Houses on hold for Camilla Sharples but dreams of hitting the jackpot again

The Cheltenham Festival parade ring is often a place of unbridled joy but arguably the most ecstatic scenes this March came after racing on the Thursday, when Gordon Elliott's travelling head girl Camilla Sharples sold her winning pointer Andy Dufresne to the trainer for £330,000.

The four-year-old gelding returned to Cullentra House Stables and is set to race in the famous silks of JP McManus.

"He came back to the yard with us so it's nice to see him progressing," said Sharples.

"He'll run in a bumper but the ground is so quick in Ireland. There's no rush, especially with a nice horse like him, and you don't want to rush them on quick ground for their first run back."

In the immediate aftermath of the March sale, Sharples spoke of her desire to buy a house but the 30-year-old, originally from Lancaster, is happy to wait for the housing market to settle.

"With house prices as they are, I've been advised not to buy at the moment but I'm ready to go should anything come up," she said.

In the meantime, Sharples returned to the well earlier this year after going to €15,000 for a half-brother to high-class novice chaser Gates Of Rome at this year's Tattersalls Ireland August National Hunt Sale.

"He's still in pre-training with Peter Flood," said Sharples. "He was bought at the sales in August and is probably not as forward as Andy Dufresne was at this stage in his career but there's no panic.

"He's a nice individual and has probably got a lot to live up to with what Andy Dufresne achieved, but you don't want to rush these three-year-olds.

"I've hit the jackpot once though, and it might not happen again."

The ever-busy Sharples travelled with Mrs Lovett to Warwick on Thursday and will look after Synopsis and Cross Country challenger Bless The Wings at Cheltenham on Friday, before returning to Ireland for the weekend racing at Fairyhouse and Navan.

Camilla Sharples: 'If I'm not racing, I get to ride out which is great, and I've got my own point-to-pointer as well'Credit: Patrick McCann

Away from her hectic schedule, Sharples enjoys the opportunity to ride out and has one particular favourite.

"If I'm not racing, I get to ride out which is great, and I've got my own point-to-pointer as well," said Sharples.

Kruzhlinin, a three-time winner between the flags this winter in the colours of Sharples, will be familiar with readers after landing the Grade 3 Fixed Brush Handicap Hurdle at Haydock for Philip Hobbs in 2016.

He also won four chases and finished tenth in the 2014 Aintree Grand National for Donald McCain.

"When the owners retired him, they asked if I would like to have him because I absolutely adore him and led him up in the Grand National."

Kruzhlinin: has posted a hat-trick of wins between the flags this winterCredit: Healy Racing

Selling returns to Cheltenham on Friday

After racing at Cheltenham on Friday, the focus will switch to an auction once again with the December Sale, which begins in the Tattersalls Ireland sales auditorium at 4.30pm.

Among the 73 lots catalogued is the Yeats filly Mount Ida(lot 16), winner of a four-year-old mares' maiden at Tattersalls Farm on Sunday.

Her page received a significant update when her Robin Des Champs half-brother Sizing Tennessee grinded his rivals into a ten-length submission in the Ladbrokes Trophy at Newbury.

Another winner on the same Tattersalls Farm card was the four-year-old Al Namix gelding (47), who defeated a field of older rivals when landing the winners-of-one maiden for Donnchadh Doyle.

Denis Murphy's Ballyboy Stables offers the four-year-old Flemensfirth gelding (23), winner of a Ballindenisk maiden at the start of December. The brother to Grade 2 Winter Novices' Hurdle runner-up On Raglan Road was purchased for €115,000 at the last year's Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale.

Preceding that trio into the ring is the five-year-old Definite Article gelding (13), who provided Colin Bowe's stable jockey Barry O'Neill with his 500th win in point-to-points at Borris House on Sunday - only the fourth rider to reach that benchmark.

Among the three-year-olds on offer is a Pour Moi three-parts brother (53) to this year's JLT Novices' Chase scorer Shattered Love and half-brother to another Cheltenham Festival winner in Irish Cavalier, who will be offered by Windy Hollow Stables.

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