SIX of the seven winners at the hunters’ chase evening at Fontwell last Thursday were Irish-bred but it’s the odd-one-out, Darwins Fox, who concerns this column as the French-bred is trained by Derrylin’s David Christie for Downpatrick-born David Maxwell.

Successful for the pair at Leicester in March, the 11-year-old Kahyasi gelding had since finished sixth of 28 in the Foxhunters at Aintree under Barry O’Neill (Maxwell having preferred to ride the fifth-placed Mendip Express over the National fences) and, with the owner back on board, fourth of seven behind Sizing Solution at Cork over Easter.

Darwins Fox was sent off a 2/5 chase to win Thursday’s race over an extended two miles and a furlong and did so by four and half lengths from his main market-rival Can Mestret. Disappointingly for Maxwell, he and his Paul Nicholls-trained Mon Parrain failed to justify their starting price of 4/5 in the earlier three-mile, three-furlong race, finishing third.

On Sunday, the London-based property specialist rode in France where he also finished third in the opening amateur riders’ chase at Auteuil on his own Ballotin. The six-year-old Enrique gelding, who is out of a Jimble mare, is trained by Guillaume Macaire, as was the winner of Sunday’s race, the 6/5 favourite Calva Du Rib.

Two North of Ireland bloodstock agents, Kevin Ross and Harold Kirk, were involved at one stage or another in buying the Willie Mullins-trained Shaneshill who won the Grade 2 Prix la Barka Hurdle at Auteuil on Saturday. The eight-year-old King’s Theatre gelding started his racing career with Colin McKeever in Loughanmore, finishing third in Wilson Dennison’s colours in a two and a half-mile four-year-old maiden at Bennettsbridge in February 2013.