Galopin Des Champs will try to right his only ‘wrong’ of last year when he lines up in the Ladbrokes Punchestown Gold Cup later this month.

The dual Cheltenham Gold Cup winner was sent off the 4-11 favourite to complete a spring festival double in the three-mile Grade One 12 months ago, but after mastering British raider Bravemansgame, Galopin Des Champs was swamped by the late flourish of 20-1 shot Fastorslow.

Willie Mullins’ charge heads to Punchestown fresh from his second Cheltenham triumph for his fifth start of the season, with stablemate and Champion Hurdle scorer State Man also on course to chalk up his fifth outing this term in the Boodles Champion Hurdle.

The trainer said: “It’s going to be tough for him (Galopin Des Champs). He got beaten there last year, but I think the two, the Paul Nicholls horse and himself, went at it very early and the other horse came and robbed them. Paul (Townend) might just use different tactics and the horse seems good.

“Galopin Des Champs turns up every day and runs a race and has had many runs this season. I’ve seen horses that are hardy, willing and turn up end up being very good horses because the good ones sometimes get injured and are not able to turn up every day – we’ve seen that this year with one horse in particular.

“State Man turns up every day and wins all those Grade Ones and if you’re the owner, trainer or jockey, they’re the ones you want to be on – good, hardy, sound horses.”

With State Man going for the Champion Hurdle, that leaves Lossiemouth to target the Coolmore N.H. Sires Bolshoi Ballet Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle.

The five-year-old added to her Triumph victory of last season when landing the Mares’ Hurdle at Cheltenham with Mullins happy to wait until next term before tackling the open events.

He said: “Lossiemouth will go for the mares’ race, at this point in time anyhow. We’ll let State Man go for the Champion Hurdle.

“I was absolutely delighted with Lossiemouth in Cheltenham and it looks like she’s coming on-song in her bid for the Champion Hurdle next year.

“All those horses have to stay sound, it’s lovely thinking you have two or three for the Champion Hurdle and maybe Constitution Hill will be coming back, but they’ve all got to get there and as we’ve seen they don’t. It’s not a given that you get there.

“When you look at Lossiemouth on the track you think she’s a little grey mare, but when you stand into her you get a fright. It’s always a good sign when you look at a horse and think they’re a normal size but then when you stand in they’re much bigger, it just shows how well proportioned they are.”

Ballyburn routed his Cheltenham rivals in the two-mile-five-furlong Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle and has two options at Punchestown, in the two-mile KPMG Champion Novice Hurdle and the longer Alanna Homes Champion Novice Hurdle.

Mullins said: “He impressed me hugely in Cheltenham – everyone was raving about him after his couple of wins in Ireland and I thought he was a good novice, but I thought he was way more than that when I saw the way he went up the hill at Cheltenham. He can go any trip so we will leave that until later on, we’ll see how the races pan out.

“Ballyburn looks a really good horse – what he did, I would be comparing him to Faugheen or Vautour, that was the sort of performance he put in for me at Cheltenham. A really top-end performance.”

Tullyhill has the same options as Ballyburn as he looks to bounce back from a disappointing run when sent off favourite for the Supreme.

Mullins added: “I imagine Tullyhill will go, he’s a winner round Punchestown and he was in some form on the gallop this morning.

“He was very disappointing (at Cheltenham), Paul said he went out like a light. We didn’t find anything wrong with him but he just wasn’t up to scratch on the day.”

Both Triumph Hurdle winner Majborough and Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase hero Fact To File have signed off for the campaign, but Mullins could field fellow JP McManus runner and impressive Aintree scorer Mystical Power at Punchestown.

Another Liverpool victor, Il Etait Temps, is also pencilled in for a quick return to action in Barberstown Castle Novice Chase having triumphed by nine lengths in the Manifesto.

Mullins said: “I thought in Aintree he settled well and jumped well and he’s becoming more the finished article.

“I just thought when I saw him walking round the parade ring, I’ve never seen a horse move so well. The way he was striding out at a walk, covering so much ground, he impressed me before the race. The break he got after Cheltenham, he just relaxed.

“He obviously performed well twice in Leopardstown and then now in Aintree, so maybe just a flatter surface does do it for him and maybe a little better ground as well, though it was soft enough in Aintree.”

Jasmin De Vaux was a landmark 100th Cheltenham Festival winner when claiming the Champion Bumper and he is in the Race & Stay At Punchestown Champion I.N.H. Flat Race, while Kargese could have another bite of the Grade One cherry in the Ballymore Champion Four Year Old Hurdle after finishing second at Cheltenham and Aintree.

“He is good and has put on a nice bit of condition since he came back. I’m very happy with the way the whole string has put on condition, I was looking at them this morning and looking at the coats they have on them and the flesh they’ve put on since Cheltenham, I was really pleased,” said Mullins.

“Kargese has some engine, she pulls so hard. We’re going to have to change a few things about her as if we can get her to settle in a race, she is a real machine I’d say.

“I’d say she’s big enough to go chasing and sometimes those horses settle better over fences.”

Mullins is currently leading the British trainers’ title with the Irish equivalent already in the bag and he admits the prospect of completing that double has made him think twice on Punchestown plans.

He said: “It was amazing coming home from Aintree, the amount of texts and calls I got from my owners to say ‘if you want to bring my horse to Ayr, Perth or wherever do that’. They’re really behind it, they’re part of the team and want to be part of it if it’s going to happen.

“It’s sort of thrown a bit of a spanner in the works for our team, but we still have an A-team to bring to to bring to Punchestown anyway.”

Owner Audrey Turley reported Galopin Des Champs to be on course for the Punchestown Gold Cup after seeing her Got Glory hit the target at Naas.

