Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Melissa Jones

Horse of a lifetime Hewick walks into a bar for a celebratory Guinness with trainer

Shark Hanlon will not be joking when he tells the tale of when a horse walked into a bar.

The trainer gave customers a moment to remember by taking Hewick down his local for a pint.

Ireland's wonder horse, bought for just £800, was the toast of punters when he won around £111,000 in the American Grand National earlier this month. Only small in stature, the huge equine success story has amassed earnings of nearly £400,000 with his racecourse heroics.

Following the overseas adventure, connections organised a homecoming event for their hero at The Pint Depot in County Carlow.

Little did they know that the thoroughbred, a candidate for next year's Cheltenham Gold Cup, would be joining them too. Hanlon gently led Hewick through the door of the pub and asked bar staff ''can I get a pint of Guinness now?'

Drinkers joining the celebrations reached for the phones to film the amusing moment.

Hewick (right) winning the Bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown and left, in the pub with trainer Shark Hanlon (RACINGFOTOS.COM/@jhanlonracing)

In another clip, Hewick is then seen snorting into a pint of Guinness as his fans chuckle away.

"Quick question, is it on the house though?" accompanied the post on Hanlon's Twitter page.

In just a few hours, the footage of Hewick entering the pub had been watched more than 140,000 times on the social media platform.

Fans reacted in their droves to the scenes near to Hanlon's stables in Bagenalstown.

Accompanied by several laughter emojis, one wrote: " @jhanlonracing has to be trending after this. The machine that is Hewick."

Another person said: "What do you get after winning the US Grand National @FarHillsRace … a pub visit and a pint of Guinness naturally."

And a third just tweeted: "Amazing!!!"

Hewick's prize money haul could have been even bigger had he not unseated jockey Jordan Gainford in September's Kerry National.

The bargain buy had earlier captured the Galway Plate, which had a first prize of £137,000 and the Bet365 Gold Cup, worth £90,000.

Hewick is 20-1 with bookmakers Paddy Power for next year's Cheltenham Gold Cup.

After the latest big victory in America, Hanlon partied the night away with Gordon Elliott's team, as they also enjoyed a double on their travels in New Jersey.

Hanlon called the latest leg of the journey "unreal" – and was buoyed by the support from Far Hills racegoers.

“I met people who had driven three or four hours to see Hewick because of his profile over the last couple of months, I couldn’t believe it,” he said.

“It’s been amazing, Rachel (partner) and the two kids are here and we’re having a ball. You should see the crowds that are there, even after the race."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.