Florida Pearl: The Star Chaser Who Defined an Era One of the star staying chasers of the late 90s and early 00s, Florida Pearl won a total of nine Grade 1 races throughout his career and was incredibly popular with racing fans on both sides of the Irish Sea. Willie Mullins has at least five superstars in his yard every season nowadays but that wasn’t always the case. This horse helped to put him on the map and it was always hard to miss the gelding, as the big white stripe on his face made him instantly recognisable. Rather aptly named, he was by Florida Son and out of the mare Ice Pearl. He was foaled in 1992 and made his debut in a maiden point-to-point for four-year-olds at Lismore in 1996, which he won by three lengths. Violet and Archie O’Leary then purchased him for IR£50,000 and the gelding was sent to Mullins. Early career It was immediately obvious that this horse was a star in the making, as he won a Leopardstown bumper by five lengths on his debut under rules. It was a similar story in the Champion Bumper at the Cheltenham Festival and Richard Dunwoody took over riding duties. Arctic Camper was the well beaten second that day and he went on to win a Grade 1 at Punchestown on his next start. No hurdles needed Willie Mullins is quite keen on sending some of his best prospects straight over fences and has done so recently with the likes of Fact To File. He used this tactic to great success with Florida Pearl and the horse won all three starts as a novice chaser. The last of those successes came in the Royal & Sunalliance Chase, currently known as the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase, and he saw the trip out well to get the better of David Nicholson’s Escartefigue by a length-and-a-half. Competing at the top level His first Grade 1 success in open company came in the 1999 Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup and he came out on top once again, against old rival Escartefigue. That success ended up being the first of four victories in the race for Mullins’ gelding. The star chaser also won the John Durkan Memorial Chase and the Punchestown Gold Cup during his career. Richard Dunwoody won on him five times and Richard Johnson partnered him to victory three times in just four races, finishing second on the other occasion. Cheltenham Gold Cup success wasn’t to be for him in the end, although he did manage to finish third behind Seemorebusiness in 1999 and second behind Looks Like Trouble the following year. Florida’s day in the sun Florida Pearl’s biggest success came in the 2001 King George VI Chase at Kempton. He battled to victory, getting the better of Henrietta Knight’s Best Mate by just shy of a length. That would turn out to be incredible form, as Best Mate then won three Gold Cups in a row. The final bow Florida Pearl won the Grade 1 Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Leopardstown on his last ever start in February 2004. At the grand old age of 12, he skipped clear to score by three lengths. A small injury led to the end of a glittering career and a well deserved retirement.
