They call it the sport of kings and most of the time horse racing does live up to its name.
At the top level it is those owners who can afford to speculate hundreds of thousands of euros on something as precarious as a thoroughbred that dominates the sport.
Think of mega-rich businessmen like JP McManus, Michael O'Leary and John Magnier.
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For instance, McManus paid out £570,000 for current Arkle favourite Jonbon on the strength of a single point-to-point victory.
But there are instances when real bargains can be had, with fairytale horses making a mockery of their price tag.
Luckily for Irish racing there have been plenty of those stories in recent years - sometimes the little guys do win.
Skyace
Cost: €700
Career winnings: €120,000
Career highlight: Winning the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares' Novice Hurdle (Grade 1)
One of the great stories of recent years, the Birdinthehand Syndicate paid just £600 for a horse that had a few decent runs in bumpers for Willie Mullins.
Former Roscommon player Cathal McHugh formed the syndicate along with Kieran Breslin from Donegal, Kerill Sutton from Wexford, Mick Delaney from Dublin.
But the lads had no idea of the adventure they would go on when they sought out trainer John 'Shark' Hanlon to buy them a horse.
McHugh told the Irish Daily Mirror: "I just got some notion to give 'Shark' an email. I said to him that I presume he was going to the sales at Ascot.
"So he got back to me and sent three different horses. He put a price tag on the three of them and said what he was hoping to pay. Skyace was one of the horses he mentioned.
"I did my own bit of research then and I said that if you can get this horse Skyace for less than £10,000, I'll take her off you and I'll syndicate it with a few boys in Abu Dhabi and back home.
"He got back to me and said 'I'll do my best but I don't think she'll go for less than £10,000." Fast forward to sales day and McHugh and his friend Kevin Crean were at a concert in Abu Dhabi watching Skyace go under the hammer.
"The two of us were watching the sales at the time and we couldn't believe she was bought for only £600.
"I rang Hanlon straight away. I was like 'Is that £6000 or is that £600 or is that a typo or what's the story?''
There was no mistake though. Despite placing in all of her three bumper runs for Willie Mullins in the summer of 2019, Skyace didn't have a reserve on her back and went for a lowly £600.
But were there alarm bells ringing for McHugh that a master trainer would let one of his horses go for a relative pittance?
McHugh explained: "The horse didn't look great when we bought her. I say that was just because she was out in the fields for a bit.
"I'd say people were thinking too that if Willie Mullins can't get a horse to win a bumper, no one else will get the horse to win.
"There were also rumours about her having sore knees and that she hadn't been able to take her training and stuff like that.
"But we got her and I asked the vet to take a look at her and there was no issue there. It was just one of those things of being at the right place at the right time.
"If the horse went for £10,000, we would have bought her for £10,000.
"To be honest with Covid and everything, we mainly bought the horse because we wanted something to go home to during the summer."
Skyace went on to win her first two starts over hurdles before mixing at the top level against her own sex.
A fourth place finish at the Cheltenham Festival in the Mares' Novice Hurdle was a huge moment, but it was topped when Skyace won the Grade 1 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares' Novice Hurdle at Fairyhouse.
The mare's form tailed off the following season, but she was already the horse of a lifetime for the syndicate, who sold Skyace for £80,000 at the Tattersalls Ascot March Sale.
Flooring Porter
Cost: €5,000
Career winnings: €605,996
Career highlight: Winning the 2021 and 2022 Stayers' Hurdle
It is a common strategy for trainers now to look for fresh owners through social media channels.
And this is exactly how the Flooring Porter Syndicate came across the gelding for sale for "handy money" on Gavin Cromwell's Facebook page.
The name came about as one of the owners, Ned Hogarty, owns a flooring business in Galway, while the other owners Alan Sweeney and Creaven previously owned Countryman pub in Creagh.
It didn't seem such a bargain though when Flooring Porter failed to threaten the judge in his first four starts over hurdles.
The breakthrough came in a maiden hurdle at Bellewstown but even thereafter Flooring Porter looked destined to earn his corn in handicap hurdles.
This changed though when running out a 12-length winner of a competitive handicap at Navan in December 2020, with the horse seeming to be improving at a rapid rate.
The team decided to test their charge at the highest level on his next start, and he duly obliged in the Grade 1 Leopardstown Christmas Hurdle.
His next start was at the Cheltenham Festival in the Stayers' Hurdle. Ridden from the front by Danny Mullins, Flooring Porter put up a freakish performance to win the Grade 1 without Mullins asking him any serious questions.
While the following season had its problems, the Yeats gelding repeated the trick at the Cheltenham Festival.
