Shark Hanlon poised for training return following suspension

Trainer John ‘Shark’ Hanlon is free to send out his first runners since November from this weekend – and has his eyes firmly fixed on a Randox Grand National bid with with stable star Hewick.

Hanlon has his licence suspended after the Referrals Committee of the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board found he had acted in a manner that “caused significant prejudice to the integrity, proper conduct and good reputation of the sport of racing” in the removal of a dead horse from his yard last year.

The Bagenalstown handler was initially given a 10-month suspension, but saw that reduced to six after an appeal, with the Appeals Body confirming that Hanlon could make an application to suspend the final three months if certain conditions were met.

Hanlon’s suspension came into effect from December 1, with Tara Lee Cogan assuming training duties at his yard, and the Referrals Committee convened online on February 5 to consider Hanlon’s application to review the suspension imposed upon him.

On condition that Hanlon does not commit any further breach of Rule 272 within the suspended timeframe, for the duration of six months up to June 1 2025, otherwise the suspended part could come into effect along with any other penalties that might arise, the trainer’s licence was restored early on February 14 in the knowledge that he would not be able to run any horses until March 1 due to a new ruling.

With that date now looming, Hanlon is delighted to be back in action.

He said: “They gave the licence back to me two weeks ago in fairness, but there’s a new rule in Ireland that you have to have horses in training for 14 days before you can run them, so we’ll be ready to go again from March 1.”

Last season’s King George VI Chase hero Hewick has run twice for Cogan this winter, finishing fifth in a Grade One hurdle race at Leopardstown over the Christmas period before coming home seventh behind Galopin Des Champs in the Irish Gold Cup.

The 10-year-old is entered in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup next month, but Hanlon is leaning towards sidestepping the blue riband in order to keep his powder dry for the world’s most famous steeplechase at Aintree three week later.

“I think we’ll miss the Gold Cup, the National is the plan and has been for a while,” he added.

“The handicapper has dropped him a little bit after his last couple of runs and he gets in the National with 11st 7lb, which I think is a nice weight because it looks like 10st 10lb could be bottom-weight, so he wouldn’t be giving loads of weight to anything.

“As long as we get good ground, that’s the main thing, and I’d rather go there fresh than be taking on Galopin Des Champs in the Gold Cup.

“I might give him a run over hurdles between now and then, but we’ll see. There’s a race a conditions hurdle in two weeks’ time in Ireland and I might go there.”