SOME performances of huge merit may have taken place against the backdrop of empty and silent stands last weekend but the two days at Leopardstown again vindicated the foresight behind the creation of the Dublin Racing Festival.

When this meeting first came into being there was a concern that the amalgamation of so many good races into one weekend mightn’t necessarily be a good thing in terms of the Irish National Hunt season in January and February.

However, the decision was in fact the very best one that could have been made for the jumping season. Any worries that the Dublin Racing Festival would turn January into a wasteland in terms of quality racing have been unfounded.

Instead, racing was much better served by creating a two-day fixture full of quality and with no apparent weak links, which affords it a perfect stage upon which to showcase its wares to a wide audience. Furthermore, the Dublin Racing Festival has also afforded other fixtures a chance to enjoy their own share of the limelight. Overall, January in Ireland is a quiet month in terms of racing and even more so with the Ladbrokes Hurdle and the Chanelle Pharma Irish Champion Hurdle being switched to Leopardstown in early February.

However, this has also had the effect of giving centre stage in January to some provincial meetings. Firstly, there is the Kinloch Brae Chase meeting at Thurles which often serves up intriguing fare with this year no exception.

Admittedly last month’s fixture took place on a Wednesday as opposed to a Sunday as a result of the weather but this is a meeting that now occupies a prime weekend slot and it doesn’t have to compete with a high-profile Leopardstown fixture later the week as might have been the case in the past.

Then there is the Thyestes Chase fixture at Gowran. Thyestes day has long been a special one for a great many National Hunt fans but if anything, the last Thursday in January is going from strength-to-strength as a result of other high-profile racing being bundled into early February at Leopardstown.

Furthermore, it is both important and fitting that notable days in the calendar through the winter aren’t just restricted to the metropolitan circuit and that the heartlands of National Hunt racing enjoy their time in the sun too.

At the end of a stark few weeks when good news stories in racing have been in rather short supply it is only right to acknowledge what a fine innovation the Dublin Racing Festival has been.

TO stick with the theme of Leopardstown from last weekend there were any number of outstanding performances to ponder from Chacun Pour Soi, to Honeysuckle to Kilcruit to Monkfish.

All four are likely to take some beating at Cheltenham as are quite a few others who made their mark over the weekend while there were a couple of beaten horses in the Grade 1s that showed more than enough to suggest that they could be of major interest next month.

The first of these is Fakiera. He could never land a telling blow in the novice hurdle won by Gaillard Du Mesnil but this Navan Grade 3 winner was the only horse to make a meaningful impact from off the pace.

He finished out his race strongly from the second last to be beaten just over seven lengths.

He looked to relish the step up to two-and-three-quarter miles and left the impression that another couple of furlongs in the Albert Bartlett will be right up his street and that most exacting of stamina tests next month could suit him especially well. Another fourth-place finisher to catch the eye was Hook Up who belied odds of 50/1 to be beaten just over seven lengths into fourth by Appreciate It. h

Like Fakiera she wasn’t able to get into a challenging position but she finished out her race in pleasing fashion to finish just outside the placings and this represented a fine effort against some of the best young geldings around.

In all there has been plenty to like about her three runs this season and if she were to reproduce last weekend’s display in the mares’ novice hurdle she would surely be impossible to keep out of the frame. She is still as big as 14/1 for that race which totally underestimates her chances.