Image © Healy Racing
As the countdown to the start of the 2024/25 season continues, the open division is starting to take shape with many well-known names featuring among the early list of hunter certificates.
They are headed by the reigning champion point-to-pointer Winged Leader. The ten-year-old became the third David Christie-trained horse to scoop that crown in the last four years when he recorded nine consecutive victories in a row from Armagh in February through to Taylorstown in May.
That winning run took his career tally in the pointing fields to 22 and in doing so, he has moved into the top ten all-time winning-most point-to-point horses.
His stablemate Bold Enough only missed out on the 2023 champion pointer title on count back to Rocky’s Howya, and having missed all of last season, the now nine-year-old has received an early hunter certificate to suggest he is due to make an imminent return to action alongside Ramillies.
Two of his four wins were recorded by the significant winning margins of 64 lengths at Cragmore and 44 lengths at Moig South.
Sam Curling could add further depth to his team of mares in the open division with his stable star Angels Dawn having received a hunter certificate for the upcoming season, alongside the reigning champion point-to-point mare La Feline.
The Skehanagh Stables team has also welcomed the ex-Peter and Mikey Bowen-trained Wonderwall 123-rated hurdler and Jay Bee Why from Warren Ewing’s stable, with the latter to be campaigned in the famous Hyde family colours.
He was a stalwart of the northern open scene last season, three times finishing third to Winged Leader, but with just two open races scheduled for the northern region up to the Christmas break at Portrush and Kirkistown, the races are sure to remain as competitive as ever.
Alongside Christie’s strong line-up, which also features Ultimate Optimist and Au Fleuron, Caroline McCaldin will be hoping to continue the successful spring campaign that she enjoyed with Ballyphilip who won six races in a row, culminating in a maiden hunter chase at Down Royal last May.
Aged just six, he has yet to tackle open lightweight company, but swiftly worked his way up through the ranks, where he could now join stablemate Gorthill, an impressive open winner at Kirkistown last season.
The rapidly progressive Lonesome Boatman signed off on last season by finishing a career-best third in the Champion Hunter Chase at the Punchestown festival, and he returns for Sean Allen, whilst Private Ryan, the Bishopscourt Cup victor from the same festival, has been hunter certed and remains with Sean Doyle, whilst Hitak (Ellmarie Holden) and Arverne (Gavin Cromwell) are other open winners from last season that have already featured on the hunter certificate lists.
