Greatest Racehorses: Sprinter Sacre 647249

Pedigree Details

Sire: Network

Dam: Fatima III

Dam's Sire: Bayolidaan

Breeder: Christophe Masle

Foaled: 23 April 2006

Race Record & Factfile

Races: 24

Wins: 18

Owner: Mrs Caroline Mould

Trainer: Nicky Henderson

Profile

Sprinter Sacre, an AQPS (Autre Que Pur-Sang or “other than thoroughbred”) son of smart German Flat performer Network, was purchased from by Caroline and Raymond Mould as part of a 22-horse ‘job lot’ for €300,000 and sent to Seven Barrows to be trained by Nicky Henderson.

The Moulds themselves had tasted plenty of previous success, Raymond’s colours of green with white stars had been carried to victory by the talented-but-fragile Charter Party in the 1988 Cheltenham Gold Cup, while Bindaree also provided Raymond with a Grand National and Welsh Grand National, and presumably plenty of celebrations in The Hollow Bottom pub, which Raymond and Twiston-Davies were partners in.

Sprinter Sacre, however, was the most talented horse the Moulds were associated with. The Sizing Europe in the 2013 Queen Mother Champion Chase has been bettered by only legendary chasers Arkle (212) and Flyingbolt (210).

A deep-shouldered, imposing gelding, who seemed to glide over the ground and at his brilliant best would win championship events hard held, Sprinter Sacre also showed, most notably in his final season, a willing attitude under pressure. He was the outstanding two-mile chaser of his generation who had everything.

2009/2010 Season

Sprinter Sacre evidently had a big reputation at home and was sent off the 11/8-on favourite on debut at Ascot (he would be sent off odds-on for 15 of his 24 starts and his SP was bigger than 2/1 on only three occasions).

He won only narrowly at Ascot, but jockey Barry Geraghty was seemingly at pains to ask Sprinter Sacre for no more than the required amount, only getting to work in the last furlong. Potential trips to Cheltenham and Aintree were byed in favour of a bumper at Ayr on Scottish National day. Again, with Geraghty aboard, he barely came off the bridle but showed much improved form to score by four lengths, giving connections plenty of hope he could develop into a smart novice hurdler the following season.

2010/2011 Season

Sprinter Sacre ran four times as a novice hurdler, winning twice, though his best effort by far was his third in that season’s Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, which would prove to be one of the strongest in modern times. Stepped up in trip to just shy of two and a half miles and returned to Ascot on hurdling debut, he found his early exuberance and a lack of race fitness against him when runner-up to Frascati Park (who had the benefit of a previous outing and would eventually stay three miles over fences) after travelling best, suggesting that he would benefit from a return to two miles. Dropped back in trip, he justified short odds to land a weak novice at Ffos Las and didn’t need to improve from his debut effort to score at Ascot, setting up a tilt at the Supreme Novices’ at the Cheltenham Festival.

Sprinter Sacre had a new man on board at Cheltenham, multiple champion jockey A.P. McCoy taking the ride. Sprinter Sacre travelled powerfully throughout and was the last off the bridle after leading turning for home, his momentum briefly stopped just as McCoy was getting into full overdrive, when flattening the final flight.

He was eventually overhauled up the hill by Cue Card, showing he was a smart novice.

The 2011 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle would prove to be an extraordinarily strong renewal. Spirit Son would race only once again, winning a Grade 1 in impressive style, but the other three who filled the frame would amass career prize-money of £3,095,195.

However, even though the Supreme was such a high-quality contest, it was still possible to identify Sprinter Sacre as the best long-term prospect, particularly over fences. Sprinter Sacre’s Timeform report read: "Arguably the best of this whole bunch, it's sure to be over fences that he blossoms, the sort to be a big player for next year's Arkle should that be the chosen route."

2011/2012 Season

Given a breathing operation following his novice hurdle campaign and having seemingly strengthened and matured into his robust frame, Sprinter Sacre remained unbeaten in five starts during his novice chase campaign, culminating in his first top-flight victories in the Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival and Maghull Novices’ Chase at Aintree.

Sacre Sacre, ridden by conditional David Bass, made his much-anticipated chasing debut at Doncaster, and it’s highly likely that it was the best performance from a novice ever seen on Town Moor. Sprinter Sacre jumped very well, spectacularly so on occasions, and shot clear after the last to win unextended. A mouth-watering clash with Champion Hurdle runner-up Peddlers Cross followed in the Wayward Lad Novices’ Chase at Kempton and, in receipt of 2 lb, Sprinter Sacre demolished Peddlers Cross by 16 lengths.

Stepped up into open company, Sprinter Sacre didn’t need to improve when exuberantly dispatching some older rivals who were below top class in the Game Spirit at Newbury, though he still broke the course record. There was even better to come in a strong-looking Arkle with old foes Al Ferof and Cue Card in attendance. He duly routed them, producing the best Arkle performance since Azertyuiop in 2003, quickening impressively when asked after the last and sauntering clear.

He completed a simple task in the four-runner Maghull Novices’ at Aintree, and the race report read: “He's a most exciting prospect for open company next season and it's no surprise that he's already a short-priced favourite for the Champion Chase.”

