RACING:WITH HURRICANE Fly's Irish Champion Hurdle success already under his belt, Willie Mullins is now targeting a little bit of history in Sunday week's Hennessy Gold Cup at Leopardstown.
No trainer has ever pulled off the double of Ireland’s major winter racing prizes but Mullins has six Hennessy successes under his belt already and is aiming the Grade One pair Kempes and Cooldine at the upcoming €180,000 highlight.
“It would be a very nice double to pull off,” admitted the champion trainer who has three entries left in the Hennessy. “I doubt Barker would run but Kempes was running a nice race the last day and could improve on nicer ground. Cooldine just has to find his form again.”
Kempes was getting into contention in the Lexus Chase when unseating Tony McCoy at the second-last fence last month in a race that Cooldine was pulled up in.
Mullins pulled off a Hennessy four-timer with Florida Pearl (1999, 2000, 2001 and 2004) and also scored with Alexander Banquet (2002) and Rule Supreme (2005.) He had endured a blank, however, in the Irish Champion Hurdle up to Sunday when Hurricane Fly routed his opposition to copper-fasten his position as Ireland’s leading hope for championship honours at Cheltenham.
Pre-race concerns about a heel problem proved unfounded as the son of Montjeu beat his old rival Solwhit by three and a half lengths.
“He is a little stiff after it but he seems alright and we’re happy enough with him,” Mullins reported yesterday. “He will have a little break now and that will clear up that heel problem. We didn’t get a chance to let him fully recover before because we didn’t have the opportunity to stop between races before.”
Another Mullins star set to appear at Leopardstown on Hennessy day is Mikael D’Haguenet who is likely to line up in the Grade One Dr PJ Moriarty Chase over an extended two and a half miles. The former top novice hurdler was out of the frame over two miles behind Realt Dubh over Christmas and before that had fallen at the last in the Drinmore.
“I think the Moriarty is where he will run next,” Mullins said yesterday.
It will be a third Grade One start in a row for Mikael D’Haguenet over fences in Ireland. The former Cheltenham and Punchestown Festival winner also holds an entry in the World Hurdle at Cheltenham in March.
Dunguib’s Cheltenham target remains the Champion Hurdle despite having to miss the Irish Champion at the weekend due to poor blood results five days before the race. Trainer Philip Fenton will now target the Red Mills Hurdle at Gowran on February 12th. “He’s grand, he’s fine. He appears to be responding to the antibiotics, so now hopefully he’ll run in the Red Mills,” said Fenton yesterday. “Hopefully we’ll get him there in good order and the idea after that at the moment is to go to Cheltenham.”
Dunguib hasn’t been seen in public since finishing out of the money behind Hurricane Fly and Solwhit at last April’s Punchestown festival.
