Brian O’Connor was on the ground for us in the Cotswolds and here’s his on-the-whistle report from another stunning day of Willie Mullins dominance.
[ State Man takes Champion Hurdle to give Willie Mullins a 96th Cheltenham winOpens in new window ]
And that’s that. Day One is in the books. A bloodbath for the bookies, a sweatless procession for Willie Mullins and Paul Townend. All that remains is to go and rest up and prepare for the same again tomorrow. Mullins has the favourite in five of the seven races, including a trio of what look like absolute certainties in Ballyburn, Fact To File and El Fabiolo. Will any of them get beaten?
Standings at the end of Day One
Leading Jockey
3 Paul Townend
1 Rachael Blackmore, David Bass, JJ Slevin, Derek O’Connor
Leading Trainer
3 Willie Mullins
1 Henry De Bromhead, Kim Bailey, Joseph O’Brien, Emmet Mullins
Prestbury Cup
Ireland 6 Great Britain 1
Another big win for Emmet Mullins, a man who always seems to be able to find a good one to bring to the spring festivals.
5:30 National Hunt Chase
1 Corbetts Cross (Emmet Mullins/Mr Derek O’Connor) 15/8
2 Embassy Gardens (Willie Mullins/Mr Patrick Mullins) 7/4
3 Mr Vango (Sara Bradstock/Miss Gina Andrews) 14/1
That’s complete redemption for Corbetts Cross. He was coming to win the Albert Bartlett Hurdle last year but ran out the wings of the last. He cruised into the race here and just when everyone assumed it was going to be a battle royal between him and Embassy Gardens, he turned on the jet-pack and skidded up the hill. That’s the biggest winning margin of any race all day.
And Corbetts Cross streaks clear!
Two to jump and here comes Corbetts Cross and Embassy Gardens!
Gina Andrews kicks for home on Mr Vango. Corbetts Cross and Embassy Gardens are both starting to loom.
Four to jump now and the race is starting to hot up. Corbetts Cross is up to third. Embassy Gardens has two behind him.
Patrick Mullins hasn’t moved a muscle on Embassy Gardens - he’s had the whole field in front of him all the way around. They head out onto the final circuit and the race can start in earnest soon.
Funny enough, the two horses out in the lead are being ridden by a brother and sister - Gina Andrews on Mr Vango and Jack Andrews on Henrys Friend. Corbetts Cross is starting to move up a little as they come down the back straight on the far side of the course. There’s about 10 lengths between first and last.
Mr Vango leads over the fifth, which will be the final fence in two circuits’ time. So a long way to go yet. Apple Away is right up there, as is the rank outsider Henrys Friend. No move yet from Embassy Gardens or Corbetts Cross.
Mr Vango takes it up from the start. Henrys Friend is in second, Kilbeg King is next. The two favourites are at the back of the field, the two most experienced jockeys doing their own thing.
And they’re off. The pace is steady, as you’d imagine. Three miles six furlongs in heavy ground - this ain’t going to be a sprint.
They’re down at the start...
Incidentally, this race has been named after Maureen Mullins, the great matriarch of the Mullins family who died the week before last. As if Willie and Patrick weren’t already motivated enough to win it.
Another fatality - the Boodles cost Ose Partir his life. Owned by Sean Mulryan, who also owned the winner, Lark In The Mornin. They have to be walking around with very mixed feelings right now. They have the favourite here, in Embassy Gardens.
As an aside, you have to feel for Jack Kennedy, who had One Of Those Days here. He rode in all six races he could on the card and had two seconds, two thirds and fourth and a fifth. That has to make the dinner taste a bit sour this evening. Better luck tomorrow, Jack.
5:30 National Hunt Chase
The last race of the day what we used to call the four-miler. It’s just over three and a half now but it’s still confined to amatuer riders. Take out the 2021 race when amateurs were kept away because of Covid and there has only been one winner in the past decade that wasn’t ridden by Patrick Mullins, Jamie Codd or Derek O’Connor. Codd isn’t riding this year but Mullins and O’Connor have the first and second favourite. It will be a mild surprise if one of them doesn’t take it.
