Author: Con

Sunday’s meeting at Auteuil provided Martaline with a wide margin Grade 1 winner and a Listed winner over hurdles. Martaline’s fine run of late, as ever, bodes well for his half-brother PILLAR CORAL, whose first foals were born this year.

They make their first sales ring appearance at the upcoming November NH Sale at Tattersalls Ireland, where he has seven foals catalogued. Pillar Coral has stamped his stock, with six of those catalogued being bay colts.

They include a half-brother to Ballinsker, who sold for £90,000 after winning a four-year-old maiden, and another out of a half-sister to Three Musketeers and Royal Regatta. The brown filly, meanwhile, is out of a half-sister to Galway Hurdle winner Tudor City and Cork Grand national victor Our Monty.

SAN PABLO provided recent Kilbarry Lodge Stud acquisition Joshua Tree with a timely success in Saturday’s Prix de Chambier at Durtal.

The Henri-Alex Pantall-trained three-year-old defied top weight in the ten furlong contest and thus gained the second success of his career.

Owned and bred by Joshua Tree’s previous base Haras du Grand Courgeon, San Pablo hails from his sire’s first crop.

Kilbarry Lodge Stud are delighted to announce that JOSHUA TREE, a Grade 1 winning son of Montjeu, will join their roster for the 2020 season.

Previously based at Haras du Grand Courgeon, his first crop are now three-year-olds. Speaking to the Racing Post, Kilbarry’s Con O’Keeffe commented, “We’re delighted to stand Joshua Tree at Kilbarry Lodge Stud and we hope he’ll be very popular with Irish National Hunt breeders. He’s a lovely, attractive horse by Montjeu. He was an incredibly sound horse who was a Group 2 winner at Ascot at two and was still going strong as a six-year-old when winning the Canadian International for the third time.”

O’Keeffe added, “He has eight three-year-old winners to date and has large crops of two-year-olds, yearlings and foals to follow.” Joshua Tree’s stock should improve with age, given that he won the Grade 1 Canadian International Stakes as a three, five and six-year-old. He also won the Group 2 Prix Kergorlay over a mile and seven furlongs as a five-year-old and the Group 2 Royal Lodge Stakes at two.

Sons of Montjeu have made a promising start at stud, with exciting national hunt sires including Walk In The Park, Scorpion, Jukebox Jury, the late Fame And Glory.

MONSIEUR LECOQ provided his sire Diamond Boy with a fine start to the 2019/2020 national hunt season when taking the Welsh Champion Hurdle on his seasonal return.

A dual winner and Grade 3 placed last season, the Jane Williams owned and trained bay faced nine rivals in the two mile contest. Ridden to chase the leaders by Chester Williams, he gained a narrow lead at the third last and was ridden from the second last. Digging deep under pressure on the run-in, he denied multiple Graded winner Le Prezien narrowly on the line, the pair finishing six lengths clear of the favourite in third.

The winning jockey commented after the race, “We were confident that Monsieur Leqoc had come on from last year as he is only a 5yo. This is a very nice race to win but I don’t know where he night go next. We had considered sending him chasing but I suspect he will stay hurdling now.”

Bred by Jean-Charles Haimet and J-Pascal Liberge, Monsieur Lecoq sold for €31,000 as a yearling.

Diamond Boy’s first Irish foal crop make their sales ring debut at the upcoming November NH Sale at Tattersalls Ireland.

The Francois Nicolle-trained FELISSA (Diamond Boy) completed a hat-trick of wins when taking the Prix Louis Dubourg at Jarnac on Sunday.

It marked a returned to hurdles, having scored over steeplechase fences twice last month, with Lea Suisse back aboard for her latest start. She led from the second flight, extending her advantage to two lengths from halfway and quickened when challenged by Potemkine two furlongs out. The rest of the field struggled as the leading pair turned for home, the grey running on well under hands and heels to win by three lengths, with all of 30 lengths back to the third horse.

Felissa was bred by SASU Hambletonian and races in a partnership of her trainer and Jean-Luc Henry. She becomes the second winner out of her dam Nauzaca, herself a Listed performer over steeplechase fences.

