Thursday witnessed one of the biggest days of the season at the County Kilkenny track of Gowran Park. The Grade 2 John Mulhern Galmoy Hurdle topped the bill from a class perspective, but the most valuable event on the card was the 3m1f Thyestes Chase.
Eighteen went to post in pursuit of the €59,000 first-place prize money, with the heavy ground turning this into a truly arduous affair. The attritional conditions took a toll on the 2026 contenders, with only five of the 18 runners completing the course. Ordinarily, marathon trips on bottomless ground lend themselves to exaggerated winning distances. However, that wasn’t the case here, with the 2026 Thyestes Chase producing an absolute thriller.
Cromwell off the Cold List in Style
Heading into the Thyestes Chase card, Gavin Cromwell had endured an uncharacteristically quiet spell in January. So quiet, in fact, that none of his previous 41 runners had managed to come home in front. Given that record, any winner would be welcome to remove the trainer’s name from the dreaded cold list. In the end, Cromwell did a little better than that.
Hat-trick Starts with Champagne Success
The County Meath handler wasted no time getting off the mark, with even-money chance Champagne Jury rewarding favourite backers in the opening Jury Connolly’s RED MILLS Irish EBF Auction Maiden Hurdle.
A first winner in over three weeks for @gavincromwell1 as Champagne Jury gets favourite backers off to a winning start on @goffs1866 Thyestes day at @GowranPark1 @REDMILLSHorse pic.twitter.com/vkTd69ZPn9
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) January 22, 2026
Having waited so long for a winner, another arrived immediately as The Lovely Man stayed on strongly to claim the Adare Manor Opportunity Handicap Hurdle. That brief winning streak ended when Rackemandstackem was pulled up in race four, but Cromwell was back in business in the main event.
Stamina Wins the Day in Feature
Cromwell boasted a strong two-pronged attack in the Thyestes Chase. Yeah Man had strong form in this type of race, having claimed a heavy-ground edition of the Haydock Grand National Trial in 2024. Now Is The Hour was zero-from-nine over fences but had posted several notable efforts in defeat. The pick of those outings came when falling at the second last in the National Hunt Chase, when looking set to challenge the talented Haiti Couleurs.
Yeah Man didn’t appear to be enjoying this test from a long way out and was pulled up after the third last. Now Is The Hour, in contrast, travelled sweetly under five-pound claimer Eoin Staples. Emerging as a threat around the home bend, he initially looked to have left it too late to grab top spot.
Everything changed over the second last, when leader Spanish Harlem unseated Sean Cleary-Farrell, leaving Better Times Ahead five lengths clear and seemingly booked for victory. However, with Better Times Ahead starting to tire and Now Is The Hour staying on dourly, the tables turned deep inside the final furlong. Storming home under a strong drive, Now Is The Hour edged in front inside the final 50 yards to score by a head and hand his back-to-form handler a hat-trick.
Cheltenham Festival Next on the Schedule
Historically, the Thyestes Chase has proven to be a useful guide towards the Grand National. Three previous winners have gone on to Aintree glory, including Nick Rockett, who won this race and the Merseyside marvel in 2025. A best price of 66/1 for the Grand National before this success, Now Is The Hour is now as short as 14/1 for the big race on Saturday, 11th April.
Whether Now Is The Hour lines up at Aintree remains to be seen, with his trainer suggesting that a second appearance at the Cheltenham Festival may be next on the agenda:
“This race is a big part of the calendar, it’s huge. We were second in it last year, and it’s fantastic to win it. It’s the first time he’s had his ground since he won a Grade 2 over hurdles at Haydock. He qualifies for the National Hunt Chase again this year, and we’ll give him a crack at it again. He’s had a hard race, so he’ll likely go straight there.”
Breakthrough Success for Young Rider
For 22-year-old Eoin Staples, who was riding Now Is The Hour for the first time, this represented the biggest success of his young career. Reflecting on a result which may not have been achieved without his power-packed finishing effort, the County Wexford native said:
“I grew up looking at this race. I’m from an hour down the road in Wexford. It’s a big thing in the south-east, and to get an opportunity to even ride in it is huge. To win it is unbelievable.”