Gordon Elliott's talented mare, Brighterdaysahead, prepares to take on a promising field in the Bottlegreen Hurdle at Down Royal, marking the start of her anticipated open hurdling season under the Gigginstown House Stud banner.
Everyone will be watching Brighterdaysahead as she starts her run in the Bottlegreen Hurdle at Down Royal this Friday. Under the training of Gordon Elliott and owned by Gigginstown House Stud, this talented mare has an outstanding record from her time in bumpers and novice hurdles.
Brighterdaysahead remained unbeaten in National Hunt Flat races before moving on to novice hurdling last season, where she excelled with only one defeat in five attempts. That single loss occurred at the Cheltenham Festival in the Ryanair Mares' Novice Hurdle, where she finished just one and three-quarters of a length behind Jeremy Scott's Golden Ace. Nonetheless, she swiftly rebounded to claim victory in the esteemed Grade One Mersey Novices' Hurdle at Aintree.
Although there was consideration of a novice chasing career for her, the team ultimately chose to embark on a season in the open hurdling division, starting at the Grade Three level. Eddie O'Leary from Gigginstown expressed confidence in the mare, saying, “She's been very well. We'll start off and hopefully she's lucky. We think she's a very good mare; we're ready to start with her and hope she runs well. We'll not think beyond tomorrow; we've got to get that out of the way and hope she stays lucky. It will be one step at a time.”
Brighterdaysahead will compete against a strong field, featuring stablemate King Of Kingsfield and Willie Mullins' Daddy Long Legs. Other contenders are Andrew Slattery's Smooth Tom, Michael Millar's Breagagh, and Peter Fahey's Miss Fourie.
Besides the Bottlegreen Hurdle, the lineup includes another Grade Three race—the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Feathard Lady Mares Novice Hurdle—featuring Elliott's Speculatrix, as well as Henry de Bromhead's Mystical Goddess.
As Brighterdaysahead begins her season, the racing community will be keenly observing to see if she can maintain her winning streak and solidify her position as a top contender in the open hurdling division.
