Two expensive purchases are heading to Gordon Elliott's Cullentra House stables after being bought at the the Goffs Land Rover Sale on Tuesday.
A brother of Grade 1-winning hurdler and Listed Flat winner Airlie Beach was purchased by Noel and Valerie Moran’s Bective Stud for €230,000, while Aide Memoire was picked up for €200,000 by Joey Logan for Andy and Gemma Brown.
The brother of Airlie Beach, who won nine of her 14 races, joins an extremely talented team of horses owned by the Morans at Cullentra House that includes Zanahiyr, The Bosses Oscar and Grand Roi.
The purchase comes less than six months after Noel and Valerie Moran splashed a record €530,000 on Apple's Jade.
Meanwhile, Aide Memoire is a brother to Mighty Potter, who landed a bumper at Punchestown back in March in Andy and Gemma Brown's colours for Elliott.
Denise Foster took over as the licensed trainer at Elliott's stables earlier this year after he was handed a suspension from racing.
The Meath trainer was given a one-year suspension by the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board after a controversial photo emerged on social media of him sitting on a dead horse.
The last six months of that ban were suspended, meaning he will be allowed to train horses, including the two recent purchases, again by September.
Elliott vowed to come back better after being handed the suspension in March.
He said in a statement: "I am paying a very heavy price for my error but I have no complaints.
"It breaks my heart to see the hurt I have caused to my colleagues, family, friends and supporters. I have a long road ahead of me but I will serve my time and then build back better."
He continued: "I am in this situation by my own action and I am not going to dodge away from this.
"With my position in the sport I have great privileges and great responsibility. I did not live up to that responsibility.
“Horses are my life. I love them. No-one comes into racing for money – it is a hard way to make a living. We are here because we love the horses. Anyone who has visited my stables at Cullentra will see the meticulous care with which we treat our horses.
“I was disrespectful to a dead horse, an animal that had been a loyal servant to me and was loved by my staff.
“I will carry the burden of my transgressions for the rest of my career. I will never gain disrespect a horse, living or dead, and I will not tolerate it in others.
“Finally I want to thank my owners and my staff who, despite being let down by me, have been unstinting in their support. I will vindicate their faith in me.”
