Image © Healy Racing
Fact To File led home a clean sweep of the placings for point-to-point graduates in the Grade 1 Brown Advisory Novice Chase.
Fact To File led home a clean sweep of the placings for point-to-point graduates in the Grade 1 Brown Advisory Novice Chase.
A fifth winner of the festival for ex-Irish Pointers, the French-bred son of Poliglote was sent off as a short-priced favourite following his Grade 1 victory at the Dublin Racing Festival a month earlier, and he powered up the Cheltenham hill to defeat Monty’s Star by just under four lengths with a further two and a half lengths back to Giovinco in third.
The victory marked a fourth under rules for the seven-year-old, with his trainer Willie Mullins electing to skip a hurdling campaign for last season’s champion bumper runner-up, a path that he also took with another pointing recruit in Florida Pearl.
Fact To File, who had initially been purchased by Donnchadh Doyle for €40,000 at the Arqana Autumn Sale in 2018, was sold privately to Willie Mullins after he had made a winning debut at Quakerstown.
On that occasion, he defeated Asian Master by six lengths, a horse who finished fourth in the Supreme 24 hours earlier, highlighting the quality of that particular race at the Clare venue which next starges point-to-point action on the upcoming Easter Sunday, March 31st.
After the Grade 1 victory Wille Mullins said: “I felt he was a ready-made steeplechaser from the first day he came into the yard, so that’s why we skipped hurdling with him. I’m very happy we did that with him now, and I think JP had a nice wager on him for this race for the staff at the start of the season.
“He made the decision and took all responsibility away from me to do that, so I’m delighted for the staff as well. It’s been a wonderful day.
“He’s a beautiful jumper and he gave Mark a tremendous ride. I’d say it was some thrill riding him around there. He’s just a real gentleman of a horse, and definitely a Gold Cup horse in the making.”
This horse is really good... FACT! ✅
— CheltenhamRacecourse (@CheltenhamRaces) March 13, 2024
Fact To File cruises to Brown Advisory victory � pic.twitter.com/8bBAlwVXAg
