Saturday will see a handful of Irish-trained horses endeavouring to shift the historical trend at Haydock’s Betfair Sprint Cup, a competition notoriously difficult for Irish horses to claim victory. The only Irish horse to win Haydock’s standout race in over 50 years was Gordon Lord Byron, famously trained by Tom Hogan, who achieved triumph in 2013, a feat not seen since the horse Abergwaun, trained by Vincent O’Brien, took top honours in 1972.
A sizeable roster of 16 competitors are set to take part in this year’s race, with Moss Tucker, the remarkable sprinter trained by Ken Condon, among the entries.
A total of nine of the winners in the last 20 years have been three-year-old horses. This facts provides some encouragement for the Irish contingent, which includes Jessica Harrington’s Givemethebeatboys and the young challenger Bucanero Fuerte.
Bucanero Fuerte has been making an impactful comeback after running in only one race this season, bouncing back from a commendable juvenile campaign, which saw him win the Phoenix Stakes, the highest-level Group One race.
Bucanero Fuerte’s owners, AMO Racing, saw their financial situation take a hit when their financial reports revealed losses exceeding £5 million (approximately €5.9 million), due to injuries to their top horses. A case of travel sickness, not an injury, sidelined Bucanero Fuerte this summer, stopping him from participating at Royal Ascot. Having been given ample recovery time, Bucanero Fuerte is now poised to return to the pinnacle of racing at Haydock.
Kia Joorabchian, of AMO Racing, stated optimistically this week that not having run a race yet means Bucanero Fuerte is fresh and ready to compete against other in-form horses. Praise was also given to Givemethebeatboys, who narrowly beat Bucanero Fuerte to the finish line at the Curragh last month, having already finished second to him at Naas in May.
Moss Tucker, the previous victor of the Flying Five, has been absent from several events this season. However, he is set to return to the scene at Haydock, with promising weather conditions expected.
Karl Burke, a Yorkshire-based trainer who saw success with Quiet Reflection in 2016, has promising prospects with Elite Status, who is teaming up with Swingalong, the July Cup second-place competitor, and Spycatcher, ridden by Ryan Moore. Additionally, Elite Status’ team also expects a rejuvenated performance from Inisherin, considered a favourite over time but suffered a setback in the recent July Cup.
In another event, Shane Foley, who rides for Givemethebeatboys, is set to partner with John McConnell’s French newcomer, Caliyza, in the Old Borough Handicap. Caliyza, an Aga Khan’s two-time champion in France, last participated in October of the previous year. Despite not clinching a win in the Group Three event at Saint-Cloud, she is set to run again with an official mark of 91.
Moreover, controversial trainer Luke W Comer has filed an appeal against the one-year suspension of his licence by the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board. The suspension followed an unfortunate discovery of decomposed horse remains on his property in Co Meath in 2021. This incident, unearthed by Department of Agriculture inspectors, severely tarnished the reputation of the racing industry.
The issue was brought to court in March of this year, where Comer claimed innocence and expressed full cooperation with officials. He managed to avoid conviction and instead made a €20,000 donation to the ISPCA, leading to the dismissal of the charges.
Nonetheless, the IHRB referral panel asserted that the connection of Comer to the discovered remains and the subsequent court case continues to inflict damage on the reputation of horse racing. The IHRB has also expressed dissatisfaction and lodged an appeal against the decision of last week’s referral panel.