Here’s the betting…
Embassy Gardens (Willie Mullins/Mr Patrick Mullins) 6/4
Corbett’s Cross (Emmet Mullins/Mr Derek O’Connor) 11/5
Apple Away (Lucinda Russell/Mr Barry O’Neill) 5/1
Mr Vango (Sara Bradstock/Miss Gina Andrews) 10/1
Salvador Ziggy (Gordon Elliott/Mr Rob James) 11/1
22/1 Bar
Boodles Juvenile Hurdle result
1 Lark In The Mornin (Joseph O’Brien/JJ Slevin) 9/1
2 Eagles Reign (Ross O’Sullivan/Tom harney) 80/1
3 Ndaawi (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) 12/1
4 Harsh (Joseph O’Brien/Conor Stone-Walsh) 40/1
5 Miss Manzor (Willie Mullins/Danny Mullins) 18/1
That was some ride from Slevin - he had them covered all the way around and stayed out of trouble, taking it up coming down to the last. he looks like he had some amount of weight in hand there. Second is an incredible result for Eagle Reign, trained by Ross O’Sullivan (or Mr Katie Walsh, if you like), who chased the winner all the way to the line at 80/1
Lark In The Mornin goes for home coming down to the last. Nadawi in second, Eagle’s reign in third. That’s a huge win for JJ Slevin!
They’re coming to the top of the hill and three to jump. Latin Verse leads them out. Bright Legend is still there, Milan Tino is making a run at it.
Latin Vers, Bright Legend, Balboa lead them out. Milan Tino is keeping them honest.
And they’re away.
They’re down at the start for the Boodles
How times change. It’s not so long since Paul Nicholls was the all-dominant king of Cheltenham but he only has one horse running at Prestbury Park today and it’s in this race. Liari carries plenty of weight but Nicholls has a great record in this race adn Harry Cobden takes the ride. There’s a lot of confidence behind Milan Tino though, a JP McManus horse trained in France by Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm. Joseph O’Brien has been reasonably bullish about Lark In The Mornin in the run-up but if you wanted one at a wild price, Pigeon House has beaten the O’Brien horse and is out around 50/1.
4:50 Fred Winter Juvenile Hurdle
The sixth race is the Boodles – or the Fred Winter in old money. It’s the juvenile handicap hurdle, essentially a race for four-year-olds who aren’t good enough for the Triumph Hurdle. It looks a fairly wide open race, which is probably code for Willie Mullins not having the favourite. There are 22 runners and this race frequently throws up a winner at a massive price. So close your eyes and take a swing.
Here’s the betting…
Milan Tino (Noel George & Amanda Zetterholm/Jonjo O’Neill Jr) 16/5
Liari (Paul Nicholls/Harry Cobden) 9/2
Lark In The Mornin (Joseph O’Brien/JJ Slevin) 8/1
Batman Girac (Willie Mullins/Daryl Jacob) 9/1
Eagle Fang (Philip Enright/William Durcan) 11/1
Ndaawi (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) 12/1
16/1 Bar
Champion Hurdle result
1 Lossiemouth (Willie Mullins./Paul Townend) 8/13
2 Tellmesomethinggirl (Henry De Bromhead/Rachael Blackmore) 22/1
3 Hispanic Warrior (Henry De Bromhead/Darragh O’Keeffe) 40/1
Townend was cool as you like there, not a bother on him all the way around. He sat at the back and let everyone else battle each other up front. “That was push-button stuff,” he tells ITV. “It’s very simple when you’re on a good horse.”
Tellmesomethinggirl comes down to the last in front. But here comes Lossiemouth! She’s away and gone. That couldn’t have been easier.
Lossiemouth moves up on the outside. She’s fifth with two to jump.
Four to jump and Ashroe Diamond leads, Tellmesomethinggirl in second. Townend is moving Lossiemouth out to deliver his run.