The Arkle/Champion Chase double had been completed four times since the turn of the millennium and Sprinter Sacre appeared to have outstanding claims of achieving the feat. In fact, he ended the season rated 175p, the highest for a novice chaser in Timeform’s history, suring the 172 Gloria Victis achieved in the 1999/2000 season.

Major races won 

• Wayward Lad Novices’ Chase, Kempton
• Game Spirit Chase, Newbury
• Arkle Challenge Trophy, Cheltenham
• Maghull Novices’ Chase, Aintree

2012/2013 Season

The 2012/2013 season is the one in which Sprinter Sacre went from an extraordinary novice to one of the all-time greats. Again, he remained unbeaten in five starts, this time all at the very top level, by an aggregate of 58 lengths. He completed a rare treble in the process by winning at the three major spring festivals of Cheltenham, Aintree and Punchestown in the same season, the first since Istabraq in 1999 to do so. It would be a season that saw him dubbed by Timeform as "the most exciting chaser around” and “as good a two-mile chaser as we have seen".

It all started at Sandown in the Tingle Creek. The race had been billed as a clash between the Paul Nicholls-trained Kumbeshwar a 15-length beating.

It was a similar story in the Victor Chandler Chase, moved from Ascot to Cheltenham, in which Sprinter Sacre attracted running notes of "typically jumped well, travelled strongly, chased leader fifth, led seventh, drew clear on bridle from 3 out, impressive". He handed a 14-length thrashing to the enigmatic Mad Moose, who was on a rare going day.

It was in the Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival that Sprinter Sacre produced his career-best performance, and one of the greatest in the history of National Hunt racing. Multiple graded winners lined up against him but he annihilated them, making the top-class and former winner Sizing Europe look ordinary.

Sprinter Sacre was allotted a Timeform master rating of 192p, the highest in the modern era and 20 lb higher than when Remittance Man won his second Champion Chase for Henderson in 1992.

The greatest jumps performance this decade based on Timeform ratings:

2013 Champion Chase - Sprinter Sacre

Sprinter Sacre produced the highest Timeform rating over jumps in the modern era, behind only Arkle and Flyingbolt, achieving a rating of 192.pic.twitter.com/nJUoRWLMnJ

— Timeform (@Timeform) December 30, 2019

He was just as breath-taking in the Melling Chase at Aintree 18 days later, defeating Cue Card again on the final occasion the pair would meet. He scored by four and a half lengths but was value for any amount more. On his only foray to Ireland, he wasn’t at his brilliant best, possibly feeling the effects of three quick races in the Punchestown Champion Chase. However, a big crowd turned out to see him triumph. Little did his adoring public know it would be his last success for 31 months.

Major races won

• Tingle Creek Chase, Sandown
• Victor Chandler Chase, Ascot
• Champion Chase, Cheltenham
• Melling Chase, Aintree
• Boylesports Champion Chase, Punchestown

2013/2014 Season

Having missed the Tingle Creek due to a minor setback, Sprinter Sacre reappeared in the Desert Orchid Chase at Kempton and suffered a considerably more serious one, pulled up quickly after the seventh and found to be suffering from a fibrillating heart, prompting questions of whether we would we see the brilliant best of him again.

2014/2015 Season

The Clarence House at Ascot, 13 months later, was the chosen comeback for Sprinter Sacre, and he shaped well when runner-up to Dodging Bullets, seemingly getting tired in the bad ground but suffering a minor bleed in the process. However, he was clearly amiss when pulled up in the Champion Chase eight weeks later and again failed to produce anything like his best in the Celebration Chase at Sandown on what would prove to be his final start of the season, and what many thought would be the last of his career. He was by no means disgraced when a keeping-on six-length second to Special Tiara, but a loss to a horse to whom he'd have been able to concede around 25 lb in his prime suggested the fire was not burning as brightly as previously. This would not prove to be the final chapter in an extraordinary tale, though.

2015/16 Season

Now ridden by Nico de Boinville, regular work rider and stable jockey to Henderson, Sprinter Sacre remarkably went unbeaten in his final season and regained his Champion Chase crown. A smooth success in the Shloer Chase on his reappearance suggested that Sprinter Sacre may still have been capable of cutting it at the highest level, and a hard-fought three-quarter-length victory over Sire De Grugy at Kempton over Christmas backed up that impression.

The Champion Chase was next and Sprinter Sacre was sent off a 5/1 chance against Un De Sceaux, a horse who was unbeaten when completing. Sprinter Sacre proved that his trademark swagger was back, though, and he powered past his rival on the turn for home. He was well in control on the approach to the final fence and, despite putting in an untidy jump and tiring slightly up the hill, he regained his title and sent the Cheltenham crowd into pandemonium.

Last, but certainly not least...

Who can forget Sprinter Sacre's epic & emotional second Champion Chase win in 2016 pic.twitter.com/vcZfYdG0fk

— Timeform (@Timeform) July 11, 2017

On the 23^rd April 2016, fully ten years to the day since he was foaled, Sprinter Sacre won his final start in the Celebration Chase, recording his best performance that season and beating Un De Sceaux by 16 lengths. It would prove a fitting ending to the career of one of the all-time greats.

Major races won

• Desert Orchid Chase, Kempton
• Champion Chase, Cheltenham
• Celebration Chase, Sandown

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