Make A Stand (horse)
| Make A Stand | |
|---|---|
| Sire | Tote Gold Trophy (1997) (1997)Champion Hurdle |
Make A Stand (21 March 1991 – 22 November 2019) was a British
Background
Make A Stand, a chestnut with a broad white blaze, was bred by R M West in 1991. His sire was the Derby runner-up Master Willie.[1] Originally sent into training with Henry Candy in Oxfordshire, his best performances came after he was bought out of a claimer in 1995 and joined the stable of Martin Pipe.
Racing career
1993-1995: Flat racing
Making his debut in 1993, Make A Stand raced on the flat for three seasons. His only wins in twelve starts came in a maiden race at Newmarket in 1993 and a low-grade claiming event at Leicester two years later.[2] Bought for £8,000[3] he was transferred to the Nicholashayne stable of Martin Pipe in September 1995.
1995/6 National Hunt season
His career as a jumper began with a remote ninth in a Novices' Hurdle at Exeter in October, although the fact that he was sent off 15/8 second favourite[4] suggested than he had shown some potential. He was not seen on the course again for almost six months.
1996/7 National Hunt season
Beginning in May 1996, Make A Stand put together a sequence which saw him racing fifteen times in ten months, winning ten races and improving by fifty pounds on the way to the Championship. He took the lead from the start and generally stayed there. He began with a hat-trick of wins in the space of twenty-four days, by an aggregate margin of thirty-six lengths. Because the wins took place after 1 May, his novice status for the following season was not affected. Returning to the flat in the summer of 1996, he recorded a win and two places from four starts.[5]
When the jumps season began in earnest in autumn, Make A Stand's career resumed where it had left off in May, with the gelding carrying top weight to an easy victory in a
At Cheltenham, he was sent off at 7-1 for the Champion Hurdle, against a field that brought together the best hurdlers in Britain and Ireland. Adopting his usual front-running tactics, he came home a five-length winner from Theatreworld. Alastair Down, writing in the Sporting Life, described the performance as "a remorseless display of speed and precision hurdling", while Theatreworld's jockey, Norman Williamson said of the winner, "He is a true champion - he just annihilates you with his speed".[11]
Later career
It seemed likely that Make A Stand was at the beginning of a long career as a top hurdler: in fact, he never won again. Three weeks later, he attempted to make all the running in the Aintree Hurdle but tired into third in the straight and finished lame. Injury problems then interrupted his career,[12] and he was not seen on the racecourse for almost three years. On his next and final start, he took the early lead in the 2000 Champion Hurdle but soon tired and finished tailed-off behind Istabraq.[13] His retirement was finally announced in February 2001. Pipe said, "He looks wonderful...he just seems to have lost his enthusiasm".[3]
Retirement
After his retirement Make A Stand was retrained by the charity Retraining of Racehorses and became a hunter.[14] He took part in a parade of former champions at the 2010 Cheltenham Festival.[15] His death at the age of 28 was announced on 22 November 2019.[16]
Pedigree
| Sire Master Willie (GB) 1977 |
High Line 1966 |
High Hat | Hyperion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madonna | |||
| Time Call | Chanteur | ||
| Aleria | |||
| Fair Winter 1964 |
Set Fair | Denturius | |
| Ria Geno | |||
| Winter Gleam | Aureole | ||
| Red Winter | |||
| Dam Make A Signal (GB) 1973 |
Royal Gunner 1962 |
Royal Charger | Nearco |
| Sun Princess | |||
| Levee | Hill Prince | ||
| Bourtai | |||
| Look Out 1961 |
Vimy | Wild Risk | |
| Mimi | |||
| Visor | Combat | ||
| Eyewash (Family: 6-e) |
References
- ^ "Make A Stand". Racing Post. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Sotheby's Claiming Stakes". Racing Post. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ a b "End of road for Champion Hurdle hero Make A Stand". Thefreelibrary.com. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Dean & Dyball Novice Hurdle". Racing Post. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Queen Mother's Cup Lady Amateur Riders' Handicap". Racing Post. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Hilliam Hill Handicap Hurdle". Racing Post. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Kennel Gate Hurdle". Racing Post. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Lanzarote Hurdle". Racing Post. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Racing: Grand Stand finish for Pipe - Sport". The Independent. 1997-02-09. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ HighBeam[dead link]
- ^ "Make A Stand profile". Famousracehorses.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2007-08-24. Retrieved 2011-08-28.
- ^ "No early comeback for Make A Stand". Thefreelibrary.com. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Champion Hurdle 2000". Racing Post. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ^ "Hall of Fame". Ror.org.uk. Archived from the original on 2011-09-10. Retrieved 2011-08-28.
- ^ "Festival Heroes on Parade". Cheltenhamfestival.net. 2010-03-08. Archived from the original on 2011-10-01. Retrieved 2011-08-28.
- ^ Carr, David (22 November 2019). "'His jumping was electric' - tributes flow for Champion Hurdle hero Make A Stand". Racing Post.