Five standout past winners of the Florida Pearl Chase The jumps season is beginning to heat up and the racing at Punchestown this weekend is going to be well worth a watch. The Morgiana Hurdle takes place and we also have a feast of over top races to look forward to, including the Florida Pearl Novice Chase. It was initially called the Irish Field Novice Chase but was renamed in honour of Willie Mullins’ Florida Pearl in 2008 and has been run over various distances over the years. This Grade 2 event is run over three miles these days and provides a good opportunity for horses to establish themselves as leading staying novice chasers for the season. With that in mind, we’re going to take a look at five notable winners of the race. Dorans Pride (1996) Michael Hourigan’s Dorans Pride came out on top in 1996 when the race was run over 2m4f at that time. He came into it off the back of a comfortable success on chasing debut at Limerick and the step up to Grade 3 company made little difference. Hourigan’s gelding jumped very well on the day and easily put 11 lengths between him and the runner-up. The highlight of his career was the 1998 Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Leopardstown and he won that Grade 1 without breaking a sweat. Limestone Lad (2000) James Bowe’s Limestone Lad also has a race named after him and is probably better known for his exploits over hurdles. He did make six starts over fences, though, winning four of them, including this race back in 2000. Positive tactics were employed, as he made virtually all of the running and went on to oblige by 11 lengths with little fuss. This very talented horse was a bona fide Grade 1 star over hurdles and managed to win the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle three times. Back In Focus (2012) Increasing the distance of the race has massively changed the landscape and it has started to work out well as a trial for the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. Back In Focus won both races in the 2012-2013 season. The Andrea and Graham Wylie-owned gelding faced four rivals and superior staying power won the day, as he kicked on well after the last to score by four lengths. Victory in Grade 1 company followed at Leopardstown, as well as a narrow success in Cheltenham’s four-miler. Vanillier (2021) Expectations were high for Vanillier during his novice chasing campaign, as he stayed on strongly to take the Albert Bartlett Novice’ Hurdle at Cheltenham the previous season. He was beaten on chasing debut but bounced back to win this very easily in 2021. Vanilier faced four runners on the day, two of which fell, and Gordon Elliott’s Fancy Foundations could get nowhere near him. Third in the National Hunt Chase a few months later, he would go on to finish second in the 2023 Grand National. Stellar Story (2024) Apparently the Florida Pearl is a good race for Albert Bartlett winners, as Elliott’s Stellar Story also managed to complete the double. All three runners were Gigginstown-owned and Elliott-trained but Stellar Story came out on top by a short head. Stellar Story struggled at Leopardstown over Christmas but bounced back with a good second in Grade 2 company at Navan, before filling the runner-up spot behind Lecky Watson in the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.
