Patrick Mullins is hoping Energumene can follow in the hoofprints of a two-mile chasing legend following his winning return to action in the Bar One Racing Hilly Way Chase at Cork on Sunday.
The ten-year-old was was racing for the first time in 593 days at the weekend and the dual champion chaser was left clear by Banbridge's fall at the last as he went on to score by ten lengths.
It was a performance that was around a stone short of his very best on Timeform ratings and Mullins said: “It was magic to get him back. Imran Haider who looks after him and rides him out has done a wonderful job in nursing him back to health. He hasn’t missed a beat since he came back in but he’s ten going on eleven and been off the track for nearly two years and it was a big ask.
“He wasn’t back to his very best. He was getting ten pounds from Banbridge and while I think he’d have beaten him, at the weights he was probably going to come out as the second-best horse in the race. But I think Banbridge has had a run, we’re entitled to improve and we missed the third last, he started jumping a bit right as well.
“At his age it’s going to be hard to go back and win the Champion Chase but Moscow Flyer did it. Now he’s a legend so that’s going to be hard to match but I for one will be looking forward to taking on Jonbon.”
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