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**Royal Tan** · 9 January 2013, 11:06 AM

Impressive bumper winner Golantilla sold for €375,000

By Pat Keane

Wednesday, January 09, 2013

Golantilla, who made a huge impression when taking a bumper at Cork last Saturday, has been bought by Barry Connell for €375,000.

The five-year-old was trained by Sean O’Brien at Kilworth for his mother, Eileen, but will now move to Tony Martin.

Successful in his only point-to-point at Avaune, Dungourney, Golantilla went off a well-backed 7-4 favourite at Cork and exploded clear in the straight to score by 13 lengths.

Speaking yesterday afternoon, O’Brien confirmed that a deal had been done with Connell, a stockbroker and former amateur rider, who is now one of the major owners of National Hunt horses in this country.

Said O’Brien: "We got what we asked for from Barry and had to let the horse go at that price.

"Everything has a value and we had to sell. We have a lot of young stock around the farm here and the next generation has to be paid for.

"My mother deserves this and I am delighted for her. The deal is subject to the horse passing the vet in the morning, but I don’t see any reason why that won’t happen.

"He’s very sound and came out of Cork one hundred per cent. Tony rang me straight after the race on Saturday and just wanted him. My hope is that he will win a Gold Cup for Barry."

Golantilla went to Brightwells sale at Cheltenham last month, but was led out unsold at �190,000.

It was on the back of just the single win in a point-to-point, but so impressive was he in the bumper that inevitably it was going to take more than that to buy him.

Among Connell’s best-known horses at the moment are Minsk, Mount Benbulben, Western Leader and Mumbo Jumbo.

Golantilla is currently around a 12-1 shot for the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham, which sees him near the top of the market.

**mayo** · 23 January 2013, 10:09 PM

David Pipe is considering a tilt at the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham with the unbeaten Vieux Lion Rouge.

The French-bred four-year-old was a 14-length winner at Ffos Las on his debut and followed up at Newbury last time out.

He is related to Marcel, who Pipe’s father Martin enjoyed great success with in the 2004-05 season, winning nine races including the Tolworth Hurdle.

"Vieux Lion Rouge is a most promising young horse and he extended his record to two wins from two starts with a courageous performance in the bumper at Newbury," Pipe wrote in his blog on www.davidpipe.com.

"Bought from the Arqana sales in July for what is beginning to look like a very reasonable €42,000, I will certainly be considering a crack at the Cheltenham Festival bumper with him.

"He comes from an excellent family – his dam was a half-sister to a multiple winner we had at the yard, Marcel.

"Indeed, we have a very nice crop of youngsters coming through, including several bumper winners and he would be right up there with the best of them."

**Old Vic** · 24 January 2013, 03:07 PM

Timeform Ratings

NH FLAT HORSES
121 DEFY LOGIC
118p CLONDAW COURT
118 ANONIS
116p CAPTAIN CUTTER
116p REGAL ENCORE
115 THE MIGHTY MILAN
114 KINGS PALACE
113p GOLANTILA
112p UNION DUES
112+ URUBU D'IRLANDE
111p OUTLANDER
111 MONKEY KINGDOM
111 OSCAR ROCK
111 THE LIQUIDATOR
110p SIZING TENNESSEE
110+ OSCAR HOOF
110 GONE TOO FAR
109p KILLYGLASS
109+ OWEN MC
109 BOUILLABAISSE
109 VIEUX LION ROUGE

**mayo** · 24 January 2013, 06:03 PM

Sizing Tennessee produced a smart front-running performance to take the concluding bumper at Gowran Park this afternoon.

Patrick Mullins had the 2/5 hotpot at the head of affairs throughout and he pulled clear in the closing stages in impression fashion for a three-and-three-quarter length win.

All five runners were in contention turning for home in a tactical affair but one-by-one they failed to live with the favourite.

Mullins asked his mount for an effort over a furlong out and he was really starting to motor in the closing stages.

The winner had scored in similar style at Punchestown last month and Cheltenham is now on the cards for the Robin Des Champs gelding.

It was a first and last race double for Willie Mullins, having landed the opener with Dogora, and he said afterwards:-

“Patrick was very impressed with him because they slowed down a fair bit. He's a galloper but he was still able to win in a sprint finish. It hasn't diminished his thoughts of him.

“If he won here we said we'd go to Cheltenham. I'll speak to the owners but I don't think plans will change. A better gallop over there would suit him more.”

**mayo** · 29 January 2013, 06:37 AM

Champion Bumper next up for D'Antan

Mon 28th Jan 2013, 15:27

Le Vent D'Antan on his way to victory at Leopardstown on Sunday
(� Healy Racing Photos) Impressive weekend winner Le Vent D'Antan is set to head straight to the Weatherbys Champion Bumper via a racecourse gallop.
The biggest question over the four-year-old, who bolted up on his debut at Leopardstown as a 7/4 favourite, is whether he will still be in the care of Liz Doyle, but there is no news of a transfer just yet.

