Gigginstown forming strong team
The grey Petite Parisienne winning at Leopardstown
© Healy Racing Photos
Leading owners Gigginstown House Stud are pooling together a strong team for the supporting races at the Punchestown Festival next week.
Among their band is Grade One-winning juvenile Petite Parisienne, who is in both the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares Champion Hurdle and the AES Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle on Saturday week.
Analifet holds an entry in the former contest but both Willie Mullins-trained horses might be up against their esteemed stablemate Annie Power.
"We have Petite Parisienne in both the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares Champion Hurdle and the AES Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle on Saturday," said Eddie O'Leary, racing manager for Gigginstown
"I'd imagine that if Annie Power goes to the mares' race then we'd go for the four-year-old contest with her. If that's the case then I think we'd run Analifet against Annie Power."
Irish National hero Thunder And Roses is unlikely to take up his entry in the Growise Champion Novice Chase but two of those also in action at Fairyhouse - Empire Of Dirt and Rogue Angel - are likely to head to Punchestown.
"There's only a slim chance Thunder And Roses would go, he's probably done enough for the year - if he tells us he wants to go he can go," said O'Leary.
"But Empire Of Dirt and Rogue Angel, who both came down behind him in the Irish National, are likely to go for handicaps.
"They'd be more than likely to go for either the Palmerstown House Pat Taaffe Handicap Chase or the Ladbrokes Ireland Handicap Chase."
Gigginstown House Stud has its usual team of promising bumper performers and among those slated to appear next week is the Noel Meade-trained Disko, a 15-length winner at Punchestown on his only start in February.
"I'll have to talk to Noel Meade but I'm hoping that Disko will get there for the Attheraces.com Champion INH Flat Race (on Wednesday).
"He's a nice horse. We're also likely to run two or three in the Goffs Land Rover."







