Despite not having it all his own way, A Dream To Share (8/11F) retained unbeaten status with another tremendous performance to land the Grade 1 Champion Bumper at the Punchestown Festival.
18-year-old John Gleeson, a Leaving Certificate student at St. Augustine’s College, once again steered the Cheltenham winner to success, seeing off the Willie Mullins-trained Tullyhill in the home straight to create yet another piece of history for 85-year-old Dungarvan trainer John Kiely.
Very few horses have won five bumpers, and John Gleeson told RTÉ that he feels privileged to ride this horse, who was bred and owned by his mother, Claire.
Winning machine A Dream To Share (8-11F) adds the Grade One Race & Stay At Punchestown Champion INH Flat Race to an unbeaten record that now extends to five races. pic.twitter.com/aEtOghx7fn
— RTÉ Racing (@RTEracing) April 26, 2023
“He’s a very special horse, and I just feel very lucky to be riding him”, said Gleeson. “When Jody Townend when down the outside, we got racing pretty quickly. I was just trying to bide my time. You can get sucked in very quickly. He’s so straightforward. He has so much class - it wows me.”
“He’s such an honest horse. He gives me 110% every morning even on the gallops. He tries his heart out for you, and I think he was even more impressive today to show that toughness.”
Schoolboy jockey John Gleeson pays tribute to his willing partner A Dream To Share after their Punchestown win. pic.twitter.com/JXyN4UJXEY
— RTÉ Racing (@RTEracing) April 26, 2023
Winning trainer John Kiely reserved a wealth of praise for the young Ardmore rider.
“Fantastic, he’s some horse”, said an elated Kiely. “He came out of Cheltenham as if he was never there and that’s because he has the attitude to handle situations. He had to give him a nice ride. John tracked the opposition well which he needs to learn to do and he’s going it. I hope Marian is still alive at home!”.
“It’s what John wants to do”, said Gleeson’s mother Claire. “He’s been working hard in school and putting in the study. He just said Mam, trust me - I’m doing my study and I love racing. You’ve just got to go with the flow. I’m not stressing, I gave that up a long time ago. I had to.”
“I’m so happy for him, he deserves it because he just works so hard”, said sister Kate. “Unbelievable.”
“This is what racing is all about”, said Brian Gleeson.
A Dream To Share is now likely to begin his novice hurdling campaign in 2023 / 2024, and will start over timber with 2 Grade 1 successes under his belt.