Wexford trainer Doyle brought through the ranks both 2011 Bumper star Cheltenian and Al Ferof, who took that year's Supreme and has become a high-class chaser, before they moved to Britain.

"There have been a lot of enquiries, nothing has happened at the minute, but the syndicate who own him are based in London and I imagine they will be talking about it," Doyle said.

"I don't know if they want to sell, I hope he stays with us, but it's up to them what they want to do."

Le Vent D'Antan, whose grandmother is the great racemare Pebbles, is currently a general 12/1 for Festival glory.

Doyle said: "He has done very well since the race, we've had no problems with him at all, and he'll probably have a racecourse gallop now. It might be at Leopardstown, depending on the ground, but he'll have a day away somewhere and won't have another race before Cheltenham.

"It's a long six weeks, but that's the plan. He's a gorgeous horse, when you see him you go 'wow, what's that?'."

**Statto** · 22 February 2013, 11:19 PM

Golantilla (7), Empiracle (8), Clondaw Court (10), Le Vent DAntan (steamer10), Union Dues (12), Brave Hearted (16), Regal Encore (16), Urubu DIrlande (16), Azorian (20), Diamond King (20), Kings Palace (20), Lurcher (20), Moyle Park (20), Oscar Rock (20), Purple Bay (20), Sgt Reckless (20), The Skyfarmer (20), Benemeade (25), Blackmail (25), Briar Hill (25

**Terry** · 26 February 2013, 04:43 PM

Gary Nutting on ATR is best tipster over there. Union Dues is his pick...

Stablemate UNION DUES has provided more answers in this respect and, available at slightly bigger odds, gets a tentative vote in a race that is hard to assess with any confidence.

The five-year-old has won both his starts in the style of an above-average prospect, and on very different ground too, kicking off with a defeat of 15 opponents at Killarney in the summer.

The form of that race is probably best judged through the third Sizing Jo'Burg, who was beaten comfortably despite having the benefit of a previous run.

That horse went on to finish eighth in a Cheltenham bumper in October before scoring easily on his hurdles debut at Downpatrick.

The five-year-old has won both his starts in the style of an above-average prospect, and on very different ground too.

Although out of his depth behind my Neptune selection Rule The World in a Grade 2 at Naas on his only subsequent outing, Sizing Jo'Burg has still demonstrated a sufficient level of ability to suggest that Union Dues is probably pretty smart.

That's certainly the way it looked when he beat four previous winners in a Grade 2 bumper at Navan in December, this time on heavy ground.

**Morning Glory** · 28 February 2013, 06:49 AM

Willie Mullins is responsible for five of the 51 entries in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper at Cheltenham on March 13.

Mullins has an incredible record in the race, having won it seven times already, as well as riding Whither Or Which, whom he also trained, to victory in 1996.

This year he can choose from Briar Hill, Clondaw Court, Moyle Park, Sizing Tennessee and Union Dues.

Other major Irish contenders from a 17-strong squad include the Tony Martin duo of Golantilla and Blackmail, the Liz Doyle-trained Le Vent D'Antan and Aidan O'Brien's Shield, who was only fourth on debut.

The home team is headed by Empiracle, Doctor Harper and Sgt Reckless.

Evan Williams has entered the once-raced Milo Man but has still not decided if the race is firmly on his agenda.

"We had to enter Milo Man because he obviously won so well at Taunton and has come out of the race incredibly well," said Williams.

"I'm not going to say he will definitely run because we would want to see some cut in the ground, but we are training him for the race and we will have to see what the weather does between now and then.

"He is a horse I have the utmost confidence in and I think he is a very nice horse but whether he is a bumper horse, I don't know.

"Whatever he does, as long as he is a lucky horse, he could win a very nice race one day."

**Old Vic** · 28 February 2013, 08:47 PM

Kevin Blake ‏@kevinblake2011

Liz Doyle has said that Le Vent D'Antan works as well as Cheltenian did when she had him

**Hoof** · 1 March 2013, 11:33 PM

http://gallopslive.com/#!/blog/exclusive-interview-with-trainer-liz-doyle

Exclusive interview with trainer Liz Doyle

1 Mar 2013

By Kevin Walsh

Ah that Cheltenham dream! Every trainer and owner whether young or old still harbors that aged old dream. A horse good enough to run at National Hunts showpiece event. When the dreamers first set eyes on their new recruit, whether they are foals, yearlings or anything else the first thought is always invariably the same. This could be the one!

This could be the one. A statement made by many but unfortunately a statement that doesn’t come through very often. More often than not, the horse that could have been the one ends up back in his box having pulled up in an average Point to Point on a rain sodden Sunday in the middle of nowhere.

One woman who is proving an exception to the rule in recent years is Co. Wexford trainer Liz Doyle. The former 4 time leading Lady Point to Point rider has been setting tongues wagging in recent years with her ability to uncover future stars. Especially when it comes to Cheltenham runners. Doyle seems to have a special ability when it comes to sourcing Cheltenham horses, particularly when it comes to Champion Bumper horses. In the last few years Al Ferof, 2nd in the 2010 Champion Bumper and Cheltenian, winner of the Champion Bumper in 2011 have came through the capable hands of Doyle. An amazing achievement for a relatively small yard.

