With the 2023 flat racing season in Ireland heading towards the latter stages, attention will soon shift towards the upcoming National Hunt campaign. Top trainers Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott will once again dominate proceedings, with their powerful stables packed with top-class horses. The pair regularly mop up big races during the National Hunt season, and are generally the men to follow when the major spring Festivals are staged.
With that in mind, we take a closer look at some of their potential future stars, starting with one who could be the scourge of online bookmakers this season.
Bunting
Mullins has plenty of wealthy owners willing to splash the cash on future superstars, which gives him a massive advantage over his rivals in Ireland. Brighton & Hove Albion owner Tony Bloom has enjoyed plenty of success with Mullins in the past, bagging plenty of tasty bets with Penhill and Energumene.
The top sports betting sites in Ireland could take another hammering this season, with Bloom eyeing a tilt at the Cheltenham with once-raced French colt Bunting. The horse recorded an eye-catching victory on the flat at Fontainebleau in March, roaring clear of the field to secure an impressive seven length victory.
The second, third and sixth in that race have all subsequently franked the form, and Bunting could take high order in the juvenile hurdling ranks this season. He is currently available at 20/1 for the Triumph Hurdle, but those odds will be slashed if he makes a winning start for the Mullins stable.
Kaleosun
Gigginstown House Stud shelled out a whopping €215,000 to purchase Kaleosun in May and have subsequently sent the horse to Elliott’s yard. Kaleosun was unfortunate not to win at Senonnes-Pouance earlier this year, meeting trouble in running before claiming second place behind Katakana.
The three-year-old subsequently reversed that form at Durtal, making most of the running to defeat Katakana by three-quarters-of-a-length. The son of No Risk At All hails from the family of Group race winners So Young and Quarouso – bloodlines which make him an intriguing prospect over hurdles.
This sizeable individual has clearly been bought with an eye on a chasing career, but should win his fair share of juvenile hurdles this season. Elliott excels with this type of horse and it would be no surprise to see Kalesoun compete in at least one of the major Festivals next spring.
Jimmy Du Seuil
Jimmy Du Seuil joined Mullins last autumn having been bought for €200,000 and could be a lively contender for the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham next year. The horse is currently available at 25/1 for the race having run two hugely promising races in bumpers in France.
Jimmy Du Seuil is by the same sire as Grade One winners Vauban and Gala Marceau, and should prove to be an excellent acquisition for owner Edward Ware. His Saint Sam finished runner-up in the 2021 Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle at Cheltenham and has since gone on to gain a rating of 159 as a steeplechaser.
Mullins may consider keeping Jimmy Du Seuil in bumpers this season, although several respected pundits have tipped the horse to embark on a hurdling campaign.
Saint Sam went straight over hurdles after being bought by Ware from France and he will likely be eager to take the same route with his latest big-money buy.
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