However, we are an ambitious racehorse syndicate and will continue to buy NH store horses that have the potential to compete at the major Festivals, such as Cheltenham and Aintree. In reality, there seems little prospect of material change in Britain but it won’t stop us living the dream and we know our NH trainers will be doing all they can, both on and off the course, to reverse what for the time being looks like an uphill struggle.