FOUR of Wednesday’s five Irish-trained winners were bred in France, and at the halfway stage the score stood at seven Gallic-bred winners, five Irish and a pair of Grade 1 wins on the opening day for British-breds.

While Impaire Et Passe won the Grade 1 Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle, bred by Haras de Peyre and Mrs Pascale Papon, there was a strong Irish connection, as the winner’s sire, Diamond Boy (Mansonnien), resides at Con and Claire O’Keeffe’s Kilbarry Lodge Stud in Waterford. This is the stallion’s second winner at this level, following the dual Grade 1-winning chaser L’Homme Presse.

A winner on the flat at Nancy, Impaire Et Passe was sold at an Arqana Online Sale last April for €155,000 to Highflyer Bloodstock and made his way to Willie Mullins. He is now unbeaten in three further starts over hurdles, including a Grade 2 at Punchestown on his most recent outing before Cheltenham.

Impaire Et Passe is the first foal and winner for his dam, Brune Ecossaise (Le Fou), and she was placed a total of six times between the flat and jumps in France. While this female line is light on winners, it is worthy of note that the only other blacktype performer in the first four generations of this family is Foudre Delta, also a son of Diamond Boy, and he is a grandson of Impaire Et Passe’s third dam.

I think it’s fair to say that Diamond Boy’s influence is to the fore on this light pedigree.

Energumene

A repeat win for Energumene in the Grade 1 Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase for Energumene was a third win at that level this week for a French-bred, and how impressive was the Willie Mullins star?

The nine-year-old Energumene is a non-thoroughbred son of Denham Red (Pampabird), the sire of another great Cheltenham star in Un De Sceaux. This was a fifth Grade 1 success for Energumene, also successful in the Arkle Chase at Leopardstown, and the Colliers Novice Chase and the Champion Chase, both at the Punchestown Festival.

Incredibly, the Cheltenham hero is the only blacktype earner of any sort in the first four generations of his family. Bought for €50,000 from Moanmore Stables at the Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale by Tom Lacey, he was saddled by Sophie Lacey to win his only start in a point-to-point in England.

Bred by trainer Christophe Dubourg, Energumene is one of a pair of winners from the April Night (Kaldoun) mare Olinight who won twice over jumps in France, taking until the age of six to do so and racing 21 times. Energumene’s full-sister Dolinight (Denham Red) won twice in France at the age of eight and is now at stud.

Their sire was a talented hurdler, winning a couple of listed races at the age of three. He died the same year that Energumene was born. Both Un De Sceaux and this week’s Champion Chase winner are out of mares by April Night (Kaldoun).