WITH Christmas out of the way, most people involved in equestrianism won’t take much of an interest in racing now until the Dublin and Cheltenham Festivals, but there were winners over the New Year period for a few people connected with both spheres.

Two of these were recorded on New Year’s Eve, the first at Punchestown where the Alfred Buller-bred nine-year-old gelding Sammy Smart (Kalanisi - Fancy Fisher, by Clerkenwell) justified favouritism in the near two and a half-mile chase for the Thomas Gibney yard.

Later, across the water at Uttoxeter, Noel Williams saddled the Mary McCann-bred Millstatt Abbey (Order Of St George - Shush, by Flemensfirth) to win the concluding mares’ maiden bumper on her racecourse debut. The bay had finished second, beaten half a length, in a four-year-old mares’ maiden at Loughanmore last April when trained here by Colin Bowe.

Dale Adams and Danielle McSorley, who bred winners over the Christmas period, were both listed as successful breeders on New Year’s Day at Catterick.

First up, the Adams-bred nine-year-old gelding El Muchacho (Walk In The Park - La Segnora, by Turgeon) landed the two-mile, three-furlong handicap chase for the Mike Sowersby yard. Two races later, when bringing up a double for trainer Donald McCain, the McSorley-bred six-year-old gelding Supreme George (Order Of St George - Dar Dar Supreme, by Overbury) completed a hat-trick of victories over fences in the near two-mile handicap chase.

On the same afternoon, the three-mile handicap hurdle at Cheltenham went the way of the Michael and Leonard Cave-bred Ma Shantou (Shantou - Ma Pretention, by Great Pretender). The bay gelding has been trained in England by Emma Lavelle since the start of 2024, but had previously been in the care of Co Kilkenny trainer Ray Cody for whom he ran once, finishing third in a four-year-old bumper at Fairyhouse in December 2023 when owned by Hannah ‘Sparkles’ Watson and Britain’s Jayne McGivern.

The near two-mile, six-furlong handicap hurdle at Tramore was won by the Harry Kelly-trained, Ronan Tynan-bred eight-year-old mare Roccabaker (Shirocco - Ma Baker, by Robin Des Champs).

The feature race at the Co Waterford track was the two-mile, seven-furlong O’Driscoll’s Irish Whiskey New Year’s Day Chase (Grade 3). This was won on four occasions by the now 14-year-old Al Boum Photo (2022, 2021, 2020 and 2019 renewals and, of course, the 2019 and 2020 Cheltenham Gold Cups), who was paraded at Thursday’s meeting by event rider Louise Duffy, while dressage rider Emily-Kate Robinson partnered A Plus Tard, winner of the 2022 Cheltenham Gold Cup and last August’s racehorse to riding horse championship at the Dublin Horse Show.