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LEXINGTON REBEL
03/02/21 - CAGNES SUR MER - Jerome Reynier
We start this month's newsletter with a bit of housekeeping. Our 10th winner of the year came in the shape of Lexington Rebel. Lexington Rebel was awarded a win for a race at Cagnes Sur Mer back in February. The horse that was first past the post on the day was disqualified, as the jockey was found to be riding with claim that he should not have been claiming. It's not how we usually like to win races, but we aren't going to complain! It's the first winner in our colours for trainer Jerome Reynier who took on Lexington Rebel when he was moved to France last year. He's been a revelation since moving to France, winning over €30,000 for his owners!
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IF YOU DARE
19/03/21 - SOUTHWELL - Mark Johnston
March was starting to feel like a month of near misses, but there is no better way to blast a case of seconditis than with an emphatic victory. IF YOU DARE delivered just what the doctor ordered at Southwell. Having shown plenty of talent on his debut, just being beaten by a short head, our son of Equiano was out to set the record straight. Ben Curtis was in the saddle again for this start, and he was determined to use the advantage of the being drawn install 1. They popped out and headed straight for the front as he had on debut. The rest of the field were happy to leave him alone in front; which would prove to be fatal. If You Dare was travelling strongly into the home straight and began to push home his advantage. It turned in to a demolition. Under a hands and heels drive, from the defending All-Weather Champion Jockey, If You Dare pulled 6 1/2 lengths clear. A very impressive performance that left us dreaming of what is to come!
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PAROS
26/03/21 - MUSSELBURGH - Nicky Henderson OBE
Things hadn't gone to plan for Paros in his first two starts in Britain, but in the hands of James Bowen, he got the wheels firmly back on track. In the first time noseband, Paros returned to the front running tactics that had been so effective for him in France. He was up against a very classy rival at Musselburgh who had finished placed in a Grade 2 last time. Paros, however, consistently out jumped his main market rival and looked much stronger as the pair ranged up to the third last. Another super jump from Paros opened up a comfortable gap that continued to grow at the penultimate hurdle. He wasn't the most fluent over the last, but the race was already in the bag by that point. Great work from everyone involved has given Paros a lovely platform to build on going forward.
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Donald McCain was crowned Champion trainer at Musselburgh at the conclusion of this race meeting. Fiveandtwenty won three races, including the Listed Scottish Triumph Hurdle, for Donald at Musselburgh. Congratulations to the whole team from everyone at Middleham Park Racing.
We finished as runners up, behind Straightline Bloodstock, in the Musselburgh National Hunt Owner's Championship. We ended the season with four winners and a second from our seven runners at Musselburgh!
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2nd Places
Get The Appeal - Musselburgh
If You Dare - On debut at Lingfield
Howzer Black - Southwell
High Worth - On debut at Warwick
Greek Kodiac - Newcastle
Lexington Knight (pictured) - On debut at Doncaster
Imperial Knight - Southwell
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3rd Places
Victorious Knight - On debut Kempton
Glajou - Southwell
Motawaafeq (pictured)- Southwell
Ustath - Southwell
Ventura Kingdom - Newcastle
Motawaafeq - Southwell
Fairmac - Doncaster
Cozone - Doncaster
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OWNERS ARE BACK!
The British Horseracing Authority confirmed plans this month for owners to return to the racecourse. Attendance by racehorse owners has been restricted since the new lockdown began in January. Monday (29th) saw the first owners attending racecourses to watch their runners. Badges are initially going to be limited to two per runner, but this is at racecourses discretion. Arena Racing Company has announced that four owners per horse will be allowed to attend the All-Weather Championship meeting at Lingfield. Aintree will be allowing up to 6 owners per horse for the Grand National Meeting. Unlike the return of owners from the first lockdown period, there is no time limit for owners, but no hospitality is on offer from racecourses. It was a very welcome sight to see owners back cheering on their runners, and we look forward to restriction easing further in the coming months.
You can read more about the return of owners on the BHA website linked below.
