{{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Master Minded , image_name = Master Minded.jpg , caption = Master Minded at Sandown in 2011. , sire = Nikos , grandsire =

Nonoalco Nonoalco (1971–1992) was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who raced in France. Background He was out of the mare Seximee, a daughter of the 1954 Preakness Stakes winner Hasty Road. His sire was the very important Nearctic, who also si ...

, dam = Haute Tension , damsire = Garde Royale , sex = Gelding , foaled = 2003 , country =

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, colour = Bay , breeder = Marie-Christine Gabeur , owner = Mrs Benoît Gabeur
Clive D. Smith (2007–) , trainer = Guillaume Macaire
Paul Nicholls (2007–) , record = 16: 9-2-0 , earnings = £971,931 , race = Game Spirit Chase (2008, 2010)

Queen Mother Champion Chase The Queen Mother Champion Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. As part of a sponsorship agreement with the onl ...

(2008, 2009)

Tingle Creek Chase The Tingle Creek Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of about 2 miles (1 mil ...

(2008, 2010)

Victor Chandler Chase The Clarence House Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of about 2 miles and 1 furlong (2 ...

(2009, 2011)
Kerrygold Champion Chase (2009)

Melling Chase The Melling Chase, currently known for sponsorship purposes as the Marsh Chase, is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Ain ...

(2011) , awards = , honours = , updated= April 29, 2009 Master Minded (foaled April 14, 2003) is a French bred

National Hunt In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

racehorse who was trained in Great Britain by Paul Nicholls.

Early Days in France

Master Minded started his National Hunt career in France. He was initially trained by Guillaume Macaire and owned by Mme Benoit Gabeur. He started his career with 8 runs at Auteuil from 4 October 2006 as a three-year-old to 27 May 2007. He had 3 wins and a fourth, pulling up once, two falls, and possible his best run when he finished runner-up in the 2007 Prix Ferdinand Dufaure. Prior to this run, Clive Smith (owner of Kauto Star) had bought him, and

Ruby Walsh Rupert Walsh (born 14 May 1979 in Kill, County Kildare, Ireland) is an Irish former jockey. He is the second child, and eldest son, of former champion amateur jockey Ted Walsh and his wife Helen. Walsh is the third most prolific winner in Brit ...

had his first ride on the horse in that race.

2007–2008 Season

In 2007, Master Minded joined the powerful Ditcheat stable of Paul Nicholls to begin chasing. He was not a novice following his win in France so was entered against seasoned campaigners. Nicholls found an easy opening for him at Exeter Racecourse in a 4 runner graduation Chase where Sam Thomas took the ride, but the horse made a serious error and unseated Thomas. Nicholls took Master Minded up a class to run at Sandown on 5 January 2008 in the Free £25 Bet partybets.com Handicap Chase at Sandown, which he won. After the race he was now starting to be taken seriously as a

Cheltenham Festival The Cheltenham Festival is a horse racing-based meeting in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, with race prize money second only to the Grand National. The four-day festival takes place annually in March at Cheltenham Ra ...

horse and was made 8–1 favourite for the RyanAir Chase and 25-1 for the Champion Chase. Master Minded stepped up another step in his next run, the Game Spirit Chase at Newbury (9 February 2008), which is a very important stepping stone to the

. He beat a top-class field including the defending champion, Voy Por Ustedes, and was now being seriously as a candidates for major honours. On 13 March 2008 as a five-year-old, Master Minded became the youngest horse to win the prestigious

at the

since the race was established in 1959. Ridden by

, he defeated the previous year's winner,

Voy Por Ustedes Voy Por Ustedes (foaled 26 April 2001) is a French-bred chaser. Background Voy Por Ustedes is owned by Sir Robert Ogden and trained by Nicky Henderson. He was originally trained by Guillaume Macaire in France and was subsequently sold to the M ...

, by 19 lengths.

John Francome John Francome (born 13 December 1952) is a retired 7 time British Champion Jump Jockey. In addition to being a successful jockey, Francome was previously a racing trainer, broadcaster with Channel 4 and an author. Racing career Francome fir ...

said that on that form, Master Minded could have won any race in the Festival; he also described the horse as "scary". Coincidentally, his trainer in his early years, Macaire, had also previously trained both Runner Up

and another of the 2008 Champion Chase runners, Twist Magic (sixth). Master Minded was now highest rated Chaser in the world and had one more run at Aintree, where he lost to Voy Por Ustedes. The Racing Post said, "As much as Voy Por Ustedes relished the rapidly drying conditions, Master Minded intermittently looked uneasy, certainly not jumping or travelling with the zest he showed at Cheltenham. That might be as much to do with a change of tactics. He set off last and was put immediately on the back foot off the fast pace by getting in close to the first, possibly frightening himself, as he was careful over the second. He telegraphed his second-last boneshaker first time and was again ragged over the same set of fences down the back straight. He still moved up strongly around the home bend and there was everything to play for before it simply looked like he ran out of stamina, which is what connections reported. He was 12 lengths down halfway up the run-in before being eased to accentuate his beating. He remains the one to beat over 2m. It could also turn out that like another top 2m chaser from France, Edredon Bleu, he is happiest bowling along and putting his rivals under pressure. A return to those tactics could restore his air of invincibility." Master Minded finished the 2007/2008 jumps season as the highest-rated chaser in the world.

2008–2009 Season

Master Minded started the season with a victory in the

Sandown Park Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse rac ...

. He was ridden by A P McCoy, as Ruby Walsh was injured having had his spleen removed following a fall a fortnight prior. His next run was another easy victory in the Victor Chandler chase at Ascot, where Ruby Walsh was back on board. He said that "this horse is not a machine—he is an aeroplane" and Nicholls said he was the best he had ever trained which is high praise indeed. With Walsh at the helm, Master Minded won the 2009 Queen Mother Champion Chase, a race he had also won the previous year."Master Minded shows genius as Walsh completes treble"
www.guardian.co.uk, 11 March 2009, accessed 12 March 2009.

2009–2010 Season

Master Minded finished fourth behind

Big Zeb Big Zeb (foaled 13 May 2001) is a retired, Irish Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in National Hunt racing and was best known for his performances in steeplechases over the minimum distance of two miles. He was slow to mature and made little i ...

, an Irish horse, owned by Patrick Joseph Redmond, on 17 March 2010 in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.

References

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