Cobden lands first Irish winner
Funiculi Funicula and Harry Cobden won the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Beginners Steeplechase. Pic: Healy Racing
Backed into 4/5 favourite to beat just two rivals, Nowwhatdoyouthink gave Ray Hackett and jockey Liam Quinlan a first graded success when landing the Grade 3 BAR 1 Betting Chase, the feature of Cork’s Easter Sunday action, which also included a first Irish winner for Harry Cobden.
Having tracked market rival and original favourite Classic Getaway, the seven-year-old edged ahead at the third last before asserting and staying on stoutly to beat Broomfield Bijou by six and a half lengths.
“This game is our bread and butter, so to do this is great,” admitted Hackett, “Everything looked in his favour today, but he still had to go and do it. It’s so hard to win a graded race in Ireland, so this is great.
“Liam was great on him. He knows him inside out and lets him do things his own way. He always does the right thing for the horses and for the yard.
“The plan was to either come here or go to Aintree next Thursday. And the decision to come here has worked out well.
“We’ll probably have a crack at the Grade 1 three-miler in Punchestown, against Willie’s army, and, long-term, he could be an Irish National horse this time next year.”
And Liam Quinlan was full of praise for the winning trainer, commenting, “Ray has been a great supporter of mine – he’s a friend of mine, more than a boss. And he’s always held this horse in high regard – he should go on to better things.”
Earlier, the Gordon Elliott-trained Ndaawi registered his first win since being awarded the Guinness Galway Hurdle in the Stewards Room when outpointing Absurde in the BAR 1 Betting Hurdle.
Ridden by Josh Williamson, the 6/4 shot got first run on his rival before the second land stayed on to score by three and a quarter lengths, prompting his rider to comment, “On ratings, he was entitled to do that. He ran better than his placing in Cheltenham and did it well today – it was straight-forward in the end.”
On a day which promised so much, on his first visit to Mallow and riding six strongly-fancied contenders for Willie Mullins, Harry Cobden salvaged a single winner when Finiculi Finicula justified 8/11 favouritism in the beginners chase, getting the better of Wingmen.
Having recorded his first success on Irish soil (at his 31st attempt), Cobden stated, “I love coming to Ireland and I’ve had a great day. There were no hard-luck stories for my earlier mounts, but I’m a happy man now.
“This is a lovely, very genuine horse. He travelled well and jumped great. And he’ll improve when he goes up in trip.”
Charlie O’Dwyer rode his first winner for Willie Mullins when Sainte Lucie, seventh in the ‘Martin Pipe’ at Cheltenham last time, landed the BAR 1 Betting Handicap Hurdle at the expense of Rockymountainbleu, first leg of a Closutton double.
“Mr Mullins and Mr Ricci have been very good to me – this is the third time I’ve ridden this mare,“ explained the winning rider, “She had a brilliant run at Cheltenham, when she didn’t have the clearest of runs. But she did it well today – it was a bit messy early but she settled and crept into it around the inside. And she kept on well to the line.”
Elsewhere on the card, Martin Brassil’s Bartholomew (Ricky Doyle) turned over odds-on Mino Des Mottes in the opener to earn an entry in the Grade 1 four-year-old event at Punchestown while Mark O’Flynn savoured his first success in the saddle when partnering the Jonathan Sweeney-trained Barnahash Prince to victory in the bumper.
And Seamus Neville’s Onlymammycanloveme (Tiernan Power-Roche), stepping up in trip, followed up last month’s course win when defying top-weight in the Hibernian Hotel Mallow Handicap Hurdle.
