Free Spirit is a five-year-old who did his early racing in France before arriving in the Mullins yard, and the switch has taken a little time to click. Across four races he has yet to win, with a single placed finish — a third — his best result so far. His most recent run came just yesterday, and before that he finished eighth and fourteenth, which on the surface looks unimpressive. But the assistant trainer David Casey was notably upbeat after Punchestown, pointing out that Free Spirit jumped well and kept galloping — the kind of raw honesty in a race that trainers value far more than a comfortable position behind slower horses.
Willie Mullins himself has spoken warmly about what he saw from the horse in France, and made an interesting observation: Free Spirit is by Muhtathir, a sire known for producing sharp, quick horses. That breeding hint, combined with only two hurdle races in France before arriving in Ireland, suggests the yard sees a horse still finding his feet in a new environment rather than one who has been found out. The phrase "improve loads" from Casey is not throwaway optimism — it is the kind of remark that comes from watching a horse work at home every morning.
Free Spirit has not won a race yet, and anyone looking purely at the numbers would move on quickly. But the real story here is the company he keeps and the confidence of the people around him. Getting a horse into the
| Course | Races | Results | Last visited | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Punchestown Galloping |
2 | 1 third, 1 other | 28 Apr | 0% |
| Naas Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 4 Jan | 0% |
| Cheltenham Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 11 Mar | 0% |