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PRIZE MONEY REDISTRIBUTION
This month, the Racehorse Owners Association (ROA) announced a change to the prize money distribution to boost earnings for owners. Under the new scheme, a further £7.5 million will be available for owners of placed horses in non-pattern races. The changes could increase the median prize money up to 13% for owners, trainers, and stable staff. The ROA hope this move will help support the grassroots of racing that have been hit hard during the COVID -19 pandemic.
This is an example of what the new structure will look like under both codes:
1st Place: 53.3%
2nd Place: 26.7%
3rd Place: 13.3%
4th Place: 5.33%
The new prize money scheme came into effect on Saturday 27th, the first day of the turf season. We were already feeling the benefit of this new scheme at Doncaster with two seconds and a third! You can read the full press release from the ROA below.
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WE WELCOME JAMIE, AS WE SAY GOODBYE TO TOM
We welcome Jamie Dent to our Social Media and Marketing team. As Tom Denham brings to a close, his 2 year tenure as Social Media Editor, to pursue a similar, but hands on role at the yard of Tim Easterby, Jamie brings his First Class Honours, Sports Management and Marketing Degree, alongside his wealth of racing knowledge and enthusiasm, to the MPR team. We’d like to thank Tom Denham for taking our Social Media presence to ‘another level’ during his time as our incumbent. We’ve a very high bar, now, to continue to live up to, but we feel sure there’s no place for complacency, and the ambition is to continue to drive our marketing and media presence, forward, further still. We wish Tom all the very best for the future and he will continue to be involved with his father’s Ventura Racing associated horses with us, as well as remaining our point of contact for all our Tim Easterby horses, present and future, so his departure, far from represents a parting of the waves. We look forward to continue to meeting Tom at the races, as things start to return to some kind of racecourse attendance normality.
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THE MPR PUB QUIZ
During the second lockdown, we decided to bring back our popular MPR Pub Quiz on Sunday evenings. The quiz was intended as a bit of light-hearted relief and as an opportunity for everyone to catch up. Hosted by our own Tom Palin, the quizzes proved just as popular this time around, with many owners and their families tuning in. We were delighted to hear so many positive comments coming from those that played each week:
Nichola Stevens - "We've really enjoyed the quiz, so even when things get back to normal, it would be good if you could do them occasionally - thanks and hope to see you soon."
Jo Conti - "Thank you great fun x "
Antonia Lord - "Really enjoyed it. Nice to catch up."
Peter Allison - "Great evening as always thanks Tom and everyone. Scored 49 this week."
Russell Dix - "Really enjoyable and thanks to Tom and all at MPR Hoping to see fellow owners at the racecourse in the not-too-distant future!!!"
Dean Short - "Another great quiz, thanks."
With the announcement of the roadmap out of lockdown, and with the return of owners to the racecourse on the horizon, we brought the quiz to an end. We hope we won't need to bring the quiz back under similar circumstances but keep your eyes peeled for any future special events where it may make a return.
Thank you to everyone that played along we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did!
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OPPORTUNITIES IN IRELAND
It's hard to get away from the success that Irish trained horses have been having recently. Some of the best national hunt and flat trainers in the world call the emerald isle home. We are lucky enough to have a number of horses in training there with the likes of Henry De Bromhead, John Murphy, Ken Condon and Joseph O'Brien, but we are always on the lookout for new opportunities. The Breeze Up Sales are just around the corner, as are some of the top national hunt sales where we will be on the look out for new horses we could potential send to Ireland.
If you would be interested in getting involved in a new horse in training in Ireland, please get in touch with syndicate manager Charlotte to register your interest as soon as possible!
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MAD BY NAME MAD BY NATURE
The charismatic Mad Moose was the subject of the Racing Post's 'Fans' Favourites' series of articles this month. The enigmatic chestnut has become somewhat of a cult hero for some of his high-class performances, for Nigel Twiston-Davies, but only when he felt like it. Mad Moose gained a lot of publicity for deciding he didn't fancy racing and planting himself at the start on numerous occasions. When he was up for a race, he had tonnes of ability. He won over £100,000 for his owners, finishing second in a Grade 1 and at the time being the oldest horse ever to win on his flat debut. He is undoubtedly one of the all-time legendary characters to have carried the light blue and orange silks of Middleham Park Racing.
