Showcase meeting a tonic for those wanting to breed on a budget

Racing’s affordability has been a talking point over the last few days, with £7.50 pints at Cheltenham’s Showcase meeting sparking uproar and a wider conversation about racing’s value for money amid the cost of living crisis.

While breeding a racehorse is probably never going to be considered an achievable goal for most, the fact that the 14 races at Cheltenham’s curtain-raiser last week were won by 13 different sires demonstrates just how diverse – and in some cases more affordable – the game can be.

The wide array of bloodstock on display was refreshing to see and hopefully provides hope to those harbouring dreams of breeding a top-class jumps horse on a budget.

The old guard of jumps sires were represented by Jimmy The Digger (Black Sam Bellamy), Shearer (Flemensfirth) and Shoot First (Westerner), and familiar names like Stowaway and Yeats proved they were still forces to be reckoned with.

The good ground was perhaps an advantage to the more Flat-bred performers, and while Pied Piper is by the 2008 Derby winner New Approach, several others came from far less commercially attractive backgrounds.

Progressive five-year-old Soul Icon won the opening handicap hurdle for conditional riders on Friday and he is by the remarkable dual-purpose sire Sixties Icon, who always tends to give breeders a solid chance and stands for just £3,000 at Norman Court Stud.

Cheltenham and Classic performers come alike to ElzaamCredit: Mark Cranham

The final race on the card went to Fennor Cross, who is by a seven-furlong Listed winner in Elzaam. He stands for just €5,000 at Ballyhane Stud and was represented in a Classic this summer when Star Girls Aalmal finished fourth in the Irish 1,000 Guineas.

At the other end of the distance spectrum, three-time Group winner Geordieland is probably best remembered for chasing home Yeats in a handful of Gold Cups and his gutsy son, the Sheila Lewis-trained Straw Fan Jack, became his highest-rated performer on Racing Post Ratings with a career-best performance in the 2m novice chase.

Up-to-date information on Geordieland is hard to find, but he stood for just £1,500 at Beeches Stud when Straw Fan Jack was born in 2015.

Furthermore, the spotlight was shone on two practically anonymous sires on Saturday when Dads Lad got the better of Effernock Fizz in the 2m handicap chase.

The winner is by Eliot, a German-bred son of Tiger Hill who stood for just €500 at Blackrath Stud last year. Dads Lad is one of just two horses registered under his name over jumps in the Racing Post database. Similarly, Effernock Fizz is one of just four for his sire Lovelace, who stood for just £1,000 when the versatile mare was born in 2015.

Dads Lad (left) and Effernock Fizz (right): both by sires with almost non-existent recordsCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

Trainers like Lewis don’t generally have the luxury of caring for six-figure point-to-point winners, but Willie Mullins does and it’s interesting two of the best two mile chasers he has housed in recent years have been by the same unheralded sire.

Un De Sceaux and Energumene were by Denham Red, but that didn’t put off the Closutton handler and it paid dividends as together they have earned well over £2 million, with the latter likely to add to that this season.

One of the reasons jump racing is so popular is because it is traditionally less elitist than the Flat. While the drinks prices may have raised a few eyebrows, the action on the track at the Showcase meeting at least provided a handsome reminder of the sport’s humble roots.

Honeyball a trainer to watch

It is often said Dan Skelton and Harry Fry have made a success from training after leaving Paul Nicholls, but they aren't the only ones to excel after spending time at Ditcheat.

Anthony Honeyball was a conditional jockey for the 13-time champion trainer before turning his attention to training and he could be an even bigger force this season after expanding his yard during the summer.

Staying chasers like Regal Encore and Sam Brown have been advertising his skills for the last couple of seasons and while handicappers like Gustavian and Serious Charges have more races in them, he also houses a host of up-and-coming types with untapped potential.

Anthony Honeyball: could be in for a breakthrough season

Honeyball tends to excel in bumpers – he boasts a 26 per cent strike-rate in the last five seasons – and Cape Vidal certainly looked the part at Ffos Las in May.

It will be interesting to see if he can take a step up in class at Ascot on Saturday (5.00), a race which has produced Puffin Billy, Pleasant Company and Emitom in the last decade.

According to the trainer's website he was looking at the Listed bumper at Cheltenham next month as a target after his debut win, which shows the regard he holds him in.

Others from that sphere to watch include Howlingmadmurdock, Fortuitous Favour, Marco Island and Emzara.

The Big Jump Off is here! Dave Orton and leading Racing Post tipsters Paul Kealy and Tom Segal give us their exclusive views, analysis, ante-post tips and horses to follow for the 2022-23 National Hunt season. WATCH NOW.