You Wear It Well and Theatre Glory are doing all the running at the front. You’d imagine neither has a chance. Ashroe Diamond take it up with six to go and Tellmesomethinggirl moves up on the ouside. Still no move from Lossiemouth.
And they’re away. Ashroe Diamond leads them out. Theatre Glory is competing with him up the front. Lossiemouth is at the back of the field, unhurried.
They’re down at the start for the Mares’ Hurdle...
The only - only - doubt over Lossiemouth is the distance. She’s done all her winning over two miles and this race is two-and-a-half. But really, she should have so much in hand over the rest of these that it ought not to make too much of a difference. Townend is riding with so much confidence, he’ll presumably bury her in the field and deliver her late. Of the others, Lantry Lady should like the ground and might sneak a place. But they’re all running for second.
4:10 Mares’ Hurdle
The Mares’ Hurdle is next up and the build-up has a familiar theme. It’s Willie Mullins, it’s Paul Townend, it’s an odds-on favourite in the shape of Lossiemouth. Last year’s Triumph Hurdle winner has been the clear favourite here for months, with the only doubt being whether she would stay here or go to the Champion Hurdle. As in the previous race, it feels impossible to find anything to get anywhere close in this one.
Here’s the betting…
Lossiemouth (Willie Mullins/Paul Townend) 8/13
Ashroe Diamond (Willie Mullins/Patrick Mullins) 8/1
Gala Marceau (Willie Mullins/Danny Mullins) 10/1
Love Envoi (Harry Fry/Jonathan Burke) 11/1
14/1 Bar
You’d have to be delighted for Paul Townend. He’s been second in the Champion Hurdle four times, third in it twice. And now, finally, he’s won one. Not a bad week for Corkmen on the global stage.
“You’ve got to turn up to win a Champion Hurdle,” says Willie Mullins when asked about Constitution Hill. “We turned up.”
Miaow!
Champion Hurdle result
1 State Man (Willie Mullins/Paul Townend) 2/5
2 Irish Point (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) 9/2
3 Luccia (Nikcy Henderson/James Bowen)
And there he goes. State Man jumps the last in the lead. Irish Point hangs in there gamely up the run-in but can’t land a blow. A procession for Paul Townend, who wins his first Champion Hurdle at his 10th attempt.
Coming down to the second last and Namean Lion leads Irish Point. State Man comes up on the inside, Townend waiting on his chance.
They’re coming to the top of the hill now and State Man is sitting in fourth, with Townend looking happy to let the others do all the running.
Heading down the back, Not So Sleepy is very keen in front. Namean Lion is content to let him at it. State Man and Luccia are next.
Namean Lion leads them out, with Townend buried on the inside on State Man. Not So Sleepy is busy at the front as well. Maybe a bit too busy.
And they’re off...
Ready to go here...
They’re heading out onto the course for the Champion Hurdle. As if State Man wasn’t already the one to beat, Willie Mullins says the rain will help him.
Bad news from the Ultima - the long-time leader Highland Hunter had to be put down afterwards having pulled up on the track. That’s the first reported fatality from the 2024 festival. Fingers crossed it’s the last.
3:30 Champion Hurdle
The biggest race of the opening day and it looks like a fairly starightforward dot-up job for Willie Mullins. Of all the short-price favourite he has across the week, State Man surely only has to stand up here to win. Once defending champion Constitution Hill was ruled out last week, this immediately looked a procession for Paul Townend’s ride.
Gordon Elliott and Jack Kennedy have had no luck so far today – a second, a third and a fifth from three runs. Hard to imagine Irish Point can change that in this one. It has been supplemented here after Constitution Hill’s defection, as has Iberico Lord for Nick Henderson. But Henderson can’t have taken much encouragement from Jeriko De Reponet’s run in the Supreme. All in all, this seems a done deal.