Galopin Des Champs followed up last year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup triumph by losing out to Fastorslow at the Punchestown Festival but will try to pull off the double this term at the start of next month.

The Willie Mullins-trained eight-year-old powered to victory at Prestbury Park again when galloping on gamely up the hill to beat Gerri Colombe by three and a half lengths under Paul Townend.

Regarding a return to Punchestown, Turley said: “I think that is the plan and I think he’s doing good, so fingers crossed he’ll run.”

Reflecting on the gelding’s second Cheltenham Gold Cup success, she told Racing TV: “We’re watching it on the loop at home and we can’t get enough of it, to be honest. And the more you watch it, the more you enjoy it.

“He’s a superstar horse, he really is. The whole team are superstars and it’s just been a privilege to be involved with it. We’re thrilled and feel very lucky.

“It’s terrifying to watch (at the time) and I can’t watch it, but I really enjoy it afterwards when I watch it back. It was an incredible experience and it’s hard to put words on it – excitement, nervous, the anticipation, it’s all there and it’s all wonderful.”

After winning on her debut in France back in July 2021, Got Glory spent 636 days on the sidelines before being pulled up in last year’s Grade One Honeysuckle Mares Novice Hurdle first time out for Mullins.

Following another 361-day lay-off, she made an impressive reappearance when scoring by five and a half lengths at 4-7 in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares Maiden Hurdle, with Townend in the saddle.

“It was very satisfying and she ran so well,” said Turley. “I think Paul makes it look very easy but over the last three years, she’s been injured quite a lot and it’s lovely to see her back on the track and winning the race. It’s incredible and really nice for her.

“We’ve had patience with her and it worked out in the end – she’s a beautiful horse, a beautiful mare and we’re delighted to be here having her running, let alone winning. It’s a real thrill.

“I think she looked fine and in good form, so I’d say she’ll run again pretty soon, maybe at Galway.”

Townend commented: “She was fresh and gassy and wanted to get on with it, but the engine is in there, we just have to keep the wheels on the bus.

“She’s a fine filly but has just had a lot of problems. The owners were patient, she does smart work and hopefully we can keep her right.”

Galopin Des Champs was once again welcomed home by an adoring crowd as the dual Cheltenham Gold Cup winner paraded before locals in the village of Leighlinbridge in County Carlow on Tuesday evening.

Victorious in the pinnacle of National Hunt racing last year, this time the Willie Mullins-trained gelding was able to take his career to the next level when becoming one of a select few to retain the title.

The 11-10 favourite under Paul Townend, Galopin Des Champs never looked threatened by any of his rivals and it was only the loose Fastorslow that ever threatened to thwart a repeat of last year’s triumph.

Victorious by three and a half lengths from Gordon Elliott’s Gerri Colombe, the Audrey Turley-owned eight-year-old has put his name among the greats of the race and next year could join the likes of the mighty Arkle and Best Mate as a three-time winner.

Galopin Des Champs was joined by State Man, winner of the Champion Hurdle in a another memorable meeting for Mullins, with his nine-winner haul including his 100th Festival success when Jasmin De Vaux took the Weatherbys Champion Bumper.

Galopin Des Champs’ brilliant Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup double left bookmakers licking their wounds at the end of the Cheltenham Festival.

Willie Mullins’ defending champion was sent off the well-backed 10-11 favourite and barely gave his supporters a moment of worry as he stormed to back-to-back triumphs in the blue riband.

It means that three of the four feature-race favourites obliged over the four days and although the layers received temporary relief on day two when El Fabiolo fluffed his lines in the Champion Chase, Galopin Des Champs’ victory only compounded the misery inflicted by State Man and Teahupoo earlier in the week.

“When the Festival’s leading trainer Willie Mullins and jockey Paul Townend team up on the reigning Gold Cup champion and hot favourite in the biggest betting race of the week, victory for the combination is never going to be anything other than bad news for the bookmakers,” said Coral’s David Stevens.

“Overall it’s been a rollercoaster week for us, but Galopin Des Champ’s Gold Cup double means plenty of punters have ended this huge week on a high.”

BoyleSports were another firm losing on the Gold Cup, with spokesperson Lawrence Lyons adding: “It was already a bruising week with so many Mullins winners going in, but he rubbed salt in our wounds on Friday and Galopin Des Champs was the knockout blow as he was the best backed horse of the week.” 

However, it was not all bad news for the old enemy, with BetVictor relieved to escape relatively unscathed after an up and down week.

Sam Boswell of the firm explained: “After a bruising day one and day two – which could have been much worse if El Fabiolo had obliged for the many multiple bets – days three and four proved fruitful for the bookmakers with only Galopin Des Champs being a significant negative result.

“It is safe to say both bookmakers and punters had lots of fun at this year’s Festival and it is more or less honours even, perhaps a small win for the punters, over the last four days.”

Paddy Power’s Paul Binfield echoed those sentiments adding: “El Fabiolo’s unfortunate defeat in the Queen Mother was the turning point of the week.

“It went downhill from there for punters and the books have come out on top after a rather worrying start.”

An attempt to emulate three-time winners Arkle and Best Mate is uppermost in Willie Mullins’ mind for Galopin Des Champs having watched his stable star smoothly add a second Boodles Gold Cup at Cheltenham.

While last year’s race had its moments of concern before he eventually stamped his class on the contest, this time around it was much more straightforward.

In fact, the biggest worry was when Fastorslow, his nemesis from the Punchestown Festival and the John Durkan Chase earlier in the season, loomed up alongside him – the difference being this time his old foe had unseated earlier in the race and was riderless.

