Our pedigree expert Cassie Tully takes a look at the pedigree of WellChild Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Minella Indo.
It is difficult to reflect on that week of Cheltenham without incessantly waxing lyrical about the Irish and in particular Rachael Blackmore and Henry De Bromhead.
And in a similar fashion, the bloodstock results were completely dominated by three individuals - Jeremy, Stowaway and Yeats - who each had an unparalleled four winners as sires.
Furthermore, along with the Irish training 23 of the 28 winners, 20 of the winners were also Irish-bred. The most significant of whom is of course the WellChild Gold Cup winner Minella Indo.
Before Friday, he had not yet broken through at the highest level over fences, finishing fourth behind Kemboy in the Irish Gold Cup, falling in the Savills Chase at Christmas and placing second behind Champ in the RSA at Cheltenham last year.
So, was it a fluke? Or was this his destiny?
Pedigree of a champion
We can confirm that it is undeniably the latter as Minella Indo’s pedigree is just as phenomenal as Friday’s performance was.
Let’s start at the beginning.
Bred by the Lalor family of Rathkenty Stud in County Tipperary, Minella Indo was sold by the Lalor’s as a foal at the Tattersalls Ireland November Sale for €24,000. John Nallan purchased him that day and went on to train Minella Indo to win his Point-To-Point at Dromahane by six lengths back in March 2018.
But he was far from devoid of promise all the way back then at the sales. Minella Indo is by Beat Hollow who, bred by Juddmonte, was trained by both of Prince Khalid Abdullah’s principal trainers.
A son of Sadler’s Wells, Beat Hollow began life in Newmarket with Sir Henry Cecil. Winning his maiden on debut at two, he then went on to win the Listed Newmarket Stakes, place third in the Derby at Epsom and win the Grand Prix De Paris at three.
Returning in the States at five and now under the care of Robert Frankel, Beat Hollow won three Grade One races on turf out there - the Woodford Reserve Turf Classic, the Manhattan Handicap and the Arlington Million.
Notable winners on Flat too
Meriting the right to stand at Juddmonte’s prestigious Banstead Manor Stud back in Newmarket after those performances, he spent nine covering seasons there, in which time he sired three winners at the highest level on the flat.
And that includes Wicklow Brave – one of the only horses ever to win a Group/Grade One both on the flat and over obstacles. As well as Group Two Hardwicke Stakes winner Sea Moon who now stands at Burgage Stud in Carlow.
In 2012, Beat Hollow relocated to Ballylinch Stud in Ireland for the remainder of his career which was a further seven seasons. But that very first year at Ballylinch, a Supreme Leader mare named Carrigeen Lily owned by the Lalor’s, visited him. And the 2021 Gold Cup winner was conceived.
Although from the first of Beat Hollow’s Irish crops, the eight-year-old Minella Indo is actually the last foal out of Carrigeen Lily who was also bred by his owners and was a respectable racemare for them herself.
She ran 36 times, placing in the first three on 17 occasions, including four wins and a third place finish in a Grade Two Handicap Chase at Leopardstown.
And Minella Indo is not the only fruit from this Lily.
Benetar hails from same family
Carrigeen Lily bred five winners in total, the next best of whom is Benetar (Beneficial), winner of the Grade Two Mitie Noel Novice Chase at Ascot in 2017 for Gary Moore, and placed in the JLT Novices’ Chase at Cheltenham.
She also gave rise to Carrigeen Lechuga who raced for the Lalor’s and won two races over fences and placed fourth in Grade Three chases at Cork and Fairyhouse. And a further two of her daughters bred black-type performers themselves last year, namely Carrigeen Lotus who was third in a Grade Two bumper at Leopardstown, again for the Lalor’s, and Midnight Callisto who finished third in a Listed bumper for Anthoney Honeyball at Market Rasen.
That is just the first layer.
Minella Indo’s grandam won three Listed Chases at Galway and Tralee back in her day and Carrigeen Lily’s sister, Carrigeen Kerria, bred three Graded winners over fences – Carrigeen Victor who won the Grade One Dr PJ Moriarty Novice Chase at Leopardstown in 2005, Caduceus who won a Grade Two chase at Punchestown, and Carrigeen Kalima who won a Grade Three Handicap Chase at Leopardstown. Another sister delivered Grade Two Red Mills Chase winner Chicago Grey.
Irish National winner in pedigree
And no, it still does not stop there.
Carrigeen Kerria (Minella Indo’s Aunt), bred the dam of 2016 Irish Grand National winner Rogue Angel. And his grandam’s sisters produced the dams of 2002 Irish Grand National winner The Bunny Broiler, as well as Grade One novice chase winner Central House.
Quite the family of top-level chasers to say the least. And even more notable is that Minella Indo also won two Grade One races over hurdles in 2019 – the Albert Bartlett at Cheltenham and the Daily Mirror Novice Hurdle at Punchestown, beating Allaho.
He has still only run 13 times to date and representing the eldest of those Irish-bred crops by Beat Hollow (which also include Grade One performer Mt Leinster and exciting mare Roseys Hollow), one can only anticipate what is still to come from both this Gold Cup winner and his sire’s emerging progeny.
But regardless of the future, what a pedigree, what a race and what a week.
Cheltenham 2021 over and out.