Here’s the betting…
State Man (Willie Mullins/Paul Townend) 2/5
Irish Point (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) 4/1
Iberico Lord (Nicky Henderson/Nico De Boinville) 11/1
Namean Lion (Kerry Lee/Richard Patrick) 12/1
16/1 Bar
What contrasting emotions for Kim Bailey. In the end, he had the winner but his heart must have been in his mouth after Trelawne went out so early. That’s a brilliant win for David Bass who hasn’t won at the festival in four years. This horse was fancied in plenty of places in the run up but he won it like defeat was never an option. Bass held on to him and held on to him until he could hold no longer. The horse went down on his nose after the last but they got up to take the tape clear of everyone else.
Coming down the hill, Chianti Classico takes it up and even though he wallops the last, he fights up the hill to take it for David Bass. Twig stays on for second and Meetingofthewater gets up for third.
Coming to the third last, Chianti Classico and Twig are looming up behind Highland Hunter.
It’s quite a strung out field as they head out on the second circuit. Highland Hunter and Eklat Du Rire are in front, Twig and Chianti Classic next. Stumptown is struggling at the back - that weight must be a torture on this ground.
Racahel Blackmore is taking the tight line on the inside on Eklat Du Rire. Higland Hunter, Twig, The Goffer, and Stumptown are all well in touch as they pass the stands at the end of the first circuit.
Halfway through ther first circuit, Eklat Du Rire is leading them out. Highland Hunter is alongside. Chianti Classico is up with them.
Oof, that’s a bad faller at the second - one of the favourites is out. Trelawne has gone.
The starts have been messy so far but this one is without incident. They’re away, with Busselton and Eldorado Allen out in front
They’re down at the start for the Ultima.
This one is a pin-sticker job at the best of times but the ground has thrown another variable into the mix. It could bring one of the outsiders into the mix - something like Venetia Williams’s Chambard is 33/1 and has form both on heavy ground and at Cheltenham, having won the Kim Muir here two years ago. Eklat De Rire for the Blackmore/De Bromhead team will be delighted with the rain. Stumptown carries plenty of weight but Gavin Cromwell is excellent at Cheltenham. Let’s see.
2:50 Ultima Handicap Chase
The third race is the first handicap of the week, the Ultima. There hasn’t been an Irish winner in this race since 2006, when Ruby Walsh came from the clouds on Dun Doire. There are plenty of familiar Saturday stalwarts in here and Kim Bailey has a couple of right chances towards the front of the market. But Gordon Elliott is looming and will really fancy this one with Firefox having run such a big race in the Supreme.
Here’s how they bet…
The Goffer (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) 9/2
Trelawne (Kim Bailey/Harry Cobden) 11/2
Chianti Classico (Kim Bailey/David Bass) 6/1
Meetingofthewaters (Willie Mullins/Mark Walsh) 6/1
Weveallbeencaught (Nigel Twiston-Davies/Sam Twiston-Davies) 17/2
Stumptown (Gavin Cromwell/Keith Donoghue) 9/1
12/1 Bar
Arkle Novices Chase result
1 Gaelic Warrior (Willie Mullins/Paul Townend) 3/1
2 Found A Fifty (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) 13/2
3 Il Etait Temps (Willie Mullins/Danny Mullins) 7/2
The hood looks to have made a massive difference to Gaelic Warrior there. His jumping was spot on all the way around. Any worries about him jumping out to his right or faltering at his fences were quelled good and early. He’ll be some weapon in the chasing ranks next year.
And he’s away and gone. Gaelic Warrior takes up the lead over the last fence and skips up the hill a mile clear. Townend never looked worried for a second there.
Coming to the top of the Hill, Found A Fifty looks poised to take it up from Matata. Here comes Gaelic Warrior.
Everything has gone to plan so far for Gaelic Warrior. Townend has Matata in front of him to make the running and there’s plenty of room around him/ In fairness, his jumping has been fine so far. Found A Fifty is in close order. Il Etait Temps is having a nightmare at the back of the field though.
Matata leads over the first few fences. Gaelic Warrior and Found A Fifty are next, with the best English hope JPR One on the inside in fourth.