“The loose horse was obviously a worry, I was trying to work out if it was an English or an Irish one! But I could tell by Paul’s body language that he was comfortable throughout,” said Mullins.

For Mullins, the old saying ‘if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again’ certainly rings true where the Gold Cup is concerned.

Before Al Boum Photo won the first of his two Gold Cups in 2019, the master trainer had finished second in the blue riband an incredible six times.

“The two horses don’t really compare, Al Boum Photo was more of a galloper who would stay all day while this fellow has a bit of class but he’s still able to pull it out at the end of three and a quarter miles,” said Mullins, who was winning his fourth Gold Cup in six years.

“We’ve been very lucky that after six seconds we’ve now won four in six, we’re also very lucky to have Paul. He’s level with Pat Taaffe now (on four winners), that’s esteemed company.

“To win the 100th Gold Cup is amazing. The horses have been running so well, the jockeys have been riding so well, it’s like a perfect storm, that’s what it is, just the perfect storm.”

Where Al Boum Photo came up short in his bid for a third Gold Cup, Galopin Des Champs’ biggest test may come from within in the shape of Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase winner Fact To File.

“The aim now has got to be to get him back next year and go for a third and I imagine we’ll run a similar type of programme as we did this year,” said Mullins.

“Looking at the amount of horses he’s beaten, he’s probably run more times than most Gold Cup horses but I’m a believer that if you’ve got a good, sound horse and the prize-money is there, run them.

“I’m sure it’s a big help that we got those runs into him early in the season. He took the runs really well and gave us no reason not to run and that enabled us to come with race fitness rather than hope.

“It’s awesome that it looks like we might have other Gold Cup horses coming through, but we know through bitter experience how hard it is to get three-mile chasers back to the track, it’s a tough game. It would be great to bring him back but if he doesn’t, hopefully we have A, B and C as well.”

For Townend, who you sometimes feel would rather be anywhere else than the centre of attention, he has, as Mullins pointed out, matched the Gold Cup record of Arkle’s legendary rider.

“He’s felt stronger this year so we were able to ride him differently, he’s more grown up, he’s tough,” said Townend.

“It was more straightforward this year, last year we sort of had to fight our way through but this was a different race on a different day.

“You obviously never know what a loose horse is going to do, but he actually behaved himself quite well and my horse was very professional. He was also something for me to race with.”

For Mullins, the Gold Cup was his ninth winner of the week in a year he brought up an incredible 100th Festival success and put the seal on yet another remarkable meeting.

“The other morning before we came, we were all in the office and I said to them all ‘is it me or is everything in place this year’. The horses we were running at home were winning and the ones that were coming here were all in tip-top order and that has proved to be the case,” he said.

“It’s hard to say which is bigger, 100 winners or another Gold Cup, but there’s a Gold Cup every year – not many people will train 100 winners. I never dreamt I would and I didn’t aspire to do it, but you hope to have a Gold Cup winner.

“I obviously tried for a lot of years and couldn’t do it, but a few years later here we are with four out of six. You dream it would happen, but you don’t dream what has happened to Closutton in the last 20 or 25 years.

Townend, who had the misfortunate of being compared to Ruby Walsh when he took the top job, has now established himself as the man for the big occasion.

“It’s been an amazing journey and it’s all down to Willie, he gave me a lot of experiences as a young rider behind Ruby and I’m just grateful to be able to repay him with winners this week and every year,” he said.

“He gives you huge confidence riding the horses because if it’s not going to Plan A, you have the confidence to be able to go and do something else. I don’t remember us ever having a row!”

Comparing Townend to Walsh, Mullins said: “Totally different rider, different style of riding and a different way of viewing a race, but it works. I always admire Paul’s style of riding for different reasons – and he’s really settled into the top job hasn’t he.”

Mullins also had a poignant word for his late parents, Paddy and Maureen, the latter having died last month at the age of 94.

“I would have loved to have had my mother and my father here, for the whole week, not just the Gold Cup, but it’s not to be,” he said.

When asked what was left for him to achieve now, Mullins said: “Paul alluded to it coming in after winning on Absurde when he said ‘what the hell were you doing down in Melbourne with him!’.

“We’d like to go back. In the context of Flat racing, we’re never going to win a Guineas so we target the staying races and the Melbourne Cup is the one I’d really like.”

Galopin Des Champs bids to join the Prestbury Park immortals when he defends his Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup crown on Friday.

Willie Mullins’ stay stayer erased any stamina doubts with an ultra-impressive success in the blue riband 12 months ago, staying on strongly up the hill to finish seven lengths ahead of game runner-up Bravemansgame.

Although subsequently defeated by Fastorslow in both the Punchestown Gold Cup and when reappearing in the John Durkan, Galopin Des Champs firmly accounted for his reopposing rival when producing a dominant display in last month’s Irish Gold Cup, a victory which supplemented a clinical display at Leopardstown over the Christmas period and sees him head to the Cotswolds in peak condition.

The first time Paul Townend and Galopin Des Champs joined forces at Prestbury Park, the Irishman finished on the deck in the Turners Novices’ Chase as the then bold-jumping novice forfeited a 12-length lead when falling at the last.

However, the Closutton number one was handed plenty of plaudits for the way he nursed the eight-year-old to Gold Cup glory last year and with his mount now the ultimate professional, Townend is relishing the prospect of linking up once again.

“It was disappointing to get beat in the John Durkan but he was very good at Christmas and again at the Dublin Racing Festival,” said Townend.

“People had doubts about him (last year) and you always have doubts I suppose when a horse runs in the Gold Cup – until they stay, they don’t stay. We had confidence in him that he would stay and he did.

