Grech And Mullins Combine For Bumper Win

Emerging powerful owner Mike Grech won with his first runner for Willie Mullins at Fairyhouse today as Brandy Love impressively landed the concluding Irish Stallion Farms EBF Bumper, under the trainer’s son Patrick Mullins.

The four year old previously won her only point-to-point for handler Colin Bowe at Cragmore in February and was sold to Grech for £200,000 later that month.

Today Brandy Love was the heavily backed 4/9 favourite and sauntered to a seven lengths win over runner-up Presentingnewyork.

Winning jockey Patrick Mullins later reported “she’s very good and a proper mare. That’s what she was showing at home and we thought she would do that. Those Jet Aways (stallion) seem to be quite good. He’s siring plenty of winners and she will keep his name in lights.

“I’d imagine she will stay in bumpers and could go for the mares’ bumper (at the Dublin Racing Festival) in Leopardstown and could be a spring Festival mare as well.

“It’s Mike Grech’s first runner for us. Henrietta Knight is involved with him as well so it’s great to get a winner for them.”

Salford businessman Grech was previously involved with Stuart Parkin and had horses trained by Nicky Henderson before the partnership ended in 2019.

More recently Grech has linked-up with Best Mate’s trainer Henrietta Knight and has since sent horses to trainers Mullins, Gordon Elliott and Joseph O’Brien with Keskonrisk’s win for O’Brien last month being his first in Ireland.

Elliott’s only runner for the owner has been Floueur who landed a sizeable gamble in Elliott’s own colours at Navan in January, weeks prior to switching to Grech.

Quotes from Alan Magee