Tag Archive for: Mighty Bandit

Greatrex thrilled to have Triumph-bound Mighty Bandit in his care

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Warren Greatrex will train Mighty Bandit for the Triumph Hurdle at next month’s Cheltenham Festival after he changed hands for €420,000 at Monday’s high-profile Tattersalls Ireland sale at Fairyhouse.

The four-year-old was one of 29 horses to go through the sales ring as part of a dispersal sale by prominent owners Andy and Gemma Brown following their shock decision to quit the sport late last month.

The top lot was the Grade One-winning Caldwell Potter, who is set to join Paul Nicholls after going under the hammer at €740,000, while the second, third and fourth top lots – Fil Dor (€620,000), Pied Piper (€570,000) and Staffordshire Knot (€510,000) – were all bought to return to Gordon Elliott.

Fifth on the list was Mighty Bandit, with Greatrex delighted to get his hands on him after he was bought by Jim and Claire Bryce, his landlords at the historic Rhonehurst yard in Lambourn.

“Everyone wants to train quality horses and he looks to have a very exciting profile,” he said.

“I’m so grateful to Jim and Claire. It was Jim who was pushing for this and the sale yesterday was unique really – I’ve never seen anything like it.

“Normally dispersal sales take place towards the end of horses’ careers, but the majority if not all of the horses sold yesterday are in their prime.

“It captured everyone’s imagination and we had a list of I think seven horses. We liked Fil Dor, but I think between all of us Mighty Bandit was the one we were very keen on because he’s only a four-year-old and we can make him, as it were, going forwards.”

The son of Order Of St George looked every inch a star juvenile in the making when winning on his hurdling debut for Elliott at Punchestown in November, but subsequently disappointed as a hot favourite for a Grade Two at Leopardstown’s Christmas Festival.

However, Greatrex revealed there was a valid reason for that below-par performance and hopes he can show his true colours in the spring.

He added: “He was mightily impressive on his first run, the way he quickened up for a horse that had never run before, it’s very exciting when you see that.

“He scoped dirty after Leopardstown at Christmas and Gordon had told us that he’d also tinkered with his epiglottis, which is something quite common.

“Their thinking was that they were going to aim for the Triumph Hurdle, so as long as everything is good and we’re happy with him that’s where he’ll go.”

With the Festival only five weeks ago, Greatrex admits he is not going to have time to give Mighty Bandit another run before Cheltenham, meaning his preparation will have to take place in Lambourn.

“You would obviously like to see him on the track first, but if Gordon was aiming him for the Triumph he obviously rated him highly and I’m not going to change anything,” he said.

“I think it would be more beneficial to give him time to settle in and go there – and if Cheltenham does come a bit soon, then we’ve got Aintree to roll on to after if we want to.

“He’s only a four-year-old and he’s going to have a very bright future, hopefully, so I will try to do him justice.”

Mighty Bandit was not the only horse from the dispersal who will make the switch from Elliott to Greatrex, with Tactical Affair snapped up for a slightly less eyewatering sum of €62,000.

The five-year-old has won once and placed twice from five starts so far and he too could have Cheltenham on his radar as Greatrex, who trained Stayers’ Hurdle hero Cole Harden and two other Grade One winners in One Track Mind and La Bague Au Roi, looks to get himself back into the big time.

Warren Greatrex is looking forward to training Mighty Bandit
Warren Greatrex is looking forward to training Mighty Bandit (David Davies/PA)

Greatrex added: “All being well, we’ll aim Tactical Affair at the Martin Pipe (Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle).

“I know it sounds ridiculous, but I think at €62,000 he was probably very well bought as he’s only a five-year-old and hasn’t had many runs and has a good pedigree.

“It’s very exciting. Everyone knows that I’ve had a few quiet years, but they’ve been going well this year and last year and we want to be back at the top table. Hopefully these with one or two others might get us back there.

“It is tough and we’ve seen in the last couple of years that Ireland are dominating. That’s fair enough and it goes in swings and roundabouts, I think.

“I’ve been there and proved that I can do it in England and in Ireland – I think I’m still the only Grade One-winning British trainer at the Dublin Racing Festival.

