Son of famous show jumper Captain Con Power, Robert Power has long been considered a rock-solid performer in the Irish National Hunt weighing room. He shot to international prominence when winning the Aintree Grand National on Silver Birch in 2007, but both before and after that success, his rate of success on the domestic front has been consistently solid.
Principal Trainer: Jessica Harrington
Notable Wins:
- Fort Leney Novice Chase (Bostons Angel 2010)
- Navan Novice Hurdle (Oscars Well 2010)
- Dawn Milk Handicap Chase (Gonebeyondrecall 2010)
- Motivatechallenge.com Novice Handicap Chase (Chasing Cars 2010, Pay It Forward 2005)
- Johnstown Novice Hurdle (Coole Rover 2010)
- Pertemps Handicap Hurdle Qualifier (Prince Erik 2010)
- MCR Novice Chase (Roberto Goldback 2010)
- Paddy Power Chase (Oscar Time 2009)
- Galway Blazers Handicap Chase (Paco Jack 2009)
- Dorans Pride Novice Hurdle (Weapon’s Amnesty 2008)
- ACC Bank Champion Hurdle (Silent Oscar 2007)
- Aintree Grand National (Silver Birch 2007)
- Kinloch Brae Chase (Newmill 2006)
- Mick Holly Memorial Handicap Chase (Hume Castle 2004, Jim 2005)
- Nas Na Riogh Novice Chase (Well Presented 2005)
- Dr. P. J. Moriarty Novice Chase (Carrigeen Victor 2005)
- Munster National (Colca Canyon 2004)
- Galway Plate (Nearly A Moose 2003)
- Midlands Grand National at Uttoxeter (Intelligent 2003)
- Greenmount Park Novice Chase (Intelligent 2002)
- Patsy Byrne Handicap Hurdle (Bob What 2002)
Early Days
Robert rode his first winner as recently as December 2001 on a horse called Younevertoldme at Punchestown. He was an amateur rider back then, but almost immediately turned professional and quickly made his name as a 7 lb claimer, partnering the Paddy Mullins-trained Bob What to a good victory in a valuable handicap hurdle on Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup day at Leopardstown just two months later.
Attached to the Jessica Harrington stable, the fact that he could do a light weight brought him to the attention of a wide variety of trainers. He rode a couple of winners for the Paddy Mullins stable around this time, while he also teamed up with the Ger Lyons yard on a regular basis. In May 2002, he was on board the Paul Nolan-trained Say Again when he scored at Navan (the horse was to go on and win the Guinness Galway Hurdle two months later).
Bob What landed another valuable event with Robert in the saddle in the shape of the Patsy Byrne Handicap Hurdle at the Tralee Festival, while later that year he partnered Mr Wong to a couple of victories at Clonmel and at Gowran Park. Jessica Harrington had a decent staying novice chaser in the yard around this time called Intelligent and Robert formed a fine partnership with him. They landed the Grade 2 Greenmount Park Novice Chase at Limerick over Christmas before taking the Midlands Grand National at Uttoxeter in March.
Climbing The Ladder
James Bowe snapped him up to ride Florida Coast to victory in his first hurdle race at Fairyhouse, while other good winners around this time that Robert notched up were on the Pat Flynn-trained Right Job in a valuable handicap hurdle at Navan and on the Paddy Mullins-trained Nearly A Moose in a conditions chase at Cork. Indeed, it was Nearly A Moose who provided Robert with his biggest success at that stage of his career when they combined to land the Galway Plate in July . Still a 3lb claimer at this stage, this 25/1 success meant plenty of media exposure at the time and other notable successes soon followed. In February 2004, he rode Jessica Harrington’s Hume Castle to win the Mick Holly Memorial Handicap Chase at Leopardstown, while Emperors Guest landed a valuable novice chase at Naas seven days later.