“Like us all, he’s getting older and wiser and a bit more laid-back and he’s developed into the finished article.

“I’m looking forward to getting back on him and it’s always exciting. I’ve had the horse underneath me (a few times) in the Gold Cup and you wouldn’t be anywhere without the horses and the rub of the green.”

Golden Miller famously won five successive Gold Cups in the 1930s, with Cottage Rake, Arkle and Best Mate recording heralded hat-tricks in the Cheltenham Festival feature. But as a rule, back-to-back champions are a rarity in the modern era, with the great Kauto Star even surrendering his crown in 2008 before regaining the title a year later.

The outlier in the past 20 years is Al Boum Photo and now Galopin Des Champs has the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of his illustrious former stablemate and provide Closutton with their fourth Gold Cup in six years.

However, the trainer’s son Patrick Mullins believes there are few similarities between the pair, viewing the stable’s latest Gold Cup hero as a “superstar”.

He said: “They’re chalk and cheese a bit. Al Boum Photo very much had his own way of jumping. I remember schooling him one day in Punchestown after racing and Paul just said ‘close your eyes and trust him’!

“He broke Ruby’s leg one time and he fell at the last with David (Mullins) another. He wasn’t a flashy horse and didn’t work fantastically well, whereas Galopin Des Champs is a superstar.

“It’s a bit like Nicky Butt and Roy Keane, but Al Boum Photo won two Gold Cups. It feels to me like he was more a specialist horse for that race, whereas Galopin is a superstar of the sport.”

Martin Brassil knows all about the might of Galopin Des Champs, but his Fastorslow is the only horse to lower the defending champion’s colours in the past two seasons.

The eight-year-old is the general second favourite as he prepares to lock horns with Galopin Des Champs yet again, but his handler believes there is plenty of depth to a competitive Gold Cup.

“We’re looking forward to the race and it’s a really strong renewal of the Gold Cup,” said Brassil.

“They call it a wind operation but we’ve just cauterised his palate that’s all (since Leopardstown last month). There is more than one horse in the race and some really good Grade One winners in there, it’s a strong race that will take plenty of winning.

“He’s as entitled to be there as any of the others, though. The horse has travelled over great and has eaten and drank and stuff and it’s all system go.”

Gordon Elliott’s Gerri Colombe entered the season as a major Gold Cup player in the making and was disputing favouritism after making a winning return at Down Royal.

However, hopes were tempered somewhat when trailing some 23 lengths behind Galopin Des Champs in the Savills Chase at Christmas.

Asked how he can reverse that form with Galopin Des Champs, Elliott said: “We need a miracle, I’d say.

“He’s in great shape, he didn’t run his race at Christmas and it’s going to be very hard to turn that distance around, but we’ll see what happens.

“He was unlucky when he just got touched off here last year and it’s an open race if you take the favourite out of it.”

Owners Robcour have a second string to their Gold Cup bow in the form of Gentlemansgame, who made a successful raid on the Charlie Hall Chase in the autumn, downing Paul Nicholls’ Bravemansgame.

Mouse Morris’ gigantic grey heads to the blue riband on the back of just three chasing starts but would have a fighting chance of giving his handler a second Gold Cup victory if repeating his Wetherby heroics.

Ten-year-olds Jungle Boogie (Henry de Bromhead) and Monkfish (Mullins) are others from Ireland in the Gold Cup mix, representing the two trainers who have traded the last six runnings of the race.

The latter is a dual Festival winner who finally gets his crack at the main event having been seen just the four times since winning the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase here in 2021.

However, one who will not to be at the start is John ‘Shark’ Hanlon’s King George hero Hewick, who is likely to now head for the Randox Grand National after ground conditions curtailed Gold Cup hopes.

In a post on X, Hanlon said: “After walking the track this morning, we have decided Hewick will not run in the Gold Cup.

“While this is disappointing, we are doing what’s best for the horse”

If anybody had said in the year 2000 that approaching the 2024 Cheltenham Festival a single trainer would be on the verge of saddling 100 winners at the meeting, it would have been seen as preposterous.

Nicky Henderson already had 20 to his credit and he now sits on a very respectable 73, but back then Willie Mullins only had six – and four of those had come in the Champion Bumper.

It is quite remarkable, then, that this year Mullins has brought up his century, after getting the required six to hit the magic number inside the first two days of the meeting.

Here, we take a look at 10 of the very best horses that appear on Mullins’ Cheltenham roll of honour:

Tourist Attraction (1995 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle)

The very first Cheltenham Festival winner for Mullins. At a time when he was still an amateur rider himself, he entrusted Mark Dwyer with the mount on the mare who went off a 25-1 outsider. In beating subsequent Arkle winner Ventana Canyon, Mullins proved he was capable of mixing it with the very best. She only ran once more herself but went on to produce Pete The Feat, a prolific winner for Charlie Longsdon who went on to race until he was 15.

Cousin Vinny (2008 Champion Bumper)

By 2008, Mullins was a major player at the Festival and had begun to farm the Champion Bumper having won it five times in all. However, there is no doubt if you were to ask him which was his most memorable success in the race, he would nominate Cousin Vinny, as it was a first Festival winner for his then 18-year-old son, Patrick, who has gone on to break all records as an amateur jockey.

Quevega (Mares’ Hurdle 2009-2014)

There was not much to the diminutive mare who arrived from France in 2007 but once Mullins worked out the key to her, she created her own piece of Cheltenham history. While some disagreed with the way she was campaigned, as from 2010 onwards she made her seasonal reappearance at Cheltenham, there could be no doubting the execution of the plan. The extra races have undoubtedly helped Mullins rack up his incredible numbers and many would have preferred to have seen Quevega try her luck in the Champion Hurdle or more likely the Stayers’ given she won the Punchestown equivalent four times. Either way, just running in the same race six times is a notable achievement, never mind winning it.

