Horse in Profile: Kargese

The Willie Mullins assault on the UK Trainers' Championship is in full flow once more and Kargese is being aimed at the Scottish Champion Hurdle as the Closutton maestro aims to defend his championship.

The mare was a Cheltenham Festival scorer last time out and is primed for her next target at Ayr on Saturday, as Mullins readies a big team for Scotland's premier jumps festival.

Kargese makes her Festival mark

Kargese is one of a host of talented mares Mullins has at his disposal and she's now a Cheltenham Festival winner in her own right.

The County Hurdle was the chosen target in 2025, Mullins aiming to win the competitive handicap for the second year running, and Kargese was sent off as the 3/1favourite with Paul Townend on board.

She travelled superbly well, coasted into contention heading for the final jump and duly held off Gordon Elliott's Ndaawi and her own stablemate and 2024 winner Absurde to win.

That was achieved from a rating of 141 and the five-year-old mare has plenty of scope for better after her Cotswolds win.

French import shows potential as a juvenile

After winning two of three starts at Auteuil, Kargese was picked up by top owner Kenny Alexander in the summer of 2023 and sent to join the Mullins team.

She was second in a St Stephen's Day Grade 2 at Leopardstown on her first run for the yard and won the Grade 1 Spring Juvenile Hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival on her second outing.

Big efforts followed in defeat at Cheltenham and Aintree when second behind stablemate Majborough in the Triumph Hurdle and then Sir Gino in the Boodles Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle, before she signed off with a victory in the Ballymore Champion Four Year Old Hurdle at the Punchestown Festival last May, with subsequent Galway Hurdle winner Nurburgring back in third spot.

No Chances take on Ascot return

She didn't reappear until January at Ascot where Kargese finished second behind Take No Chances in the Grade 2 BetMGM Mares' Hurdle.

Dan Skelton's mare was race-fit that afternoon and it showed. She's been third behind Lossiemouth since at both Cheltenham and Aintree, giving that form a solid look.

Kargese just looked a touch rusty at Ascot when push came to shove and it was no major shock to find that, come Cheltenham, she delivered a much more polished finishing effort.

Ayr raid next up

She'll go back up in grade next, with the Coral Scottish Champion Hurdle at Ayr on Saturday, April 12th the next target.

The Grade 2 handicap will see Kargese attempting to defy a new mark of 148, 7lb higher than the one she contested the County Hurdle off.

She moved sweetly in the Cotswolds and appeared to have plenty under the bonnet before Townend allowed her to go and win the race after jumping the final flight.

She drops slightly in trip going to Ayr but should have no issues. All of her juvenile runs came with some give underfoot, but it was good ground at Ascot in January and conditions for Ayr are currently expected to be 'good to soft'.

She's got scope for further progress and, with Mullins seemingly hell-bent on retaining the title of champion trainer in Britain, the prize money in excess of £56k for winning at Ayr would be a welcome addition to the coffers as he bids to run down long-time championship leader Skelton in the home straight.