Racing: Istabraq gilds old colours

THERE HAVE been many horses down the years, slow ones and fast ones, that have run in the gold and green hoops of J P McManus but the one which stands out is the little one which scampered home here yesterday.

Istabraq's success, at odds of 1-5, in the Hatton's Grace Hurdle was far too facile to bring the stands down (bulldozers will do that job after Easter's Irish Grand National as part of a racecourse modernisation programme) yet there was something coldly impressive about this victory.

That the result will show Istabraq won by half a length is evidence that statistics can lie. The distance in no way demonstrated his superiority over the runner-up, Nomadic, and the third, the Welsh challenger Master Beveled. Any British trainer who witnessed this slaughter had better get working quickly if Istabraq is to be denied a repeat victory in March's Champion Hurdle. Preparing their own horses looks a poor option. Blockading harbours and airports might be more effective.

There is time to put the barriers in place. Istabraq remains in Ireland for his next race, the December Hurdle at Leopardstown, then warms up for the trip to the Cotswolds in the Irish Champion Hurdle back at the Dublin track in January. He is now 6-4, from 7-4, with William Hill for Cheltenham.

Charlie Swan and Istabraq ignored yesterday's early pace set by Dovaly and Gazalani and actually erred at the fourth obstacle, by which time boredom was probably beginning to set in. After that they rubbed the sleep out of their eyes and also erased the opposition.

"I'm delighted," McManus said. "It's a huge relief. You get to this stage and you're afraid everything is going to go wrong. The biggest hurdle seems to be getting there [the Cheltenham Festival]. Of all the hundreds of horses I've owned this one is very, very special."

Cardinal Hill too has been advertised as a monstrous talent running for McManus. The four-year-old was purchased for over pounds 100,000 after walking away with his bumpers, and after a successful hurdling debut, attempted to further his reputation in the cold, blue light of Fairyhouse yesterday.

As another unbeaten horse, the Festival Bumper winner Alexander Banquet, was among the opposition, the Royal Bond Novices' Hurdle could have been named the New Arkle Stakes. In the event, both tyros made the sort of mistakes which would lead to an extremely short mountaineering career. Arkle can rest safely.