Bloodstock & Breeding
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16 Feb 11
22:41
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05 Jan 10
DEAL Or No Deal’ comes to Fairyhouse on Irish Grand National day when connections of the winner of the €50,000 Irish Racing Post Champion Point To Point Bumper will be in the hotseat.
In a typically novel offer, Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary will offer €100,000 to the winning owner to buy the victorious horse. Before live TV cameras, the lucky owner must decide to accept O’Leary’s offer or hold onto the horse – but there is a further twist.
Should the winner go on to win a graded novice hurdle next season, O’Leary will pay a further €25,000 to the owner – and the Gigginstown Stud boss will repeat that gesture if the horse wins a graded chase. In effect, O’Leary is therefore offering the winner up to €150,000 and he is hopeful that it will revitalise the race, run over 2m2f.
The race itself will carry prizemoney of €50,000 and is open to four-, five- and six-year-olds. Connections of the winner retain the accompanying purse (€32,500) even if they decide to accept O’Leary’s offer, which applies to four- and five-year-olds.
“Having the Irish Racing Post take over sponsorship from me is a great boost to the race, though I wish they’d get rid of their point-to-point supplement on Wednesdays, as it means me paying more than I should for young pointers,” quipped the Ryanair chief.
“I will make an offer after the race, though I’ll be more Fortycoats than Noel Edmunds, and I honestly don’t care if connections want to give me the horse or hold on to it.
“What I am doing is putting life into the race and it, of course, promotes Irish point-to-point horses. People maybe don’t want to spoil the value of a winning pointer by chancing him in a bumper, but hopefully this will change that.”
Connections have until March 23 to enter a horse, which must have finished in the first three in a point-to-point by the Irish Grand National meeting on Monday, April 25.
Fairyhouse’s acting course manager Peter Roe enthused: “I am absolutely delighted with this offer, which will revitalise the race. It is totally innovative, typical of a Michael O’Leary plan – and a great incentive for point-to-point people in the current climate.”
The reduced entry fee of €100 is sure to prove popular with owners, with Roe adding: “It is really cheap to enter and allows us all the time to build up a bit of publicity. Pandorama is a past winner of the race and it deserves to be supported and the ‘Deal Or No Deal’ offer live on TV adds great intrigue to the whole thing
In a typically novel offer, Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary will offer €100,000 to the winning owner to buy the victorious horse. Before live TV cameras, the lucky owner must decide to accept O’Leary’s offer or hold onto the horse – but there is a further twist.
Should the winner go on to win a graded novice hurdle next season, O’Leary will pay a further €25,000 to the owner – and the Gigginstown Stud boss will repeat that gesture if the horse wins a graded chase. In effect, O’Leary is therefore offering the winner up to €150,000 and he is hopeful that it will revitalise the race, run over 2m2f.
The race itself will carry prizemoney of €50,000 and is open to four-, five- and six-year-olds. Connections of the winner retain the accompanying purse (€32,500) even if they decide to accept O’Leary’s offer, which applies to four- and five-year-olds.
“Having the Irish Racing Post take over sponsorship from me is a great boost to the race, though I wish they’d get rid of their point-to-point supplement on Wednesdays, as it means me paying more than I should for young pointers,” quipped the Ryanair chief.
“I will make an offer after the race, though I’ll be more Fortycoats than Noel Edmunds, and I honestly don’t care if connections want to give me the horse or hold on to it.
“What I am doing is putting life into the race and it, of course, promotes Irish point-to-point horses. People maybe don’t want to spoil the value of a winning pointer by chancing him in a bumper, but hopefully this will change that.”
Connections have until March 23 to enter a horse, which must have finished in the first three in a point-to-point by the Irish Grand National meeting on Monday, April 25.
Fairyhouse’s acting course manager Peter Roe enthused: “I am absolutely delighted with this offer, which will revitalise the race. It is totally innovative, typical of a Michael O’Leary plan – and a great incentive for point-to-point people in the current climate.”
The reduced entry fee of €100 is sure to prove popular with owners, with Roe adding: “It is really cheap to enter and allows us all the time to build up a bit of publicity. Pandorama is a past winner of the race and it deserves to be supported and the ‘Deal Or No Deal’ offer live on TV adds great intrigue to the whole thing
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A new innovation on the Northern point to point circuit has just been announced.
Down Royal racecourse will feature a new bumper restricted to point to point horses which have run in qualifiers in the province during the course of the Spring season. The race will be sponsored by Albert Bartlett & Sons Ltd of Airdrie. The company buy major amounts of local fresh produce from Ireland and Ronnie Bartlett who has horses with several Irish and English trainers and is a sponsor at the Cheltenham Festival and owned former Champion Hunterchaser, Joe Blake said " The sponsorship of the point to point series of races with a bumper final at Down Royal is a gesture of thanks to Irish producers, farmers and to support point to points in which all my horses start their career prior to a possible move to the track." The bumper final on May 27th at Down Royal will be worth € 10,000 and open to 4,5 and 6 year old geldings and mares that have run in a qualifying younger maiden which includes Ronnie Bartlett's hunting pal Wilson Dennison's series of 4 year old sponsored maidens. Full details of qualifying conditions are available from Down Royal racecourse and the Irish Turf Club and the race conditions will be included in the Racing Calendar and schedule of races in the coming weeks. Ballymena trainer, Ian Ferguson who trains several horses for the Scotland based owner added. " Ronnie was very keen to support point to points and put something back into the sport being a keen hunting and point to point fan. The series of races and a bumper will fill a much needed hole in the local calendar and hopefully the finale will produce a high-class horse." While Maze Manager. Mike Todd added " The Bartlett family and Ronnie have been longstanding sponsors at our Festival and the racecourse is delighted the new bumper for point to pointers is to be sponsored by the company." All Ulster point to point fixtures will stage a qualifying race excluding Armagh next weekend which due to prior sponsorship was unable to except the offer of new sponsorship. |