Now favourite to win a third successive Stayers' Hurdle this season, Flooring Porter has already amassed over €600,000 in career earnings.
Co-owner Hogarty has told how the horse has become an icon of the town of Ballinasloe in Galway.
He said: "The feeling after Porter crossed the line in Cheltenham was of sheer joy for the whole parish, never mind just the syndicate members and our families. No one expected it and everyone benefited from his victory.
"It’s unbelievable, the amount of people that come into our shops and tell me that Flooring Porters winnings are paying for their paint, rugs, or their flooring. So many local people have benefitted from it and it’s really great to see.
"From lifelong racing fans sitting at home watching races, to having your own horse crossing the finish line first in a grade one race, it really is an unbelievable feeling."
Sceptical
Cost: €3,200
Career winnings: €144,564
Career Highlight: A second place finish in the 2020 Darley July Cup
When you are competing against the riches of sovereign states, fairytale stories seem even rarer on the flat.
But the story of Sceptical was a remarkable one. A cast-off from Goldolphin, James McAuley paid just £2,800 at the Goffs Sales in August 2019.
He went into training with Denis Hogan and was sent off at 25/1 for his debut run in a Dundalk maiden.
Despite being slow into his stride, Sceptical made late headway to finish a close-up third, beaten under a length.
He didn't miss in his second run in a maiden at the same track, and then he went on to win two handicaps at Dundalk in great style.
Connections tried their hand at listed level next time at Naas, and the Exceed and Excel gelding won very impressively.
Starting his career off in a lowly maiden at Dundalk, Sceptical was then the 2/1 favourite for the Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot in the hands of Frankie Dettori.
The four-year-old led into the final furlong of the race at the famous Berkshire track but was agonisingly passed in the final stages.
Next up was Darley July Cup at Newmarket, and Sceptical again emerged with huge credit to finish in second place.
McAuley's horse looked destined for a career contesting the best sprint races around the world, but unfortunately tragedy struck when Sceptical suffered a fatal leg injury on the gallops in August 2020.
Hogan said after his untimely death: "From the first time he worked here he was special.
"He needed his wind done but there were no real soundness issues after that. When we had Make A Challenge last year we thought he was our once-in-a-lifetime horse, but we've been blessed that the McAuleys came across Sceptical for us."
He added: "Sceptical transformed my training career. He caught the public's attention and the phone hasn't stopped pinging all morning since the news broke.
"I always knew he had a following but I'm in complete shock that he meant so much to so many people - it's all very much appreciated."
Tiger Roll
Cost: €85,000
Career winnings: €1,820,000
Career Highlight: Winning the 2018 and 2019 Aintree Grand National
Although not necessarily one for the little guys, it can't be argued that the £80,000 Gigginstown House Stud paid for Tiger Roll turned out to be a bargain.
The horse's story doesn't need to be retold in full but his achievements speak for themselves: a two-time Aintree Grand National and a five-time winner at the Cheltenham Festival.
His final race came at the 2022 Cheltenham Festival when beaten under a length by his stablemate and fellow Gigginstown horse Delta Work.
While denied a fairytale ending, everything else about Tiger Roll's career was the stuff of dreams. Winning close to €2,000,000 in prize money, Tiger Roll will go down as one of the most popular horses ever to run on a racetrack.
Hewick
Cost: €850
Career winnings: €448,361
Career highlight: Winning the 2022 Galway Plate
'Shark' Hanlon may have thought he'd never find as big a bargain as Skyace, but he has arguably trumped it with the ongoing remarkable story of Hewick.
The seven-year-old staying chaser has now won close to €450,000 in prize money, which is all the more remarkable considering he was purchased for just €850.
Hewick's rating over fences has rocketed from 126 to 163, and connections are now considering a tilt at the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Owned by TJ McDonald, the gelding won this year's Galway Plate in a season that also included a victory in the bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown in April.
In September, Hewick was running a huge race in the Kerry Grand National at Listowel when falling at the last fence.
But, none the worse for the fall, the gelding made the trip to New Jersey and ran away with the American Grand National.
“I think he’s improving the whole time and his next step is the Gold Cup,” said Hanlon.
“From now on he’ll be trained as a Gold Cup horse, and I might not run him between now and the Gold Cup. We’ll see, he might have one run and I haven’t made up my mind, we’ll just see how he comes along.
“But he’s going to get a good break now until after Christmas and then we’ll train him for the Gold Cup – maybe he’ll get a run some time in February, we’ll just have to see.
“It’s been some journey since he won this day last year in the Durham National. He’s brought us a long way and please God it doesn’t stop here.”
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