William Peter Mullins. Where do you start with the maestro of Closutton? The former Irish Amateur Champion Jockey embarked on his training career in 1988 and the Irish domination of the Cheltenham Festival was very much a dormant beast. Willie Mullins was growing in popularity in Ireland, and landed his first Cheltenham Festival winner in 1995 with Tourist Attraction in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle.
A year later, he won the Champion Bumper with Wither or Which, and then Florida Pearl came on to the scene. The aptly named son of Florida Son landed back to back Champion Bumpers for Mullins and Richard Dunwoody, before going on to land the Royal Sun Alliance Chase a year later with Mullins landing his first Cheltenham double, completing a hat-trick of Champion Bumper’s in the process. Florida Pearl is widely regarded as Mullins’ first real superstar, going on to win four Irish Gold Cups, though could only manage third, second and eleventh in successive renewals of the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
By now, Willie Mullins had cemented himself as a growing force not only in the Irish training ranks, but presence in the Prestbury Park winners enclosure was an ever expanding one, as demonstrated by his treble in 2009, landing the Ballymore, the RSA and the first of a historical six Mares Hurdles with Quevega. Mullins won the first of his five Champion Hurdles in 2011 with Hurricane Fly, but he had to wait until 2019 to win his first Gold Cup, beginning with Al Boum Photo who landed the double next season, then Galopin Des Champs in 2023 before also going back to back in 2024.
His other famed horses include the wonder mare Annie Power, the electric Douvan, Faugheen the Machine, the list of exceptional thoroughbred talent is endless and a sheer testament to the man at the helm of one of sports greatest establishments. In 2022 he posted a record ten winners across the meeting, and last season he reached a century of Cheltenham Festival winners with Jasmin De Vaux in the bumper, made all the more poignant with his son, Patrick, doing the steering.
The ammunition and hunger for winning evidently won’t be slowing down any time soon, and once more, the Closutton general has a plethora of ammunition to fire in his Cheltenham raid next month.
Main Cheltenham Festival Chances
Galopin Des Champs – Timos x Manon Des Champs (Marchan De Sable) – Gold Cup
Where else to start other than the king of the staying division? The eleven time Grade 1 winner arrives on a hat-trick of Cheltenham Gold Cups and is firmly along the path of cementing himself as one of the all time National Hunt greats. Having run a good race over an inadequate 2m3f in the John Durkan on reappearance, Galopin Des Champs then blew the field apart in both the Savills and the Irish Gold Cup. They’ve been more aggressive with him this season, making all or at least disputing the lead in all three contests and while he was off the bridle a little earlier last time out, the way in which he powered clear after the last was devastating, and it’s impossible to envisage anything improving past him this season, or next for that matter.
Ballyburn – Flemensfirth x Old Moon (Old Vic) – Brown Advisory Novice Chase
Last year’s Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle winner Ballyburn has made a solid introduction to chasing this season, though some would perhaps debate the opposite. He made all to win by twelve lengths in a Beginners’ Chase at Punchestown in November, with the third and fourth both franking the form since. He wasn’t anything ashy or exuberant, but rather economical. I’m of the opinion that his keenness doesn’t hinder much of his ability, as he’s a pure galloper who is focused entirely on the obstacles in front of him. In hindsight, his seven lengths second to Sir Gino wasn’t entirely poor, given the high regard that Sir Gino is evidently being held him and I’ve always said that three miles will be the making of Ballyburn, so its plausible to draw a line through that loss and if anything, I think they sent him there more to sharpen his jumping up if anything. Stepped back up in trip to 2m5f, Croke Park made him work in the G1 Ladbrokes Novice Chase, but the speed with which he pulled clear from him at the last was emphatic. He’s a worthy favourite, and this trip should only improve him.
Kopek Des Bordes – No Risk At All x Miss Berry (Cadoudal) – Supreme Novices’ Hurdle
Willie Mullins has won three of the last ten renewals of the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle with Appreciate It, Klassical Dream and Douvan, but perhaps none have created such an impression as Kopek Des Bordes did on just his second start over hurdles in the Tattersalls Ireland Novice Hurdle last time out. I was as blown away as anything with the performance, as generally when a horse tends to pull that hard the whole way, the natural inclination is that they’ll weaken away at the nish. Kopek Des Bordes went the other way however, clocking the quickest final furlong and completing the race just shy of two seconds quicker than anything else, despite getting lit up by the loose horse on the bend and running away with Paul Townend on multiple occasions. He won hard held under Paul Townend and his jumping had improved drastically from last time out, and you can only envisage that a stronger run race in the Supreme will play into his strengths.
Final Demand – Walk In The Park x Zuzka (Flemensfirth) – Turners Novice Hurdle
Final Demand justified favouritism in the Nathaniel Lacy at the Dublin Racing Festival last time out, taking his overall career record to three from three. The performance saw him knock The New Lion off his perch at the head of the Turners market, but immediately, the overriding suspicion is that he’ll be much better over a trip. I was impressed with how he pulled clear after the last, but he was in the box seat throughout and the form of the race is open to question, not least because Wingmen has disappointed since his Navan Maiden Hurdle success. Like most of these Walk In The Parks, he’s a fine stamp of a future chaser and I’d imagine we’ll see him figuring prominently in the Browns market this time next season, but I would worry whether he has the natural tactical speed for the Turners as he strikes me as a dour stayer, as opposed to one with a turn of foot required to land the Turners.
Majborough – Martinborough x Janimone (Lavrico) – Arkle
The absence of Sir Gino has left the Arkle door wide open for Majborough, who is one of the finest stamps of a National Hunt horse you’ll ever see. I thought it was a testament to his natural ability he was able to land the Triumph Hurdle last season as he’s your archetypal anything he does over hurdles is a bonus, and he put that cliche into manifestation when bolting up in a Fairyhouse Beginners Chase, charging away in isolation after the last. I thought he put an indifferent round of jumping in at the DRF in the Irish Arkle, but I was possibly more impressed than most as he took the toughest fence on the course with aplomb, and improved in the jumping department as he went along. He put away four credible rivals there, and while he’ll improve for a trip in time, he stands out head and shoulders above any other rival in the Arkle picture and should take it comfortably barring any serious mishaps.
The five aforementioned horses hardly do much justice to the extent of Mullins repower at Cheltenham this season, as he is responsible for the favourite in SIX of the 14 Grade One’s at the Cheltenham Festival, not to mention his plethora of handicap possibilities. Despite a slow start to the season due to his gallops lacking rain and a patchy Christmas period, write the Closutton maestro off at your peril, as the stalwart of the National Hunt game has every chance to better his record ten winners at the festival this season.
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