Seven-time Grade 1 winner Defi Du Seuil has been retired by JP McManus with his trainer Philip Hobbs describing the nine-year-old as “up there with the very best” horses he has trained in his long and distinguished career.
The most recent of Defi Du Seuil’s top-level triumphs came when brushing aside old rival Un De Sceaux in the 2020 Clarence House Chase at Ascot but, following wind surgery over the summer, he had failed to fire in two starts this term.
Hobbs told the Racing Post: “He’s been phenomenal, winning seven Grade 1s. We’ve never had a horse who’s achieved that before. And he was a really lovely character in the yard in every way.”
“It’s just that his form has petered away and it’s not good seeing a horse like him running miles below par.”
Bred by the Pierre-Charles Boudot’s mother Catherine and bought from Emmanuel Clayeux’s academy, the son of Voix Du Nord made an instant impact in his juvenile hurdling season, winning a rare treble of Grade 1s at Chepstow, Cheltenham and Aintree.
He struggled the following season over hurdles before making a major impact when switched to fences.
In 2019 he twice defeated Lostintranslation, securing the Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase at Sandown before landing a second festival success in the JLT Novices’ Chase.
‘How many horses achieve that?’
Those victories came over intermediate trips but Defi Du Seuil showed his speed and versatility when dropping to the minimum two miles the following season to land the Tingle Creek and the Clarence House.
“Winning twice at Cheltenham was special – how many horses achieve that? – besides all the other Grade 1s,” said Hobbs.
When asked to name his favourite memory, he added: “It’s probably the Triumph Hurdle because he won so well that day. But at the same time they were all fantastic, he’s been a phenomenal horse. Of all the horses we’ve had here he’s up with the very best of them.”
Read this next:
Dan Skelton: ‘Does watching those Irish horses change anything? Not really’
New Sky Bet customers can get £20 in free bets. New customers only. First single & e/w bet only. Odds of 1/1 or greater. 2 x £10 bet tokens. Free bet stakes not included in returns. Free bets exclude virtuals. Free bets are non-withdrawable. No free bet expiry. Eligibility restrictions. Further T&Cs apply. 18+. begambleaware.org.
This news is republished from another source. You can check the original article here
Be the first to comment