FEBRUARY 1st traditionally signals the beginning of spring on these shores, and this year, for those within the point-to-point sphere, the date is one of the most anticipated days in the calendar, as it kickstarts a new year of four-year-old maiden races.

Over the past number of months, young equine talent has been broken in, educated, and carefully brought along in readiness for their competitive debuts.

In yards around the country, the dreams are very much still alive, with handlers holding onto the hopes that they may have the next Honeysuckle, Constitution Hill, or Jonbon on their hands.

They may well be right. The statistics have long illustrated the division’s proven record as such a rich source of equine talent, and it is that knowledge which effectively guarantees that in the coming weeks and months, we are set to see future Grade 1 winners taking their first steps into competitive action. This is what drives so much of the anticipation and excitement around the division at this time of year.

By its nature, the constantly moving element of the division ensures that each new season of four-year-old maiden races brings with it a different cast of competitors.

Last year, the spring term of races saw new stallions, Crystal Ocean and Poet’s Word, among those that made a splash with their runners.

Double blue

Perhaps this year, it will be the new additions to the owner’s bench who grab the headlines. Jet Bloodstock Partnership and Carsena Bloodstock are two new ownership outfits that are set to field runners in the four-year-old maiden category for the first time this year.

The division has become big business within the bloodstock sector, so it is no surprise that the potential riches on offer have proven appealing.

Racegoers at Ballinaboola or Bellharbour tomorrow will see a new set of silks prominently featured on the racecard for the four-year-old maiden races at those venues.

The Jet Bloodstock Partnership is the new venture of Cheltenham Festival-winning owners Simon Munir and Isaac Souede.

Their racing operation on the track has come to be known as ‘double green’, but this new ‘double blue’ operation will be no different to the Milestone or Monbeg outfits of this world, in that it will have a trading focus at its core.

Colin Bowe could field their first runners in these new two-toned blue silks, with a pair of French-breds, Milford D’Anjou and Mon Ami Dab, who cost €50,000 and £45,000 respectively at last summer’s store sales, both doubly entered for tomorrow’s fixtures.

As of the beginning of the week, the outfit had nine four-year-olds hunter certed, youngsters that have been entrusted to Bowe, and fellow handlers like Aidan Fitzgerald, Billy Codd and Pat Doyle. The latter, with his supreme record of producing subsequent Grade 1 performers from the pointing ranks, has also been selected to train horses for Carsena Bloodstock.

Agent Aubrey McMahon has been doing the buying for this operation, which also has horses in training with Ger Quinn, and the six horses that they currently have hunter certed have been acquired for prices up to €82,000. They could all come to be big players in the season ahead.

THE wait to see some of the more notable pedigrees within the new crop of four-year-olds might not be too long, as a full-brother to the Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Inothewayurthinkin is one of 22 horses entered for the four-year-old maiden in Bellharbour tomorrow.

Whatareuthinkin is one of five entries in the race for Derek O’Connor, the man responsible for saddling the last two winners of this particular contest, and the son of Walk In The Park is the latest horse to emerge from what is becoming quite a noted homebred family for J.P. and Noreen McManus.

Alongside their Gold Cup hero, Whatareuthinkin is a sibling of the 2024 Cheltenham Festival winner Limerick Lace, whilst another sibling, Thatsdwayimthinkin, has form in this sphere, having won his four-year-old maiden on debut at Oldtown in 2024 for the same McManus/O’Connor combination. Sadly, he has not been seen since his impressive introduction.

McManus’ renewed approach to producing his young horses through the four-year-old maiden system could ensure that a son of the multiple Grade 1-winning racemare Vroum Vroum Mag also graces the point-to-point fields.

There is An Isle, the third foal of the 2016 Cheltenham Festival winner, may not be entered this weekend, but he is in training with O’Connor, where he could become a relatively rare son of Camelot to appear in this sphere, as would be the case with Tidy Town, a son of Australia.

Academy hurdles

One new element that all of those newcomers could have to contend with in the four-year-old division this year is the addition of academy hurdle horses.

As of the beginning of the week, four horses that ran in the recent series of academy hurdles have received hunter certificates.

The first of them could also feature tomorrow. Ian Donoghue has doubly entered Code Name Cubbitt, with the Jet Away gelding having run at both Fairyhouse and Cork for Gavin Cromwell before switching stables.

The regulator has given academy hurdle special dispensation, which sees them treated like point-to-point bumpers or domestic cross-country races, whereby horses can have run on the track in an academy hurdle after the traditional December 1st cut-off, and remain eligible to run in a four-year-old maiden.

One of the horses that ran in the latest academy hurdles at Leopardstown on December 29th received a hunter certificate last week, and it will be interesting to see if they can make that recent race experience count, particularly in the short term, as they come up against newcomers.

There are a handful of recent examples of horses recruited from the flat faring well in four-year-old maidens. Darragh Berry has done so with the likes of Tosca Time and Perfect Reel, so it could be an interesting angle to follow in the coming weeks.

Game pair full of promise

WORKAHEAD and Clondaw General, two horses who subsequently contested graded races, are among the winners of the five-year-old geldings’ maiden at Cragmore, and this year’s renewal looks like it has produced two nice prospects, as newcomers Moltezuma (90+) and Kill Vanhowe fought out a tight finish. The race was not run to a strong gallop, and the five finishers were tightly grouped at the home bend.

However, the pair were able to distance themselves from the pack over the final two fences, and despite having surrendered his lead when outjumped at the last, Moltezuma proved his toughness to get back up before the line.

In the mares’ equivalent, Crystal Waves (81+) built upon an eye-catching debut at Dromahane to win with a bit of authority, the front pair finished 36 lengths clear of a previously placed rival. At Tyrella, Largy Silver (87+) sealed a debut success over his stablemate with the better jump at the last, as just over four lengths covered the first five home. Another Classic (77+) had two form horses behind her as she asserted on the run-in to win going away. At Dungarvan, Be Useful (77+) backed up the promise of her Umma House non-completion by staying strongly on the heavy ground, whilst Jerry The Dreamer (85+) took a big step forward.