Daryl Jacob on Fairyhouse rides Nusret and Fan De Blues

By Daryl Jacob

Horse Racing

Sat January 14, 2023 · 3y ago

I’ve a couple of Saturday rides at Fairyhouse this weekend where the ground is going to be pretty testing.

Nusret has his third start of the season in the Race Displays Hurdle after winning at Punchestown first time out before finishing third to Lossiemouth in the Grade 2 at Leopardstown over Christmas.

He obviously bumped into a very good horse the last day but I’d also say he got a little bit tired in the conditions and the going might not be ideal here either.

Joseph O’Brien is happy with him though and he should enjoy getting back on a right-handed track. We’ll see how we go here before probably putting him away until the spring as he ran on the Flat all through last year too and deserves a break.

Also in the ‘double-green’, Fan De Blues runs in the Dan & Joan Moore Memorial Handicap Chase.

I won on him at Ballinrobe in August and he followed up in a handicap at Cork under Danny Mullins a couple of months later before disappointing last time out.

I’m not sure what was wrong at Fairyhouse but that’s probably not his true form and I’d say a testing two miles around here should suit him as he’s more of a stayer over this sort of trip.

I’ll be sticking around in Ireland for a couple of days to ride out a few of the horses at Willie Mullins’ and Stuart Crawford’s and it’s a really exciting time with the Dublin Racing Festival just around the corner, before Cheltenham in March.

Hopefully we’ll unearth one or two more promising young horses, while looking back on the week that was it was great to another two winners for Stuart at Ayr and Newcastle.

The Ayr race El Poppochapo wasn’t much of a contest but she toughed it out on the heavy ground and it was really nice to see O’Toole back to winning ways at Newcastle last Saturday.

We thought a bit of O’Toole as a young horse and things hadn’t gone to plan since winning his maiden hurdle first time up in December 21. He’s back on the right path again now he jumped pretty well on chasing debut.

Hopefully it’ll do his confidence the world of good.

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