In brief

Alcohol Free to be offered for sale at Tattersalls December Sale

THE outstanding four-time Group 1 winning race filly Alcohol Free is to be offered at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale.

Bred by Tom Gaffney at Churchtown House Stud and owned by Jeff Smith, Alcohol Free won the Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes as a two-year-old, the Group 1 Sussex Stakes and Group 1 Coronation Stakes as a three-year-old and the recent Group 1 July Cup at the age of four.

ITM barrier trials prove popular at Dundalk Stadium once again

A TOTAL of 62 horses took part in the ITM-sponsored barrier trials at Dundalk Stadium last Tuesday. Jeremy Greene of ITM commented: “The trials were supported by 24 individual trainers and there were a lot of nice horses there. This comes on the back of our July barrier trials where we had 66 runners. Hopefully plenty of horses will be sold on the back of these trials and we can stage them again next year. I’d like to thank everyone who took part and entered horses, and thank Dundalk Stadium also and the IHRB for the regulatory side, IRIS for the broadcast, stalls handlers, doctors, vets, Order of Malta and the Blue Cross.”

Storm The Stars to Coolagown

STORM The Stars, a Group 2-winning and twice classic-placed son of Sea The Stars, will transfer to David Stack’s Coolagown Stud in Co Cork next year, in a deal brokered by Richard Venn. The 10-year-old is out of a Sadler’s Wells half-sister to Giant’s Causeway blue hen You’resothrilling. Storm The Stars commenced his stallion career in France, and his first crop of three-year-olds includes the winners Astral Spirit and Stormy Spirit. His sole offering at the Goffs Land Rover Sale was a gelding sold for €55,000.

David Stack said: “He’s a lovely big stamp, standing just above 16.2hh, a pure bay, and he has a great swinging walk and loads of presence. I can’t wait to show him off to breeders.”

New name for ‘Hennessy’

CORAL is the new title sponsor of Newbury’s Gold Cup meeting in November, a three-year deal that includes the sponsorship of 13 races, including the featured Gold Cup, known to most racing fans as the ‘Hennessy’. The famous race was sponsored by Ladbrokes for the past five years.