Thurles © Photo Healy Racing
Champion trainer Willie Mullins has withdrawn nine of his 10 runners from Thurles today on a non-runner hit card, with clerk of the course Lorcan Wyer confirming the going to be no better or worse than at last week’s fixture.
The meeting featured the five-runner Listed RacingTV Chase but with Mullins withdrawing his three runners, 1/40f Fil Dor was left to coast home defeating Hazelhatch Lady (12/1) in a ‘battle of the greys’ - with the runner-up scooping black-type for good measure.
The Tipperary course had been hit hard by a recent dry spell with three meetings being abandoned and last week’s fixture housed just 46 runners.
Clerk of the course Lorcan Wyer stated “we raced last Thursday on good ground and we had 33mm of rain since then but haven’t had the rain that some other parts of the country have had. The ground description was never anything but ‘good’: it was ‘good’ at entry stage, at dec’s stage, and we are happy it has held that ‘good’.
“I can understand why someone would be cautious about running a mid-winter type horse and why somebody would take a position on it, but I’m satisfied it is as described and am hopeful the track rides ok.”
The opening beginners chase was won by That’s About Right, in a race where front-running 2/13 favourite Boldog burst blood vessels, with winning jockey Daniel King reporting “I would describe the ground as good and safe although my horse is only small and handled it well. They are getting a print into it but they’re not going down deep. It was similar to the ground at the most recent meeting here.”
