Fedneys Park

Fedneys Park is an exciting mare and Old Gold Racing’s first Irish-based runner, now in training with Henry de Bromhead.

She was purchased for 82,000gns at the Tattersalls Cheltenham January Sale, having caught the eye with a commanding point-to-point success at Carrigarostig. Making all that day, she jumped fluently and asserted in the closing stages to win by six lengths, marking herself out as a mare of considerable potential.

Her sire, Walk In The Park, is one of the leading National Hunt stallions, responsible for top-class performers such as Douvan, Jonbon, Facile Vega and Min, and was crowned Champion National Hunt Stallion in 2023/24. Fedneys Park is very much bred to succeed in this sphere, and her pedigree was a key factor in her purchase.

She made a promising start under Rules when finishing third on debut at Limerick, shaping well over what looked an inadequate trip. She travelled and jumped with fluency throughout, leaving the impression that both a step up in distance and fences in time would play to her strengths.

She returned from a break with a solid performance at Bellewstown, finishing fourth in a competitive contest. Settling better as the race developed, she travelled smoothly, jumped soundly, and kept on willingly to the line on ground that suited her well. It was a pleasing reappearance that should bring her forward both in fitness and experience.

Henry has been pleased with her progress and continues to view her as a mare who will improve with time, particularly as she steps up in trip and transitions to fences. The plan is for her to have one more run over hurdles before going chasing, a move that is expected to unlock further improvement.

Fedneys Park is an athletic, straightforward mare with a likeable attitude and plenty of scope. With her point-to-point form, strong jumping, and the benefit of experience under Rules, she looks well placed to continue progressing and should provide her owners with plenty to look forward to in the months ahead.

Henry de Bromhead took on Knockeen, Co. Waterford from his father, Harry, in 2000. His first Grade 1 winner came in 2008 with Sizing Europe, who would go on to cement his place in National Hunt history with an incredible further seven Grade 1s. In all Sizing Europe won 22 of his 45 races and earned over €1.8 million in prize-money, a testament to Henry's ability to source, train and place horses at the top level.

Henry is the only trainer to have won the Champion Hurdle (Honeysuckle), Champion Chase (Put The Kettle On) and the Gold Cup (Minella Indo) at the Cheltenham Festival in the same year, a feat he achieved in 2021. Just weeks later, he saddled the first two horses home - Minella Times and Balko Des Flos - in the Aintree Grand National.

Remarkably, Henry won both the Champion Hurdle (Honeysuckle) and the Gold Cup (A Plus Tard) again in 2022. Both horses were ridden by Rachael Blackmore.

Fedneys Park has been settling into life at Knockeen and the team couldn't be happier with how she is looking and feeling.

The Henry de Bromhead Interview:

Travelling to Ireland

A few of our members have been in touch regarding the travel involved to see Fedneys Park in person, so we thought we’d share some details on this front. Not only is Henry aiming to run her on both sides of the Irish Sea, it is also pretty straightforward and fairly pocket-friendly to get over to Ireland.

There are several options one could take to get over to watch Fedneys Park run or to visit the stables. We’ll use the example of Punchestown Racecourse, as this is the course that Henry de Bromhead has run at most this season.

Transport:

- Fly from any local airport to Dublin. From here there are several ways to get around, including bus, train, taxi or driving. Flights cost around £90 at two days notice and around £30 at five days notice.

- Ferry (Holyhead to Dublin or Fishguard to Rosslare) costs vary from around £85 - £120 and, depending on which route you take, the journey time the other side is relatively short.

Accomodation:

- Hotels close to Punchestown and Knockeen tend to average out around £60 per night.

Additional Expenses:

- Tickets for the Punchestown Festival are £30, so general day-to-day racing tickets will be a lot cheaper and we will be looking to secure discounts for owners too.

- Spending money.