Chacun Pour Soi tops the list as Irish dominate Jumps Classifications

Chacun Pour Soi has been formally named as the champion of last season's Anglo-Irish Jumps Classifications, his brilliant William Hill Champion Chase success at Punchestown in April earning him a mark of 176.

The unbeaten Henry de Bromhead-trained mare Honeysuckle ended the season as the highest-rated horse over hurdles with a rating of 165.

But the gulf between British and Irish-trained horses was laid bare by the fact that Clan Des Obeaux was only British-trained horse to achieve a rating in the 170s - and that came by dint of his Punchestown Gold Cup success.

Silver Streak was the highest-rated British-trained two-mile performer on 161, leaving it to stayers Paisley Park and Thyme Hill to fly the flag overall with ratings of 163 and 162 for their performances in the Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot.

Chacun Pour Soi enjoyed an almost perfect campaign, winning four of his five starts, including the Ladbrokes Dublin Chase at the Dublin Racing Festival and the Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase, another Leopardstown Grade 1, earlier in the campaign.

Defeat came in the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival, when Chacun Pour Soi could manage only third behind Put The Kettle On before setting the record straight when back on home soil at Punchestown.

Chacun Pour Soi sits alone atop the standings this year, ahead of the WellChild Gold Cup winner Minella Indo, with a mark of 175. Trained by Henry De Bromhead, Minella Indo get the better of stablemate A Plus Tard (172) in a memorable contest, the form given an especially solid look by the presence in third of Al Boum Photo (170), who was seeking a historic third consecutive win in the race.

Another brilliant Cheltenham performance came courtesy of Allaho, who set pulses racing in the Ryanair Chase to earn a mark of 174 and third place in the standings.

The highest-rated British horse in the standings is the Paul Nicholls-trained Clan Des Obeaux, whose thrilling Ladbrokes Punchestown Gold Cup victory in April earned a mark of 172 and rates him the equal of A Plus Tard.

Of Chacun Pour Soi, Senior IHRB Jumps Handicapper Sandy Shaw said: "Cheltenham was obviously a bit of a low point. I have to say even myself I probably thought he only had to turn up at Cheltenham.

"What the reason for that run was I don't know. We can't say he doesn't go left-handed. Some say he doesn't come up the hill. But for whatever reason he got to Punchestown with something to prove, so it was a fantastic performance, a relentless display in which he galloped all the way to the line with Allaho running a big race behind him over a trip that probably didn't suit him.

"What's exciting is that Energumene and Shishkin are going to be chasing him next season. Which one is the better? Until they meet, we really don't know. We put them on the same mark of 169 as we didn't think it was fair to call one of them being better.

"I have to give a mention to Put The Kettle on too as she is a hugely-admirable mare. I know some people will be critical of that Champion Chase form and she's probably not in the same league as Chacun Pour Soi, but she's won an Arkle and a Champion Chase and I, for one, wouldn't mind owning her."

It isn't just Energumene and Shishkin who are expected to shake up the championship chasers next season.

Martin Greenwood, BHA Steeplechase Team Leader, said: "There are plenty of potential superstars in the novice ranks, the only disappointment being that Shishkin and Energumene did not get the chance to race against each other.

"Three horses in the longer distance divisions are the next best, all rated 163. Royale Pagaille finished the season on a low note after finishing lame in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and both Envoi Allen and Monkfish blotted their copybooks at Punchestown."

In the Hurdle division, Honeysuckle's 165 rating saw her end the season 1lb above Sharjah, who was giving the mare weight when chasing her home both at Cheltenham and Punchestown, all-the-way Stayers' Hurdle winner Flooring Porter and the resurgent Klassical Dream, whose Punchestown success caused some headaches, given that a literal reading of that form could clearly have seen him rated higher than Honeysuckle and made him the champion hurdler of the season.

The 7lb mares' allowance that Honeysuckle received at Cheltenham goes some way to explain why such an impressive Champion Hurdle winner ended up rated just 1lb above her peers in the final rankings.

"There's always a debate about the mares' allowance, but I don't think there is any doubt thay Honeysuckle was the best last season - even without the 7lb allowance, it's hard to think she wouldn't have won the Champion Hurdle," said BHA Hurdle Team leader Andrew Mealor.

His Irish counterpart Shaw added: "It's a very difficult one. If there hadn't been the 7lb allowance, would Honeysuckle have gone for one of the many mares' races? Would Epatante have run in the Champion Hurdle the year before?

"It's not always the case that the top hurdlers are going to be mares, and I personally would like to encourage those best mares to run in the Champion Hurdle, so from my own perspective I'd be keeping it. We really need to look at it over a longer period of time rather than rushing to any decisions."

As for Klassical Dream, Shaw admitted: "You could certainly argue that he might have had a higher rating. We all know what a brilliant trainer Willie Mullins is and he managed to get that horse back to produce that kind of performance after over a year off, but we just weren't certain about the overall value of that form with James Du Berlais having just his second run since leaving France and Flooring Porter not running his race at all."

Andrew Mealor, BHA Hurdle team leader, added: "While 2020-21 was another low-key season for the established hurdlers in ratings terms with Honeysuckle the only hurdler to rate 165+, we did see some standout performances in the novice division, notably at Cheltenham from Appreciate It (160) and Bob Olinger (159), who both top their respective categories.

"The ratings don't lie. It wasn't a good year for the British. Some of the top yards didn't have a good season and if they're not having a good season, then British horses won't have as a good a season overall.

"There were some positives for the British at Aintree. Monmiral (153) rates as the season’s best juvenile following a comprehensive success over Triumph runner-up Adagio in the Anniversary Hurdle and he has the scope to suggest he can improve further and make his mark in open company next season. My Drogo (155) is the highest-rated British novice following wide-margin wins in graded events at Kelso and Aintree and he will prove an exciting addition to the novice chasing ranks next season."

Shay Quinn, IHRB NH Handicapper, added of the novice hurdlers: "Appreciate It was a hugely impressive winner of the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and his rating of 160 puts him in the same bracket as some of the best winners of the race in recent years. Bob Olinger on 159 was equally impressive in the Ballymore and also has a very bright future, whether that be over hurdles or fences.

"The winner of the Martin Pipe at Cheltenham, Galopin Des Champs, showed himself to be much more than just a handicapper with a comprehensive victory in the three-mile Grade 1 Novice Hurdle at Punchestown, earning him a figure of 155, and he will be a leading player in the staying hurdle division next season if connections choose to go down that route."