Hurricane Fly (Champion Hurdle 2011 and 2013)

Another who created his own piece of history. Hurricane Fly, who came with a tall reputation as a Listed winner on the Flat in France, became the first horse to win the Champion Hurdle, lose it and then regain the crown. Injury meant he missed the first two Cheltenham Festivals he was eligible for, and given he beat that year’s Supreme winner, Go Native, by 10 lengths at Leopardstown in the Christmas of his novice season, you would have to think that is one that got away, and the year after that he came back from injury to win at Punchestown. His defeat in the 2012 Champion came on the fastest ground he encountered and the winner of 24 of 32 hurdle races certainly loved the mud.

Vautour (Supreme Novices’ Hurdle 2014, JLT Novices’ Chase 2015, Ryanair Chase 2016)

In terms of pure natural ability, Vautour has to be among the best Mullins has ever trained. The day he won the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle by six lengths he looked impregnable and he would have taken all the beating in the Champion itself. Sent straight over fences, he recovered from a blip at Leopardstown to bolt up by 16 lengths in what is now the Turners. A horse who certainly saved his best for Cheltenham, he won the Ryanair with a display that took the breath away, even if it met a muted reception due to owner Rich Ricci stating at a Cheltenham preview evening the horse would run in the Gold Cup.

Faugheen (Neptune Novices’ Hurdle 2014, Champion Hurdle 2015)

One of Mullins’ most popular trainees, on his day he looked nigh on unbeatable. A very easy winner of what is now the Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle, the following season he endured a very un-Mullins-like preparation for the Champion Hurdle by running at Ascot and Kempton first. His only run in Ireland that season came after he had already won the Champion, when he went to Punchestown and was even more impressive. Sadly, injury curtailed him after that and he did not run between January 2016 and November 2017. Never quite the same, he did win a Grade One novice chase at Limerick and it was to his credit that his final start came at Cheltenham when third in the 2020 edition of the Marsh (Turners) Novices’ Chase.

Douvan (Supreme Novices’ Hurdle 2015, Arkle 2016)

Oh what might have been. Super talented but also, ultimately, incredibly fragile. There were no signs of the heartache to come as he waltzed through his novice hurdle season unbeaten, or when he won all six of his novice chases the year after. That he had a subsequent Gold Cup winner in Sizing John seven lengths behind him in the Arkle spoke volumes. However, when 2-9 favourite for the Champion Chase the year after, he made mistakes and trailed in seventh, finishing lame. He had a year off but returned for the same race only to fall four out when leading the field a merry dance.

Al Boum Photo (Gold Cup 2019 and 2020)

Despite dominating the Festival by now, Mullins had yet to win the blue riband, coming close on several occasions. Step forward the unglamourous Al Boum Photo. No star over hurdles, he would have gone close in the 2018 RSA Novices’ Chase when falling two out, breaking Ruby Walsh’s leg in the process. The following season he ran once before the Gold Cup, winning a minor race at Tramore, and his 12-1 success at Cheltenham caught a few out. But he repeated the trick 12 months later, with Mullins sticking to the same routine. He finished a five-length third to Minella Indo when bidding to emulate Best Mate.

Allaho (Ryanair Chase 2021 and 2022)

If ever a race and a horse were a match made in heaven it was surely Allaho and the Ryanair Chase. Viewed as a stayer in his younger days, when he was third in the Albert Bartlett and RSA in his novice hurdle and chase seasons, it was not until the intermediate trip was settled upon that he was seen to his best. Eschewed by Paul Townend in favour of Min in 2021, Rachael Blackmore made no mistake and the punters sent them off favourite, suggesting Townend had made the wrong call pre-race and so it proved, with Allaho winning by 12 lengths. Townend did not make the same mistake again, with a 14-length success a year later. Unfortunately injury has ruled him out of the past two Festivals.

Galopin Des Champs (Martin Pipe 2021 and Gold Cup 2023)

Unfortunate not to be going for a fourth successive win at the meeting given he tipped up when miles clear as a novice in 2022, he must have been some certainty in the Martin Pipe the year before off 142. Mullins has got him right back to his best mid-season after two defeats and he looks to hold massive claims of emulating his former stablemate Al Boum Photo and you would not put it past him to go one better.

Galopin Des Champs is one of 13 confirmations for the Boodles Gold Cup on Friday, as he seeks to defend his Cheltenham crown.

Willie Mullins’ star got the better of Bravemansgame last year, with the Paul Nicholls-trained runner-up on course to renew rivalry next week.

Martin Brassil’s Fastorslow is another leading contender for Ireland, having twice accounted for Galopin Des Champs since the Gold Cup, although he had to settle for second place in the Irish Gold Cup at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Shishkin is all set for Nicky Henderson, who was left wondering what might have been when his former crack two-miler slipped on landing when leading in the King George VI Chase.

Bargain-buy Hewick swept home to win the Kempton showpiece on Boxing Day and has been kept fresh by Shark Hanlon.

Gordon Elliott’s Gerri Colombe was second to Patrick Neville’s The Real Whacker in the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase last season and they both feature, as does Gentlemansgame for Mouse Morris, who struck with War Of Attrition in 2006.

L’Homme Presse is right in contention for Venetia Williams and Charlie Deutsch, after a winning return from the sidelines at Lingfield and an encouraging prep over a trip short of his best in the Ascot Chase.