You can read the full story of Mad Moose, including interviews with Sam and Nigel Twiston-Davies in the Racing Post article linked below.
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CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL EXPERIENCES
Middleham Park Racing - Receive 10% off any RacingBreaks.com Cheltenham Experience when paying in full with ‘MPRTEN’
Offer ends April 30th 2021.
The ultimate racing festival that so many of us truly missed this year but are grateful for the fact that the racing could still go ahead and that we could watch from the comfort of our homes. The fact that we could not be there this year only whets the appetite for racing fans to get booked in for next year when things will have returned to normal and we can relish the electric atmosphere that Cheltenham brings.
RacingBreaks.com have a fantastic selection of hotel and racing experiences which can be booked now for March 2022 when we will be able to be a part of the live action.
With many people having already rolled over experiences to March 2022, there is no time like the present to book now and ensure you secure your place to experience this four day racing spectacle.
Experiences start from just £179 per person and can be secured with just a £50 deposit.
Use the code: MPRTEN to receive an exclusive 10% discount on all overnight experiences to the Cheltenham Festival 2022 if you pay in full when booking.
Offer ends April 30th 2021.
Click below to redeem this offer and see more information on the experiences available to book.
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Four more of our horse had their official names confirmed by the BHA this month. Here are the names that will hopefully be gracing the winner's enclosure in the future!
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URBAN SOLDIER
Soldier Of Fortune Gelding - Trained by Paul Nicholls OBE
This exciting gelding was named by Bernard and Giles Hutchinson and here's where the name comes from.
"We looked back in his pedigree and combined Urban Sea with Soldier Of Fortune to make a good strong National Hunt name."
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BRUNO’S GOLD
Galileo Gold colt - Trained by Archie Watson
Our first horse with Archie Watson has been named Bruno’s Gold by one of his owners.
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AN ANGEL'S DREAM
Dream Ahead filly - Trained by Richard Hannon
Paul Bamford named An Angel's Dream and they tell us this is where the name comes from:
"I originally wanted to call the filly 'Angela's Dream' unfourtantley that name was already taken, so my second choice was 'Angel's Dream'. as a beautiful daughter of 'Dream Ahead'. However this also was unavailable so Tim suggested 'An Angel's Dream' she looks like an angel (and she is a very attractive filly) and moves like a dream, according to those that have seen her in the flesh."
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Isemel
Camacho filly - Trained by Richard Hannon
Lisa Sharpe chose this lovely name, and here is the story behind it:
"I was gifted the share of the horse for my 50th birthday from my family, so the name is a combination of my granddaughters names, Isabelle, Emelia and Eloise."
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The Gatekeeper
Excelebration colt - Trained by Mark Johnston
Our very own Mick Prince chose The Gatekeeper as the name for the Excelebration colt:
"There's no particular reason behind the name, I just liked it and thought it suited this colt."
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Rattling
Acclamation filly - Trained by Richard Hannon
Rattling was chosen by Stewart Lawson here's what he had to say:
"There's no real reason behind the name. I always try and pick a name that's catchy and only one word."
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We were delighted to welcome back the turf season at Doncaster last weekend. One of the most anticipated aspects of the start of the turf season is the commencement of the 2-year-old races. Some of the most anticipated around are the sales' races that take place later in the year. These races offer incredible price money for 2-year-olds lucky enough to qualify for them. Most of these races are early closing, and as such, we have a number of our youngsters entered, so let's have a look at who is entered where.