Having ridden Colca Canyon to take a conditions event at the Killarney Festival in May 2004, Robert teamed up with the horse again in the Munster National at Limerick five months later and in an exciting finish, the partnership landed the spoils. The Harrington stable had a number of promising novice chasers that season and in February 2005, Robert gained his first Grade 1 victory on the stable’s Carrigeen Victor in the Dr. P.J. Moriarty Novice Chase at Leopardstown. Power was on board Well Presented a couple of weeks later when they notched up a good win in the Nas Na Riogh Novice Chase at Naas, while Jim Dreaper’s Jim gave him a second consecutive success in the Mick Holly Memorial Chase at Leopardstown. The winners continued to flow around this time with the Fran Flood-trained GVA Ireland winning the Imperial Call Chase at Cork, while Pay It Forward gave him a notable victory in the betfair.com Novice Handicap Chase at the Punchestown Festival in 2005.
Injuries slowed down Power’s progression in the 2005/6 campaign, but he did manage to win the T.A. Morris Memorial Novice Chase on Court Leader for Paddy Mullins. Robert also partnered the John Murphy-trained Newmill to success in the Kinloch Brae Chase at Thurles in January, but missed the ride when the same horse won the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival the following March.
Aintree Glory
Up until the April 2007, the 2006/7 season had threatened to be a disappointing one for Power. He had gained just 16 wins despite having had an almost clear run through the season in injury terms, with the biggest of those successes coming on Patsy Hall in a valuable novice chase at Cheltenham in December. However, on a sunny day at Aintree on the 14th of April, Robert Power’s season and indeed his whole career, was changed completely. Robert only got the ride on the Gordon Elliott-trained Silver Birch in the Aintree Grand National as Jason Maguire was injured, but no one would spite Power such a stroke of luck after he missed the ride on Newmill just over a year previously. A 33/1 shot, Power and Elliott were hopeful rather than confident going into the world famous spectacle, but they emerged victorious after a tremendous battle first with Slim Pickings and then Mckelvey on the run-in. Power gave the winner a remarkably cool, no-nonsense ride and he received deserved plaudits from almost every pundit and journalist that covered the race.
As the saying goes, “it never rains, it pours”, and that was certainly the case for Power during the last month of the 2006/7 season. Less than a fortnight after his famous victory at Aintree, Power got the leg up on the Harry Rogers-trained Silent Oscar in the ACC Bank Champion Hurdle. A 20/1 outsider, few people gave the eight-year-old a serious chance but in a tremendously exciting finish, Silent Oscar and Robert Power got the better of the mighty Macs Joy by a neck. Again, Power received universal praise from anyone that had witnessed the race, showing once again that if the horse is good enough, Power is more than equal to the task.
Back On The Hard Road
2007/8 was a season of hard work and consolidation for Power. During the course of the season he took more rides than he had in any other that had come before it, this despite having a couple of injuries, eventually riding a total of 20 winners from 372 rides. He failed to ride a big-race winner during that campaign and while 2007/8 was again quiet in that regard, he did at least ride the Charles Byrnes-trained Weapon’s Amnesty to success in the Grade 3 Dorans Pride Novice Hurdle at Limerick’s Christmas in 2008.
After two solid if unspectacular campaigns following his success at Aintree, Power returned right to his very best in 2009/10, enjoying his best-ever domestic campaign in terms of prize money. By far his most lucrative success came on the Martin Lynch-trained Oscar Time in the Paddy Power Chase at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting and he enjoyed many other valuable paydays, mostly on horses trained by Jessica Harrington. The pick of those successes was arguably his win on Chasing Cars in the highly-valuable Motivatechallenge.com Novice Handicap Chase at the Punchestown Festival.
Grade 1 Glory Returns
2010/11 has seen Power return right to his very best, already having ridden two winners at Grade 1 level for Jessica Harrington. The first to strike was Oscars Well in the Navan Novice Hurdle in December and less than a fortnight later he rode Bostons Angel to success in the Fort Leney Novice Chase at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting. With those horses and numerous others to look forward to over the coming months, Power looks set to have his best campaign for a number of reasons.
Info supplied by Horse Racing Ireland - Updated January 2011
