Melbourne Cup prospect Ethical Diamond bought by Willie Mullins

Trainer Willie Mullins has emerged triumphant in a fierce battle with Australian contenders, securing a highly sought-after horse with aspirations of competing in the prestigious Melbourne Cup.

Spending a substantial sum of 320,000gns at the Tattersalls July Sale, Mullins successfully acquired the wildcard entry known as Ethical Diamond.

Ethical Diamond, a three-year-old colt sired by Awtaad, recently celebrated his first victory at Limerick.

Bred by William Kennedy, trained by Michael O’Meara, and consigned by Baroda Stud, Ethical Diamond attracted the attention of Oliver St Lawrence, Stuart Boman, and Sam Haggas.

However, it was Harold Kirk, a long-standing ally of Mullins in the sales ring, who made a late swoop to secure the deal.

“He’s going to Willie Mullins to be a dual purpose horse for an existing client,” Kirk told Racing Post.

“He’ll run over hurdles and can hopefully be a good staying Flat horse too. He’s a young horse as he’s only had three runs and he’s improved each time. He’s a gorgeous horse too. He stays well, travels well and won well last time.

“Hopefully he could be a Cup horse on the Flat one day. Maybe one day he’ll take us to Cheltenham and another day to Royal Ascot, that’s the plan. During those Covid years we kind of missed out buying those dual-purpose types, even though we had a Royal Ascot winner this year, so we want to build that up again.”

Kirk also emphasised the patience required during the bidding process.

“I wanted to wait and see what it was going to finish at as I knew we could have big opposition from Australia, and that’s how it turned out.” Kirk said.

“Australia can’t get all the good ones though as Willie likes taking horses to Australia! We’re trying to build up a team of Melbourne Cup horses alongside the jumpers.”

With the addition of Ethical Diamond to his stable, Mullins aims to strengthen his roster of dual-purpose horses, setting his sights on triumphing in renowned events such as the Melbourne Cup, Cheltenham, and Royal Ascot.