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Weatherbys Super Sprint
2020 Winner - Happy Romance - Richard Hannon
Total Prize Pot - £200,000 | Distance - 5f
MPR Entries 2021
Acclamation ex Westadora - Richard Hannon
Isemel - Richard Hannon
The Weatherbys Super Sprint is one of the most well-known sales races run every year. The race is run at Newbury every year and is for horses sold at public auction at 'specified sales'. The weights carried by each horse are determined by their sales price, with each horse carrying 1lb less for every £5,000 under £63,000 they cost. The Weatherbys Super Sprint is a race we have had success in down the years with Clem Fandango (3rd, 2016) and Lily's Angel (2nd, 2011). We have never managed to capture the big prize, and hopefully, one of our two entrants this year will be able to set the record straight. It's no surprise our two entrants come from the Richard Hannon yard, who have won two of the last three renewals of this race.
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Ballyhane Stakes
2020 Winner - Chief Little Hawk - Aidan O'Brien
Total Prize Pot - €200,000 | Distance - 6f
MPR Entires 2021
Rattling - Richard Hannon
Kodias Sangarius - Richard Hannon
Tothenines - Karl Burke
The Ballyhane Stakes, the richest race at Naas, was run for the first time last year and proved to be a very popular addition to the Irish racing calendar. This race is open to 2-years-olds by a sire registered with the European Breeders' Fund, whose median auction price is below €75,000. The weight a horse carries in the race is determined by their sire's median auction price. There is an added incentive for horses by Ballyhane Stallions with an additional €50,000 on offer if they win. Of our three entrants Tothenines, trained by Karl Burke, qualifies for the bonus being by Dandy Man. We have our fingers crossed that we may be making the trip across the Irish Sea to plunder this pot later this year.
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Goffs Premier Yearling Stakes
2020 Winner - Happy Romance - Richard Hannon
Total Prize Pot - £200,000 | Distance - 6f
MPR Entires 2021
Tothenines - Karl Burke
As the name suggests, the Goffs Premier Yearling Stakes is open to 2-year-olds that have gone through the ring at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale. This 6f race is run at York during the Welcome To Yorkshire Ebor Meeting. It is a race that has been dominated by Richard Hannon, with four of the last five winners having been sent out by the team at Herridge. Magical Wish ran with a lot of credit in our silks in this race a few years ago. It's a notoriously difficult race to win with all the runners competing off level weights. Karl Burke came close to winning this race with Rebel At Dawn finishing 5th, not beaten too far, could Tothenines land this big one in 2021?
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Weatherbys Scientific £200,000 2YO Stakes
2020 Winner - Line Of Departure - Roger Varian
Total Prize Pot - £200,000 | Distance - 6 1/2f
MPR Entries 2021
Tothenines - Karl Burke
The second of these 2yo races to be sponsored by Weatherbys bank is the Weatherbys Scientific £200,000 2yo Stakes run at Doncaster in September. This race is open to 2yo whose sire established one or more yearling sales at the main flat bred and mixed public auction sales held in Europe or North America. This condition obviously brings many possible runners to the table with weight determined by their sire's median auction price at those specified sales that year.
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Tattersalls October Auction Stakes Stakes
2020 Winner - Just Frank - Les Eyre
Total Prize Pot -£150,000 | Distance - 6f
MPR Entries 2021
Garswood ex Allegramente - Richard Hannon
The Tattersalls October Auction Stakes is held at the Rowley Mile course at Newmarket. It is a race that is only eligible to horses purchased at either the Tattersalls Ascot Sale or from Book 3 or 4 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale. This is a fantastic race that Tattersalls put on to champion their supporting sales. We only have one entry in this race, the Richard Hannon trained, Garswood colt. This is another race that the team from Herridge have an excellent record in finishing runner up in 2018 and landing the prize with Elysium Dream in 2017.
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These are very lucrative races and there is a long way to go before we can begin to think about having runners in these races. Our first 2-year-old runners of the year are just around the corner though, the dream starts now!
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THE PETER O’SULLEVAN 2021 LAMBOURN VIRTUAL OPEN DAY
The popular open morning at Lambourn will be held virtually this year. Instead of touring the yards on foot, the team behind the event will be offering full 360-degree tours of all of the Lambourn trainers. This will include both Clive Cox's and Nicky Henderson's yards! There will also be a series of short videos with interviews about life in Lambourn, all available for free on the Lambourn Open Day website.
