It’s Bobsled Time has become the third-longest priced winner in Irish racing history.
The three-year-old gelding romped home in Monday’s Irish Stallion Farms EBF Academy Hurdle at Naas, having set off as 250-1 rank outsider.
The horse trained by Richard Morrissey from County Waterford had given no hint of what was to come after performing poorly in its first two outings.
It was beaten by 50 lengths on its debut run in October.
It fared even worse last month finishing 61 lengths behind the winner.
Racing To A New Irish Record
Under Cork jockey Michael Keneally, It’s Bobsled Time was the backmarker with six furlongs to go.
As the 2m 1f 40y race entered the final turn, the pair had made some small progress on the inside rail but still seemed way out of contention.
With two furlongs to go the field began to spread and It’s Bobsled Time put on the afterburners.
With a furlong remaining it hit the front and sprinted home to win the Academy Hurdles comfortably by two-and-a-quarter lengths.
At 250-1 it was the joint third longest-priced winner in Irish racing history.
He Knows No Fear achieved a record 300-1 win a at Leopardstown in August 2020.
Sawbuck matched that feat at Punchestown in May 2022.
The British record holder is Equinoctial who was a 250-1 winner at Kelso in November 1990.
A Good Day To Back A Bob
For Monday’s race It’s Bobsled Time was a huge 1000 on Betfair Exchange.
It had also been available at 400-1 with several bookmakers before some late money saw the odds drop to 250-1 just before the off.
Ladbrokes, the UK sportsbook owned by Entain, confirmed that one punter had placed a £10 stake at 250-1 odds while dozens of others had enjoyed a nibble.
Spokesperson Nicola McGeady, said: “Bobs up and down the country are celebrating Christmas early.
“It’s not often you get a 250-1 winner, and we can only tip our hats to those who backed it.”
Owned By Cool Runnings Syndicate
The horse was named after a line in Cool Runnings.
The film follows the exploits of Jamaica’s bobsled team during the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.
Owners Cool Runnings Syndicate race the three-year-old in silks resembling the black, green and gold colours of the Jamaican flag.
Nobody seemed more surprised by the win than the jockey, who was riding the horse for the first time.
“I can’t really believe it to be honest, he didn’t have a huge amount of form coming into it at all, he’d had a couple of quiet runs,” said Keneally.
“But Richie [the trainer] is a shrewd man and he knows what he’s doing with his horses.”
