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Unowhatimeanharry: 11 things you need to know about the Cheltenham prospect

Hannah Lemieux Hannah Lemieux

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    • Find out more about Harry Fry's exciting hurdler, who is heading to the Cheltenham Festival next week (14-17 March) with a great chance

    1. He won on his racecourse debut in a National Hunt Flat race for trainer Helen Nelmes at Fontwell in 2013 as a five-year-old.
    2. He goes by the stablename ‘Harry’ — unsurprisingly — and is sired by popular jump stallion, Sir Harry Lewis, an American-bred thoroughbred and is out of a British-bred mare called Red Nose Lady.
    3. Although all racehorses celebrate their birthdays on 1 January, Unowhatimeanharry’s official birthday is 13 May 2008.
    4. He moved to Harry Fry’s Dorset yard in October 2015 — the trainer purchased the gelding for his racing club to enjoy and had few expectations. “At no point did we expect Unowhatimeanharry to reach the heights he has — we had no aspirations for him really,” Harry told H&H. He found out about the horse thanks to a chance email from his former owner who was looking to sell her horses.
    5. Since joining team Fry, the nine-year-old bay has won all eight starts for his new trainer, the most recent at Cheltenham in January in the Cleeve Hurdle.
    6. He provided 30-year-old Harry Fry with his first Cheltenham Festival winner, when victorious in the 2016 Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle — beating the Gordon Elliott-trained Fagan into second.
    7. He relishes Cheltenham (which is a bonus) and has won at the Gloucestershire track a total of four times during his career — a 50% strike rate under the care of Harry Fry.
    8. The gelding was bought by renowned National Hunt owner JP McManus in October 2016 — before this season’s campaign kicked off — and now runs in the famous green and gold silks.
    9. He loves his racing according to his trainer. “He thrives on his racing — he just eats, sleeps and repeats,” said Harry.
    10. He is currently favourite for the Grade One Sun Bets Stayers’ Hurdle (formerly the World Hurdle) at this year’s Cheltenham Festival (14-17 March). The race takes place on Thursday, 16 March at 3.30pm.

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    11. Noel Fehily — Harry Fry’s stable jockey — is back onboard him for the Cheltenham Festival. JP McManus’ stable jockey, Barry Geraghty, took over the role when the ownership of the horse changed, however, Barry is unable to ride at the Festival this year due to injury.

    Read the full interview with Harry Fry in Horse & Hound’s Cheltenham Festival preview — on sale now (Thursday, 9 March). And don’t miss the Cheltenham Festival report in the 23 March issue of Horse & Hound, plus read daily round-ups online (14-17 March)

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