“We’ve proved if we get the ammunition we can do it and once you’ve tasted it you want to get back there, so we’ll do what we can to do just that.”



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Caldwell Construction team have plenty to look forward

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Both Fil Dor and Caldwell Potter are due to be upped in trip after pleasing runs for Gordon Elliott and Caldwell Construction last weekend.

Fil Dor looked a good novice chase prospect last season when winning his debut over fences by four lengths from Saint Roi, but when he met the same horse in the Grade One Racing Post App Novice Chase at Leopardstown he made a jumping error and came home third behind him.

The incident seemed to knock his confidence and after finishing fifth to El Fabiolo in the Irish Arkle he reverted to hurdling and won the Grade Three Red Mills Trial Hurdle at Gowran Park next time out.

This season he was back to give fences another go and in the Barberstown Castle Chase at Naas he looked to have regained his appetite for jumping when finishing second.

At Cork Fil Dor was then set a stiff task when taking on Arkle winner El Fabiolo in the Hilly Way but he was not disgraced when chasing the 1-5 favourite home to finish second by four and three-quarter lengths.

Fil Dor during his hurdling career
Fil Dor during his hurdling career (Niall Carson/PA)

Connections were heartened by the run, especially as they feel their gelding will be better suited by an extended trip in the future.

Joey Logan, racing manager to owners Caldwell Construction, said: “We were very pleased with him, his jumping was very nice and his confidence is coming back.

“We ran him last year in a Grade One at Leopardstown and he landed on a fence and he lost his confidence. We gave him a break and Gordon’s done a great job of getting him back.

“We were very pleased with the run the other day, obviously we are going to step up to two and a half miles as two miles is a bit short for him, but we were delighted with that.

“We’ve done a good bit a schooling with him and we’re very happy with his jumping, we’re going to step him up now – that’s the plan.”

Fil Dor at home at Gordon Elliott's yard
Fil Dor at home at Gordon Elliott’s yard (Niall Carson/PA)

Of the next outing for the horse Logan added: “We’re not too sure yet, we’ll pick and choose.

“We’re not going to rush him as it’s all about confidence and he’s only five, we’ll speak to Gordon and make a plan for where we’re going to go next.”

The same silks were in the winner’s enclosure at Navan last Saturday as Caldwell Potter took a two-mile maiden hurdle by seven lengths on his second start over obstacles.

The five-year-old is a full-brother to Mighty Potter, Caldwell Construction and Elliott’s Grade One-winning novice chaser who looked set for a highly successful career before he was fatally injured in a fall at Fairyhouse in April.

Caldwell Potter has been patiently handled by Elliott, contesting four bumpers before making his hurdles debut when second in a Punchestown maiden last month.

Navan was his next outing and there he was an eyecatching winner, strolling to a wide-margin success on heavy ground under Jack Kennedy.

Like his late brother he is destined for greater tests of stamina and could be seen after the turn of the new year.

Logan said: “We’re very happy with him, he ran a cracker at Navan. He got a lot stronger over the summer and the further he goes, the better.

“The other day he was very good on testing ground at Navan, he’ll probably be a two-and-a-half-mile hurdler and we’re very happy.

“He puts his head down and he keeps going to the line.

“We’ll make a decision, it’s a bit tight but maybe between now and the new year. We might go to the Dublin Festival with him but we’ll see how things go.”

One horse with his place booked at the Leopardstown meeting over the festive period is Mighty Bandit, a three-year-old who made an impression on his racecourse debut when taking a Punchestown maiden hurdle by nine and a half lengths.

The form from that race has been boosted by the third-placed horse, Joseph O’Brien’s Harsh, who has since won a Cork maiden by eight lengths.

The Mercedes-Benz South Dublin Juvenile Hurdle, formerly the Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle, a Grade Two at Leopardstown, is next on the agenda for the gelding.

“He looks to be a very promising horse,” Logan said.

Mighty Bandit winning on debut
Mighty Bandit winning on debut (PA)

“He won nine lengths on his debut. He was a very raw, big baby – 16.3 (hands high). His form was boosted again by the horse he beat by nearly 10 lengths the other day.

“He looks to be very promising and we’re looking forward to running him in Leopardstown in the Grade Two.”



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