Wilmcote
The six-year-old Jack Hobbs mare Wilmcote is an exciting member of the Deva Racing string. She is trained by Olly Murphy and is named after the Warwickshire village in which he is based.
One of the chief attractions of Wilmcote to Deva Racing was her pedigree, as she is a half-sister to the wonderful Deva-owned mare Space Voyage. British-bred like her sister, Wilmcote is also eligible for the lucrative GBB scheme, meaning she can win up to £20,000 in bonuses per eligible race.
Wilmcote is out of the dual hurdling winner Maiden Voyage, who is also the dam of the chase, hurdles, and point-to-point winner Crest, who made €60,000 as a three-year-old, and further winners by Malinas, Universal, and Yeats. Maiden Voyage is a half-sister to the 2016 Grand National winner Rule The World and the Gr.2-winning and Gr.1-placed novice hurdler Venalmar, amongst numerous others. This is an exceptional NH family.
Adding to Wilmcote’s appeal is the identity of her sire, Jack Hobbs. Winner of the Gr.1 Irish Derby and runner-up in the Gr.1 Derby during his racing career, the now 13-year-old stands at Overbury Stud and welcomed his first NH runners during the 2022/23 season.
Promising bumper or hurdles winners such as Intense Approach, I’m A Lumberjack, Old Gregorian, Whinney Hill, As Legends Have It, Audacious Annie, and Stungbythemaster have quickly showcased the sire’s potential, while his useful Flat stayer The Gadget Man sold for 310,000gns at the 2022 Tattersalls Autumn Horses In Training Sale.
Wilmcote made her debut in a Southwell bumper last May, finishing a creditable fifth, and filled the same position over the same course and distance on her next start. She had three spins in novice hurdle company in the autumn to earn a handicap rating and posted her best effort to date when third over 2m at Uttoxeter in December on her handicap debut.
That performance indicated that Wilmcote is a winner in waiting, and she has the scope to run up a sequence as she looks to be favourably treated. There is an awful lot to look forward to.
Olly says: ‘Wilmcote has shown us plenty of potential at home, she’s straightforward, clean-winded and seems to have a very good attitude. She’s got a fantastic pedigree, and her siblings have done very well so far, so I don’t see any reason why she won’t follow in their footsteps.’