Jimmy Mangan doesn’t train many horses. He doesn’t need to. The Kerry handler runs a yard of just 12 active runners — and yet he keeps finding himself in the winner’s enclosure at the highest level.
Pure Steel’s 12-length demolition of his rivals in Sunday’s Rated Novice Chase at Punchestown was the latest reminder that Mangan’s small operation continues to punch absurdly above its weight.
The Numbers That Matter
Since the start of 2024, Mangan has sent out 12 runners in graded or listed company and won four of them — a 33% strike rate. For context, Willie Mullins, with the largest and most powerful yard in training, manages around 24% in equivalent races at Gowran Park, his local track.
Mangan’s overall stats won’t set the world alight — 43 runners and four winners (9.3%) since January 2025 — but that only tells you he’s selective about where he runs his smaller string. When he steps up in class, he means business.
Pure Steel’s Bounce-Back
The six-year-old had been sent off 6/1 for a Grade 3 novice chase at Punchestown in January and finished a disappointing fifth over an extended two miles two furlongs. Drop him back to two miles on Sunday, though, and he was a different horse entirely — travelling strongly under Mark Walsh before pulling clear with the minimum of fuss.
His form reads like a horse still figuring out the chasing game. A 33/1 third on his chase debut at Naas in November. A win at Punchestown in December over two miles. Then that below-par Grade 3 run over further. Sunday’s performance confirmed what the December form suggested: two miles on a flat track is his trip, and he’s improving fast.
Mangan himself pointed towards the WillowWarm Novice Chase at Fairyhouse as a possible next step — a race Spillane’s Tower won in 2024 en route to Punchestown and ultimately a Gold Cup campaign.
The Spillane’s Tower Connection
That’s the elephant in the room at Cappa, Mangan’s Kerry base. Spillane’s Tower won the Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham last month — beating a field that included several Gold Cup contenders — and is now a genuine player for the blue riband on March 13.
His form since moving to fences reads: Grade 1 winner at Fairyhouse, Grade 1 winner at Punchestown, fifth in the King George (where he didn’t stay the trip in desperate ground), and then that authoritative Cotswold success. He’s won four of his last 12 starts at the highest level.
For a yard with a dozen horses, having one genuine Gold Cup contender would be remarkable enough. Having a rising novice chaser like Pure Steel coming through behind him suggests something more systematic than luck.
What It Means For Cheltenham
Both horses carry the famous JP McManus silks, and both are being campaigned with clear targets in mind. Spillane’s Tower for the Gold Cup. Pure Steel potentially for one of the novice chase events, depending on how the WillowWarm trial goes.
Mangan’s record at Cheltenham itself is modest — you don’t get many bullets with 12 horses — but the quality-over-quantity approach is working. When he brings one over, it tends to be ready.
The smart money isn’t always with the biggest yards. Sometimes it’s with the trainer who has four winners from 12 graded starts and a horse who just won by 12 lengths without breaking sweat.