Deutsch said: “I’m looking forward to it. Although things weren’t suitable for him at Ascot – the distance and the way the race was run – he didn’t feel completely at his best that day and still did fine.

“I think his prep is all going well so far. I haven’t sat on him, but Jess who rides him at home knows him well and says he is going along OK.

“It’s nice to know he can do it at Cheltenham and over the distance and he will be suited by going back up in trip.

“It’s a Gold Cup, so that’s the unknown – you are going up against the best. I just hope he runs well and wherever he comes, he has run to his full potential.”

Monkfish is still in for Mullins, with Lucinda Russell being represented by Grand National hero Corach Rambler. Jungle Boogie and Nassalam complete the contenders.

Ahoy Senor, Conflated and Protektorat were the three withdrawals at the confirmation stage.

Galopin Des Champs is odds on for the Cheltenham Gold Cup after registering back-to-back success in the Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown.

Leading from flag-fall, Paul Townend was content to set a sedate pace on Willie Mullins’ 1-3 favourite, with his old rival Fastorslow never letting him get too far in front.

The pair had met three times in the past, with the score heading into this contest in favour of Martin Brassil’s chaser by two victories to one.

Team Closutton were determined to level the scores before heading to Cheltenham and Townend – who had picked the wrong Mullins-trained representative in the first three Grade Ones of the afternoon – was always in control.

J J Slevin attempted to make his move after the second-last and aimed to get the rail, but Townend was alive to it and made sure it was not straightforward, while Conflated was not completely out of it on the far side.

Galopin Des Champs jinked to his left approaching the last which just put Fastorslow off for a stride or two, while Conflated unseated Jack Kennedy, but just like at Christmas the winner’s most impressive part was the final 100 yards and he pulled four and a half lengths clear.

The winner is now 4-6 (from evens) to repeat his Cheltenham success in March with Betfair and Coral.

Paul Townend is still savouring a “massive performance” from Galopin Des Champs in last week’s Savills Chase at Leopardstown.

The reigning Cheltenham Gold Cup hero lined up in the Grade One feature with something to prove following successive defeats at the hands of Fastorslow at Punchestown, but bounced back to his very best with a hugely impressive 23-length victory.

Townend admits Fastorslow’s withdrawal on the morning of the race undoubtedly made his task easier, but feels the Willie Mullins-trained Galopin Des Champs would have proved a tough nut to crack in any case.

“Galopin Des Champs had a lot of questions to answer after his defeats at the Punchestown Festival and in the John Durkan, but he put in a huge performance at Leopardstown,” he said in his Ladbrokes blog.

“I rode him differently, he seemed to be very sweet, and he jumped brilliantly. Fastorslow was a non-runner on the day, and it’s impossible to know what would have happened if he turned up. However, Galopin Des Champs put up an absolutely massive performance and he would have been very hard to beat.

“I can’t wait to get back on him. Willie will probably bring him to the Dublin Racing Festival (Irish Gold Cup) and then onto to Cheltenham for the Gold Cup.

“It is disappointing when big names get beaten but it makes it all the sweeter and more enjoyable when they do come back and perform at the level they are capable of.”

Galopin Des Champs was one of five winners across two days at Leopardstown for the champion jockey, with the other major highlight being the victory of State Man in the Matheson Hurdle.

Many viewed his stablemate Impaire Et Passe as a major threat in the two-mile Grade One, but State Man swatted him aside with relative ease, ensuring the only horse to have beaten him when he has completed since joining the Mullins team is the mighty Constitution Hill in last year’s Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham.

Townend added: “State Man just turns up and wins. He is a joy to ride.

“He is one of my favourite horses. He had a big task on his hands with Impaire Et Passe, but actually beat him snug enough come the line.

“Without Constitution Hill, he would be a real champion. He is probably not getting the credit he deserves because of that horse.”

Perhaps the most notable reverse for Townend over the festive period came aboard hot favourite Allaho in the King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day.

While far from disgraced in being beaten just under two lengths into third place, the rider admits he left the Sunbury circuit a shade disappointed.

He said: “I had a great spin around in the King George on Allaho. I really enjoyed it. It was my first time at Kempton and it was a really good experience.

“Shishkin departing at the second last felt like I was gifted a present, but by the time we landed at the back of the last, it was short lived.

“Hewick flew home and pushed Bravemansgame past me for second to take more money from us. It was a big run from Allaho. Did he stay? It is hard to know. He was outstayed by two really good horses.

“I couldn’t have had a better race, it all worked out perfectly, so I was disappointed to have been given a present and then have it taken away from me.

“It was a brilliant race to be a part of. The atmosphere was massive and they are the days you want to be involved with.”

Last year’s winner Galopin Des Champs is one of 20 entries for the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup on March 15.

Trained by Willie Mullins, Galopin Des Champs came out on top in a terrific duel with Bravemansgame last season and the pair are on course to meet again.

Galopin Des Champs returned to winning ways at Leopardstown over Christmas with a spectacular display which propelled him back to the head of the betting, having suffered two defeats at the hands of the Martin Brassil-trained Fastorslow.

Brassil’s charge has also been entered for the blue riband this year, having gone close in handicap company at the Festival last season. He was a late absentee at Leopardstown.

Mullins has also entered the injury-plagued Monkfish, an impressive winner of the 2021 Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase, but limited to just three starts since then.

Hewick, Shark Hanlon’s King George winner, Gerri Colombe, Envoi Allen and Gentlemansgame are others from Ireland with the option.

Gary Moore’s hugely-impressive Welsh National winner Nassalam is entered along with the Venetia Williams-trained pair of L’Homme Presse and Royale Pagaille.

Shishkin, so unlucky when coming down two from home in the King George, and Paul Nicholls’ novice Stay Away Fay are also in.