For over 30 years, The Lambourn Open Day has been the chief provider of funds for the welfare of our superb and hard-working stable staff. All the profits go towards helping them and their families. The bulk of the money goes to their Registered Charity, The Lambourn Valley Housing Trust. The rest, about 10%, goes to helping various facilities for them, such as the Lambourn School, their Sports Club etc, as well as to the Thames Valley Air Ambulance.
If you would like to support this fantastic initiative, you can donate via the link below or possible bid on one of the items that will be available on the silent auction shortly!
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VENTURA RASCAL
Kevin Ryan
"Ventura Rascal was in great form in the summer last year, winning his last two starts. He's ready to go again this year and is one to watch out for this year."
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The Rosstafarian powering up the grass gallop on Warren Hill in the hands of Michael Hills.
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1. Email Charlotte with the name of your friend, their email address and telephone number and the share that they would like to purchase.*
2. We will take care of the paperwork with your friend.
3. Once the signed paperwork is received, your owner's account will be credited with the 'R-A-F' BONUS OF £100!
*The share purchase must be for a minimum of 2.5% in any horse currently available on our website and the person must be new to MPR.
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MEET OUR OWNERS
Peter Hewitson
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Hi, my name is Peter Hewitson, and I am 61 years of age. I have been married to my wife Jill for 40 years in May. We have 2 daughters Amanda and Kate, who are both in their 20-sWe live in Newton Aycliffe, Co. Durham.
During the 60's and 70's I grew up in a mining village (Kelloe), this was my introduction to racing as I used to run down to my dad's friends with his bet's as he worked shifts down 'the pit'. Sedgefield is 6 miles away so I went there many times where racing was then dominated by W A Stephenson and Denys Smith.
Petty Officer winning the Vaux Gold Tankard was my first vivid memory as Lester Piggott was at Redcar that day. My best day at the races is an easy one, in May 2016 I attended my favourite course York as I usually do for the May and August festivals. On Dante day I put my usual bet on ie, Betfair Exchange multiples (5 horses with doubles, trebles and accumulators with a £5 single stake on each horse = £51 total) it came up and I won a six-figure sum. They do not have multiples on the exchange any more, that day 3 horses were more than 6 points higher than SP and 4 were double-figure prices.
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I had a career in Accounts and later Supply Chain Management, which led to a lot of travel during my last 15 years working, as like many industries factories closed in the UK and companies set up abroad, mainly Eastern Europe in our case. Once the remaining options were either to move full time abroad or take early retirement at 50,the decision was easy as our girls were in their teens by then so it was time to come home and take up golf for a while. Sport has always featured heavily in my life, racing, playing local football and watching Sunderland AFC (we might have actually turned the corner). Learning martial arts and running 10k's and half marathons, including 23 Great North Runs all featured in any spare time I had during my working life.
Jill and I love to travel and as the girls moved into their 20's and left home we normally would be out of the country either on cruise ships or on a beach somewhere for 3-4 months of the year.
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Last year Covid changed all of that and so I started my involvement with MPR. After starting the with a share in King of Tonga and having great days out at Chester and Ripon, I thought to myself, this is a great way to go to places in the UK and see places we have not visited before as I don't think we will have the lifestyle we had for at least 2-3 years to come. I have
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always wanted to have a horse registered in my name and so Ustath and Cozone followed. When Tim was putting a plan together for Dubai Station I had to get involved as he was one of the best horses in the North last year. My thanks to Charlotte and Tim for helping me to put my portfolio together.
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Finally Tom has asked what are my racings dreams. As stated earlier, I love York, so let's be greedy. No pressure Robert and James but let's aim for the 2022 festival and maybe Baattash may have retired. Let's go for Dubai Station (Nunthorpe) and Cozone (Ebor).The most important thing is that our horses are OK and the lads and lasses looking after them are looked after. Stay safe everyone and good luck.
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Thank you to Peter for sharing your racing story with us.
Stay safe and we will back on 1st May with another Newsletter.
Don't forget to keep an eye out for our 'April Fools' email landing tomorrow!
From the MPR team.
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