What is even more amazing is that she has done it again. La Vent D’Antan is the latest potential star to come off of the yards conveyor belt and this year Doyle will have her name beside her charge on the Champion Bumper card for the first time.

This week I went to speak with the woman herself to get the story of her new superstar.

After the pleasantries have been exchanged, the obligatory question in all Irish homes comes to the fore. Tea? As I take my seat at the kitchen table a steaming cup of tea and a plate of biscuits are laid in front of me. We are also joined at this stage by one of the many small dogs in the yard, who perches himself on my knee for the remainder of the interview. Perched on Liz’s knee is her youngest son who has just awoken from Cheltenham dreams of his own and has proceeded to nick all my biscuits!

“Your not getting any of them!”, Liz laughs, before starting to tell me of how they came to have another future star in the yard.

“We bought him in October 2010 as a yearling in France. We spotted his pedigree in the catalogue, had a look at him on the internet and Barry’s brother in law was at the sales and went to look at him.” The Barry in question is Liz’s partner and the son of legendary trainer Ferdy Murphy.

She continued: ”We brought him home, broke him as a 2 year old and let him off for the summer before doing a bit more with him and letting him off again as a 3 year old. During that winter we sold him to a syndicate which was put together by my sister in London. They wanted something that was good enough to go to Cheltenham. That’s something that everyone asks. Have you something good enough to go to Cheltenham and of course you always say oh yes!”, she laughs. “But it doesn’t always work like that.”

I go on to ask Liz, how quick did she realise the potential of La Vent D’Antan?

“When we did more work with him as a 3 year old he was doing everything very easily. Everything we asked him to do was easy for him. His fast work was always very good. Mentally and physically he has accepted everything and just thought life was wonderful! He has a wonderful temperament He is very laid back. A bit sleepy which is brilliant for a young horse. He is very easy to train.”

Asked for a comparison between her former stars and her current one, Liz says that La Vent D’Antan would be more similar to Cheltenian:

“It’s hard to compare horses 3 or 4 years apart but he would compare quite closely with Cheltenian in attitude. He is the same type of horse as him as Al Ferof was more relaxed and more of a staying type.”

Turning her attention to the race in hand, Doyle describes her travel plans and potential dangers in the contest:

“We will probably go over on the Monday morning. That will give us 48 hours before race time. There is no need to go any earlier. I don’t think the travelling will take anything out of him. He traveled over from France as a yearling so that should stand to him.”

She continued: ”We know he handles soft ground after his win in Leopardstown, so it will be nice to go there without any worries about the ground. So if it was soft or softer we wouldn’t worry.” ”Mikey Fogarty rode him in his schooling races and in Leopardstown and the plan is that he will ride him in Cheltenham too.”

“I think Tony Martin’s horse is a danger in the race. He has done nothing wrong and won his point to point and bumper very easily. He is very highly regarded as well. I think Willie Mullins’ best one will be Clondaw Court, who has been kept for the Champion Bumper.”

Doyle finished off by telling me about another few nice youngsters she has in her posession:

“We bought a yearling by the same sire as La Vent D’Antan (Martaline) 3 weeks ago. He is a half brother to two black type winners. He has a lovely pedigree. We paid a bit for him but he is really nice and is a half brother to two black type winners, so in two years time we hope he wont be expensive.”

“We also have a nice Shantou who is closely related to Captain Chris which we like a lot. He might and he might not be out this year. Probably after the summer as he is only four and is quite big.”

So before this years Cheltenham Festival has even begun, the search has already started for the next big thing. Its a dream that will never die and although Doyle has made the dream come through on an incredible three occasions she continues the search none the less.

**Old Vic** · 2 March 2013, 09:05 PM

Clondaw Court to miss the Cheltenham bumper with a hind quarter problem. In Willie Mullins Racing Post column."

**Lester** · 3 March 2013, 09:11 PM

Our stats...http://www.fatjockey.com/cheltenham-...mper-Stats-140

**Old Vic** · 7 March 2013, 12:05 PM

Dual Newbury Bumper winner Oscar Rock will miss the Cheltenham Festival. 'Exciting prospect for next season,' says Harry Fry

**Yeehaa** · 10 March 2013, 10:48 PM

Keeping away from the bigger stables and the major races, Sgt Reckless is reckoned to have a good chance in the Champion Bumper despite the ground having gone slightly against him.

He kicked some of Mick Channon's Flat team - including a Lincoln Handicap contender - into touch with embarrassing ease, prompting the booking of Richard Hughes.

Connections had initially toyed with going straight over hurdles for the Supreme Novices' Hurdle after his most recent success, before a change of heart saw them decide to stick to bumper company for the time being.

But the high opinion of Henrietta Knight, who effectively remains in charge of the horse at Channon's stable, looks entirely justified based upon that last piece of work.

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