There are 19 entered in the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase on March 13 in which last season’s first two from the Arkle, El Fabiolo and Jonbon, dominate the betting.

The pair are due to meet at Ascot in the Clarence House Chase later this month first.

Mullins has six contenders in total, including the now nine-year-old Ferny Hollow, who has not seen since December 2021, along with the mare Dinoblue and Appreciate It.

Boothill, Captain Guinness, Edwardstone and Editeur du Gite are others to note, with the last two runners also entered in the Ryanair Chase on March 14.

Mullins’ Allaho will be bidding for a third win in the race having gone close in the King George over Christmas. He is one of eight for the trainer, along with Sir Gerhard, in a total field of 32.

El Fabiolo, Fastorslow, Jonbon and Envoi Allen, winner of the race last season, are among those who have multiple options while Fugitif is in for Richard Hobson

Owner Brian Acheson believes Galopin Des Champs is the best horse since Kauto Star and has conceded his Gerri Colombe will be running for second place when he tackles Willie Mullins’ defending champion in the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Galopin Des Champs was an imperious winner of the blue riband in March but had since suffered defeat twice at the hands of Martin Brassil’s Fastorslow, with Acheson’s Gerri Colombe emerging as a real Gold Cup contender when making a winning return at Down Royal.

The two talented stayers clashed for the first time at Leopardstown in the Savills Chase and with the Closutton Cheltenham hero back to his very best, Gerri Colombe was helpless as Galopin Des Champs romped to a brilliant 23-length success.

That shot the eight-year-old back to the top of the Gold Cup market, with Gerri Colombe eased to a best price of 11-1 with Unibet, and Acheson – who runs his horses under the Robcour banner – feels there is no way of turning the tables when they meet again at Prestbury Park in March.

He said: “Galopin is the best horse since Kauto Star and I’ve said it since the day of the Turners (Novices’ Chase, at Cheltenham). He is an absolute rocket, a weapon.

“We lost nothing in defeat and I don’t think there is a horse in training that can stay with him, he’s just a machine.

“You are running for second place. In the era where we don’t have enough good horses, if I didn’t have Gerri in the race, then you would love him to win by half the track just to make him look a superstar – and he is a superstar, I would love to own him.

“Hats off to him and it was actually an honour to run against him, he’s so good.

“We will take him on but there is only one winner.”

Acheson also outlined plans for his plethora of stars in the staying hurdle division.

Bob Olinger and Irish Point have both thrown their names into the mix with victories over the Christmas period, but it is last year’s Stayers’ Hurdle third Teahupoo who is currently carrying his owner’s main hopes following his second Hatton’s Grace success last month.

“Bob Olinger will be going to Aintree,” said Acheson. “If you had three horses, would you run three horses in the Stayers’?

“At the moment, I have two horses who could run in the Stayers’ and the one horse who is going there if he is fit and well is Teahupoo.

“Irish Point won well last week, but Home By The Lee didn’t run his race and Asterion Forlonge was a great horse but is a little bit older now.

“Teahupoo’s run against Impaire Et Passe was better form-wise, so he’s number one, but this French horse (Theleme) is meant to be a superstar.”

With Galopin Des Champs and Fastorslow renewing rivalry, and Gerri Colombe looking to cement his Cheltenham Gold Cup claims, this year’s Savills Chase promises to be one to savour.

In an era where blockbuster clashes are bemoaned as a disappointing rarity, the feature event on day three of the Leopardstown Christmas Festival serves up a tantalising treat, with the aforementioned trio currently occupying to the top three spots in the betting for the blue riband at Prestbury Park in March.

Add to that the defending champion Conflated, another former winner of the race and Gold Cup hero in A Plus Tard and the latter’s stablemate Envoi Allen, and you have what could be a race for the ages.

Patrick Mullins, assistant to his father Willie, summed it up perfectly when saying: “It’s probably the race of Christmas and the race of the year so far.”

The big hope for Team Mullins clan is, of course, Galopin Des Champs, who looked set to become the dominant force in the staying chase division after winning the John Durkan at Punchestown, Leopardstown’s Irish Gold Cup and the Cheltenham Gold Cup last season. But he will line up on Thursday having suffered back-to-back defeats.

Many considered his shock reverse at the hands of Martin Brassil’s Fastorslow in April’s Punchestown Gold Cup as a freak result at the end of a long season, but the latter went some way to dispelling that notion when handing the Mullins ace another short-priced beating in the John Durkan last month.

Galopin Des Champs was only third on that occasion and Patrick Mullins is hoping he can show his true colours on Thursday.

He said: “We’re looking for Galopin Des Champs to bounce back. He didn’t jump well in the John Durkan, but he’s schooled very well since.

“I think he ran very well at Punchestown considering how badly he jumped, so if he jumps better, he should be back to his best.

“Fastorslow has beaten us the last twice, so it’s for us to come and beat him, not the other way around. Fastorslow sits top of that division at the moment.

“Gerri Colombe is a hard horse to get a gauge on because he just does the bare minimum, but I’d think Leopardstown after all the rain will suit him very well.”

Galopin Des Champs is one of five declared runners for the champion trainer, with Appreciate It, I Am Maximus, Capodanno and Janidil also in the mix.

Appreciate It split Fastorslow and Galopin Des Champs in the John Durkan when ridden by Mullins junior, who feels he again warrants respect.

He added: “Appreciate It ran a cracker in the John Durkan and he’ll be better going this direction.

“It’ll be a very differently run race I’d imagine, but we’d be hoping that he can confirm that his last run is the level he’s at.”

