The first thing to say about the history of Timeform, as far as National Hunt racing is concerned, is that it dates back only to 1962, when the weekly Timeform Black Book in that domain was first published. Indeed, the ‘Chasers & Hurdlers’ annual, which included Timeform commentaries and ratings for every horse that ran over jumps in Britain the previous season, did not appear until 1976.
However, the six and a bit decades of the ‘Timeform era’ are plenty long enough to identify the top three jumping mares of modern times. In fact, the Halifax-based organisation takes pride in the consistency of its ratings, which are specifically designed to allow comparison between horses from different generations, so its findings make fascinating reading.
Few would argue, for example, that Dawn Run, who remains the only horse, of either sex, in history – Timeform or otherwise – to win both the Champion Hurdle and the Cheltenham Gold Cup, fully deserves her position atop the all-time list. Owned by Mrs. Charmian Hill and trained by Paddy Mullins, father of 17-times Irish Champion National Hunt Trainer Willie Mullins, Dawn Run won 21 of her 35 starts and, in so doing, achieved a Timeform Annual Rating of 173 over hurdles and 167 over fences.
Ridden by Jonjo O’Neill, Dawn Run justified odds-on favouritism in the Champion Hurdle in 1984, when any challenge from her nearest market rival, Desert Orchid, failed to materialise. Two years later, reunited with O’Neill for the first time since, she belied her inexperience over fences by justifying favouritism in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, courtesy of a last-gasp victory over the veteran Wayward Lad. Dawn Run also remains the only horse to have won the Champion Hurdle, Irish Champion Hurdle and Grande Course de Haies d’Auteuil (a.k.a. the French Champion Hurdle) in the same season..
Perhaps less heralded than the history-making Dawn Run, the mare in second place on the all-time list, Anaglogs Daughter, has the distinction of being the highest-rated of her sex to race over fences in the history of Timeform. Bred for the Flat, the daughter of Above Suspicion out of Anaglog, by Will Sommers, won three times in that sphere before her attention was turned to jumping obstacles. However, it was following her transfer trainer Bill Durkan – although Ferdy Murphy is generally credited with her preparation – that she began to climb through the ranks of the steeplechasing division.
All told, Anaglogs Daughter won 15 of her 64 starts over obstacles, including the Arkle Challenge Trophy at the 1980 Cheltenham Festival, all at distances up to two and a half mile, and achieved a Timeform Annual Rating of 171 over fences. At the 1981 Cheltenham Festival, she was sent off 10/11 favourite for the Queen Mother Champion Chase, despite a last-minute injury, which placed her participation in doubt; she was headed on the approach to the final fence and finally went down by 7 lengths to the largely unconsidered 25/1 chance Drungora.
Third on the all-time list, according to Timeform, comes Annie Power, who achieved a rating of 170+ over hurdles (with the ‘+’ indicating that she may have been ‘rather better’ than her bare rating). Owned by Susannah Ricci and trained by Willie Mullins, for all bar her first two starts, the daughter of Breeders’ Cup Turf and Coronation Cup winner Shirocco tasted defeat just twice in her 17-race career. She was beaten favourite (although beaten just 1½ lengths) in the World Hurdle at the 2014 Cheltenham Festival and, again, when a last-flight faller in the David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle the following year. Nevertheless, she returned to Prestbury Park in 2016, justifying favouritism in the Champion Hurdle and thereby becoming just the fourth mare in history to win the two-mile hurdling championship.