'Tremendous' Energumene rolls back the years to delight Mullins
OLD AND BOLD: Jockey Paul Townend and trainer Willie Mullins with Energumene in the winner's enclosure following their victory in the Underwriting Exchange Fairyhouse Chase on day three of the Easter Festival at Fairyhouse Racecourse in County Meath, Ireland. Pic: Niall Carson/PA Wire
Energumene rolled back the years to win the Underwriting Exchange Fairyhouse Chase in the Irish National undercard on Monday.
Now a 12-year-old, it was he who ended Willie Mullins’ long wait for a first Champion Chase success when scoring at the 2022 Cheltenham Festival, a title he successfully defended a year later.
However, he rocked up here winless since December 2024 and had to defy both his advancing years and quicker ground than ideal in this Grade Two.
The 9-4 shot did so in style, beating stablemate Blood Destiny by six lengths with Found A Fifty, sent off the 13-8 favourite, back in third. Sadly Saint Sam suffered a fatal fall when crashing out at the third last.
“I couldn’t believe how well he was going,” the winning trainer said of Energumene. “At 12 years of age, to put in a performance like, he ran like a seven-year-old. Tremendous. You could just see Paul absolutely tanking and the further he was going, the better he was racing. I’m just amazed that he could put in such a performance.
“I’m delighted with Blood Destiny too and I’m very sorry for Saint Sam and connections.”
Victory completed a Grade Two double for Mullins initiated by Proactif bouncing back from a disappointing run in the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham to win the Grade Two O'Driscoll's Irish Whiskey Juvenile Hurdle in workmanlike fashion.
In a Closutton-dominated contest, just a length separated the Mark Walsh ridden 5-4 favourite and Macho Man at the line with Majolique staying on nicely to finish third.
“It was a good performance from Proactif,” Mullins said. “Mark said he let himself down today on that ground as there was a nice dig in it. He didn’t let himself down at all the last day.
“The first three will all make their name over the next few years over jumps. The first two will jump a fence and I can see Majolique staying over hurdles. Things didn’t go right for her today but she’s a fair mare too.”
The other Grade Two on the card, the Underwriting Exchange Fairyhouse Chase, was won by Slade Steel, the Henry de Bromhead-trained eight-year-old ending a losing sequence that stretched back to the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the 2024 Cheltenham Festival.
However, six of those seven defeats came over fences and Slade Steel was far happier back over the smaller obstacles, travelling sweetly in the hands of Darragh O’Keeffe en route to getting the better of Kawaboomga by a length and three-quarters.
“I’m really happy with that, delighted for the horse,” De Bromhead said. “He was a bit unlucky at Punchestown at Christmas to get brought down and he just didn’t seem to love the old chasing so we said we’d pop back to hurdling and I’m delighted [it worked out]. I think he’s made a pretty strong case for staying over hurdles. He travelled so well, he probably idled a little bit when he hit the front but he was brilliant. He has a lot of class.
De Bromhead added: “It’s lovely to see him back. I’m slightly kicking myself that we didn’t try it sooner but it’s brilliant to see him back and he enjoyed it. Hopefully there’s loads of fun ahead with him.”
Irish Grand National day began the same way Saturday and Sunday’s Fairyhouse meetings commenced: With a Donagh Meyler-ridden winner in the first race, the Farmhouse Foods Novice Handicap Hurdle.
It was Jet To Monte Carlo who did the business this time, the Emmet Mullins-trained five-year-old producing a smart performance to land the spoils at odds of 10-1.
“He’s a horse that showed a lot and we couldn’t unearth it for one reason or another until now,” the trainer said of Jet To Monte Carlo, who came here on the back of a disappointing run at Leopardstown last month.
“I suppose with him being such an impressive point-to-point winner we thought he’d be more of a stayer. It didn’t happen anytime we went up to two-and-a-half miles over hurdles, he didn’t get home.
“He looks like he has a real high cruising speed and two miles seems to be the trip that suits him best.” The in-form Noel Meade saddled the first and second in the Fairyhouse Steel Handicap Hurdle, 11-2 joint-favourite Fierce Handay producing a slick effort to beat stablemate Blue Mosque by five and a half lengths.
“It makes life a lot easier to live when the horses are running well,” Meade said. “A lot of time we go home from the races scratching our heads and depressed. We wouldn’t be depressed the way they are running at the moment.”
Elsewhere on the card, the William Murphy-trained Clonmeen sprang a 40-1 surprise in the Join Racing TV Now Handicap Chase before 3-1 favourite Charismatic Kid sent punters home happy by making all in the bumper.