Fastorslow is out to prove there was no fluke about his successive Grade One wins at Punchestown.

“He’s in great form and I’m delighted with him, very happy,” said Brassil.

Gerri Colombe won the Ladbrokes Champion Chase at Down Royal on his first start outside novice company and while his trainer Gordon Elliott flirted with the idea of travelling to Kempton for a tilt at the King George on Boxing Day, he instead remains on home soil.

Conflated was not beaten far when third behind his stable companion at Down Royal, and a return to a track where he won both the Savills Chase and the Irish Gold Cup last year is clearly a positive.

A Plus Tard has looked a shadow of his former self since his scintillating victory in the 2022 Cheltenham Gold Cup, while Envoi Allen cannot be discounted after pushing Gerri Colombe to a neck last month.

Trainer Henry de Bromhead said: “Both are in good form and it will be nice to get A Plus Tard out again. He seems well at home and we’re hoping for a good run.

“We’re trying to find our form with him, we didn’t really see it last year but we didn’t get much opportunity to either.

“Envoi seems in great form. He ran a great race in Down Royal and if he ran something similar to that we’d be delighted.

“We could have done without the rain for both of them I suppose, but it is what it is.”

Willie Mullins felt Galopin Des Champs lacked his usual spark after suffering defeat in his bid for back-to-back victories in the John Durkan Memorial Punchestown Chase.

The seven-year-old was a hugely impressive 13-length winner of the two-and-a-half-mile Grade One 12 months ago, after which he went on to lift both the Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown and the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

He did suffer defeat at the hands of Fastorslow in the Punchestown Gold Cup on his final start of the campaign, but was widely expected to turn the tables on that rival on his seasonal reappearance.

However, the 1-2 favourite lacked fluency in the hands of Paul Townend, particularly in the jumping department, and while he briefly threatened to throw down a major challenge early in the home straight, he ultimately had to make do with minor honours in third as Fastorslow again emerged triumphant.

“Paul said he was very dead in himself today, no spark,” Mullins said afterwards.

“We schooled him during the week, he pinged fences and we were very happy with him.

“It’s disappointing that he didn’t replicate his homework today. For some reason, he was very dead in himself.”

Gold Cup winner Galopin Des Champs gets the chance to gain revenge for his surprise defeat to Fastorslow at Punchestown in the spring when the two meet in the John Durkan Memorial Chase.

The Willie Mullins-trained Galopin Des Champs looked imperious at Cheltenham, proving his stamina over three and a quarter miles when that was the only real question mark.

When winning this corresponding race last season he had Fastorslow well behind him and it was difficult to see when he could be beaten.

However, he suffered a blip in the Punchestown Gold Cup, going down by two and a quarter lengths to Martin Brassil’s new star.

Sent on his way at 4-11 in April, Galopin Des Champs is yet again long odds-on with Fastorslow the only non Mullins-trained runner in the Grade One.

“Galopin Des Champs is in nice order going to Punchestown and I hope he runs a good race,” said the champion trainer.

“Galopin has won this race before – the race is a little earlier this year and the trip might suit some of the opposition more but Galopin comes here with his chance.”

Mullins also runs Stattler, second to Galopin Des Champs in the Irish Gold Cup in February, Blue Lord, Asterion Forlonge and Appreciate It.

Assistant trainer Patrick Mullins added: “Galopin Des Champs won this race last year and while it is two weeks earlier this year that shouldn’t be any problem.

“He was obviously knocked off his perch by Fastorslow at the Punchestown Festival so we have to try to level that up. I think probably coming back in trip will suit our horse more so hopefully that can help turn the tables.”

On the yard’s other runners he added: “Asterion Forlonge was second to Klassical Dream at the Punchestown Festival and was going very well in this race two years ago when he unseated so he is always a contender.

“I ride Appreciate It, who did disappoint us a little last season even though he ran well at the top level. I think he is better than his form and he has to have a squeak.

“Stattler will probably find the trip on the short side and Blue Lord is another Grade One winner who makes this race hugely competitive.”

The man who got the better of Galopin Des Champs in April was J J Slevin on Fastorslow and he reckons his mount could be even better this season, when he turns eight.

“He’s got loads of boot and that is a big asset to him,” Slevin told Punchestown Racecourse.

“That’s what sets the good horses apart, they need to be able to travel and he seems to have that in abundance.

“He’s always coasting along in his comfort zone when other horses might be out on their heads. That was his main attribute, I felt, last year.

“He picked them up the last day comfortably enough, he needed a bit of luck when he got to the front but he did it comfortably I felt.

“I think there’s more to come, he’s been lightly-campaigned all along and he could be hitting his peak this year.”

Brassil was always looking to start Fastorslow back in this race and said: “The John Durkan Chase back at Punchestown was the obvious place for Fastorslow to start off and we are really looking forward to it.

“It will be different ground and a shorter trip than the Punchestown Gold Cup but we are going there with a nice horse and hoping for a nice run.

“We are obviously facing the might of the Mullins battalion but it is great to have a horse like him and we’d be hoping he is still improving and getting better with age.”

Gordon Elliott may not be represented in the feature race but he has strong interests elsewhere, not least with Imagine in the BetVictor Craddockstown Novice Chase.

A useful hurdler, the way he won on his chasing debut at Fairyhouse suggested he will be taking much higher order over bigger obstacles.

He is owned by Caldwell Construction and their racing manager Joey Logan said: “We’re excited about him and he had a really nice first run in a beginners chase.

“He’s stepping up now at the weekend to a Graded race and we are just hopeful he will be able to progress.”

Mullins runs Uncle Phil while John Ryan’s Lucid Dreams sets a good standard having won twice over fences already.