Slade Steel

The headline moment came at Cheltenham on 12 March 2024, where Slade Steel won a Class 1 race — one of the most prestigious events in British racing. Cheltenham is the venue that sorts out the genuine stars from the nearly-there horses, and winning there at the top level is the kind of achievement a horse carries on its record forever. The journey started at Punchestown in December 2022, where the first win arrived, and since then the horse has added four more to the tally.

The partnership with Rachael Blackmore is worth paying attention to. One of the most celebrated jockeys in the sport, Blackmore has ridden Slade Steel six times and won on three of those occasions — a 50% win rate that is extraordinary by any measure. Half the races they have entered together, they have won. That kind of chemistry between horse and rider is rare and tells you the horse performs at its very best in the right hands.

What really sharpens the picture is how Slade Steel handles wet or muddy ground. In four races on those conditions, it has won three times — 75%, or three-in-four. For context, most horses either tolerate or dislike the mud; very few actively thrive in it the way these numbers suggest. When the weather turns grim and rival trainers start worrying about their horses, Henry De Bromhead's yard can look at the forecast with something closer to enthusiasm.

De Bromhead, based at Knockeen in County Waterford, has sent out 107 winners already this season — a yard firing on all cylinders. Slade Steel last ran just yesterday, winning at Fairyhouse on 6 April 2026, with recent form that reads 1-6-2-2-2 across its last five completed runs. A winner this week, trained by one of the sport's best, with a Cheltenham Class 1 on its CV. There is plenty to like here.