Winters has big plans for stable stars
The Co Cork-based trainer registered his first Grade One success when Rebel Fitz landed the Powers Gold Cup at Fairyhouse in April and while the gelding has been on a break since, he has a big target in store.
Winters said: “Rebel Fitz is only back in now, but will be aimed at the Galway Plate. We left him off straight after Fairyhouse and he’s only back now.
“He doesn’t have many choices, but we’d like to take in the Grimes Hurdle at Tipperary on the way to Galway as it’s a nice race with great prizemoney.
“He would want to get clear run into Tipperary and not to get any drops or anything like that, but there’s good prizemoney for the first four in that race and it will give us three weeks before the Galway Plate.”
Missunited has not run over timber since winning last year’s Galway Hurdle and is being primed for the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot before a possible repeat bid in the Galway showpiece.
Winters said: “Missunited is ground dependent but more than likely will run in the Saval Beg Stakes at Leopardstown.
“The race will tell us a lot about where we go with her, but there are two stages of payment already made for the Ascot Gold Cup and her run at Leopardstown will determine whether she goes to Royal Ascot or not.
“I’d like to think she’ll run in the Galway Hurdle later, but she’d have to be in one piece if she ended up running in Ascot.”
Winters is a brother-in-law to jumps legend Adrian Maguire and the family achieved another notable feat at Listowel on Sunday when Maguire’s 16-year-old son Finian partnered his first winner, on his just his third racecourse ride on Mm Dazzler.
Winters, whose sister Sabrina is married to Maguire, said: “Finian is a grand, laidback young fellow.
“I’ll use him in bumpers and I imagine he’ll be very popular with trainers with his 7lb claim.”