DAGOBOY (Diamond Boy) extended his unbeaten record to three when taking the Prix de Bourbon-Busset over hurdles at Vichy on Sunday.

Successful on debut as a three-year-old, the now five-year-old made an overdue return last month and impressed with a winning margin of 11 lengths. Bertrand Lestrade kept the ride on Sunday and positioned him to track the leaders until asserting at halfway. Picking up the pace along the back straight, he ran on well when challenged at the final flight and scored by two and a half lengths.

Trained by Guillaume Macaire for Haras de Montgermont and breeder Olivier Tricot, Dagoboy is a half-brother to the Listed-placed Bathilde.

FELISSA (Diamond Boy) ran out an impressive winner of the Prix du President Georges Ridel, a steeplechase for four-year-old maidens at Questembert on Sunday.

The Francois Nicolle-trained mare was making her chase debut, having shown promise on her two previous starts over hurdles and was stepping up to two miles and two and a half furlongs on her latest start.

Tracking the leader for much of the way, her pilot Lea Suisse remained patient as the field bunched together along the back straight and was travelling well in the leading trio as they turned for home. The grey asserted the advantage entering the straight and ran on well under hands and heels to score by seven lengths.

Felissa was bred by SASU Hambletonian and races in a partnership of her trainer and Jean-Luc Henry. She becomes the second winner out of her dam Nauzaca, a Listed performer over steeplechase fences herself.

The Francois Nicolle-trained OTCHOA ROUGE (Diamond Boy) defied a long lay-off to run out a comfortable winner of the Prix Etienne Balsan at Compiegne on Wednesday.

Placed on both his previous starts, the bay was last seen chasing home Adjali last April, with the winner since placed in two Grade 1 contests. On his latest start, he led from the final flight and was pushed out by Gaetan Masure to score by three lengths.

Owned by Madame Patrick Papot and bred by X. Leredde, Otchoa Rouge is closely related to Oliver Sherwood’s five-time winner Rouge Et Blanc and is a half-brother to the same owner’s Listed winner Red Name.

PRECIOUS CARGO continued a terrific week for Kilbarry Lodge Stud when running out an impressive winner of the two mile Novices’ Hurdle at Sandown on Friday.

Sent off favourite for his winning hurdle debut in January, the Nicky Henderson-trained colt was once again ridden by Nico de Boinville. Held up in midfield, the six-year-old made good progress from three out and led soon after, drawing clear with minimum fuss to score by eight lengths on the line.

Henderson commented after the race, “Precious Cargo is a fine beast and a bit of a bruiser of a horse and he’s just messing around over hurdles this season, but it is exciting to think what he could do over a fence. He could be a Cheltenham horse this time next year but at the moment he still has a lot to learn.”

The Thomas Barr-owned gelding was bred Con O’Keeffe and is a half-brother to Embittered, who finished third in a Grade 2 bumper last month. Their dam, Kilbarry Classic (Classic Cliche), won a bumper herself and is a granddaughter of Listed hurdle winner Tropical Lake.

KILBARRY CALLING made it two winners in three days for the Con O’Keeffe stable when taking the EBF Mares Beginners Chase at Thurles on Thursday.

The Kilbarry-bred mare finished a close second at Leopardstown on Monday and dropped back in trip to two miles and two furlongs on her latest start. Tracking the leader under Davy Russell, she jumped well throughout and led from the third last fence. Pushed out in the straight, she held off a challenge by A Girl Like Me to win by three parts of a length, with another seven and a half lengths back to the third horse.

O’Keeffe, who trains the winner for Mrs O’Keeffe and Tadhg O’Sullivan, later commented, “It is great to get a win with her and her sister won for us as well. She is a huge mare and if anyone wants to buy her all the better.”

The sister in question, Kilbarry Cushty (Classic Cliche), won a maiden hurdle, while Kilbarry Lodge Stud sold a half-brother at last year’s November NH Sale for €27,000 to Richard Rohan. Their dam is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Racing Demon and to the dam of Irish Grand National third Abolitionist. The top-class Merry Gale and Brave Inca feature further down the page.