And they’re off...
They’re coming to the start for the Arkle...
Gaelic Warrior got a bit jumpy of himself in the parade ring. He’s wearing a hood for the first time, in an effort to settle him down. He’s starting to drift in the betting - out to 3/1. By contrast, Quilixios is tightening as the race approaches - into 5/1 now.
Great analysis of Rachael Blackmore’s ride by Ruby Walsh here...
The Arkle isn’t straightforward to work out by any means. Gaelic Warrior is regarded as the most talented horse in the race but he had a shocker on his last outing and is definitely better going the other way around. Il Etait Temps is the Mullins second string - Paul Townend could have chosen to ride him if he’d liked. Quilixios has won at the festival before and the De Bromhead/Blackmore combo is clearly in form. Hunter’s Yarn is another Mullins runner - it must be very likely he will pick up his first winner of the week here.
The Arkle is up next. This is the shortest race for novice chasers, the place where we find out who is going to be the star two-mile star to keep an eye on for the Champion Chase next year. We had a hot favourite for this all through the winter in the form of last year’s Supreme winner Marine Nationale but Barry Connell’s horse was ruled out early last week. And so, surprise-surprise, we have two more Willie Mullins horses at the head of the market.
Here’s how they bet…
Gaelic Warrior (Willie Mullins/Paul Townend) 11/4
It Etait Temps (Willie Mullins/Danny Mullins) 10/3
Quilixios (Henry De Bromhead/Rachael Blackmore) 5/1
Hunters Yarn (Willie Mullins/Daryl Jacob) 11/2
Found A Fifty (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) 7/1
JPR One (Joe Tizzard/Brendan Powell) 14/1
14/1 Bar
“Fair play to the owners,” says Henry De Bromhead. “They decided they didn’t want to be beaten by Ballyburn again so they changed to this race. Rachael gave him a brilliant ride. Delighted.”
How much will Ballyburn win the Gallagher’s by tomorrow? He beat Slade Steel at Leopardstown and Firefox is the only horse to have beaten him anywhere. You’d imagine he’ll be the shortest-priced horse of the week by this time tomorrow.
Another win for Rachael Blackmore. Another win for Henry De Bromhead. Slade Steel was always there alongside Tullyhill and probably got to the front quicker than Blackmore would have liked. Mystical Power came to win the race jumping the last but it was Slade Steel’s day. He battled up the hill and fought all the way to the line.
Supreme Novice’s Hurdle Result
1 Slade Steel 4/1
2 Mystical Power 11/4
3 Firefox 6/1
Coming down the hill and loads of these have chances. Tellherthename is running a cracker. Slade Stell and Tullyhill happy enough jumping the second last. Down to the last and here omces Mystical Power alongside Slade Steel. And Slade Steel stays on to win it for Rachael Blackmore!
Five to go and Tellherthename has taken up the lead. Jeriko De Reponent is falling backwards in the field a little. Townend looks confident on Tullyhill.
Townend is controlling this from the front. It;s not the mad gallop that a Supreme tends to be. Telherthename is alongside, Slade Steel in third. Jeriko De Reponent is taking the shortest route down the inside.
Okay, they’re off now. Tullyhill jumps the first in the lead
...False start
They’re down at the start...
“I haven’t had a bet myself,” says JP McManus of his two runners (Mystical Power and Jeriko De Reponet). “But Jeriko is the bigger price so I might be tempted.” It has definitely been a while since Henderson sent out an 8/1 shot as his first string in a Supreme. Will we all be left looking silly in about 15 minutes?
For what it’s worth - and trust me, that is very, very little - my pick for the opener is Mistergif. Hasn’t done a whole pile but what he has done, he’s done on heavy ground. Obviously if Ballyburn was here, he’d have no chance but it all looks very open. That said, I see he’s drifting like a barge in the betting. Sounds about right for a Clerkin fancy.
The Supreme is a fascinating race this year. The favourite all through the winter was Ballyburn but he goes for the longer novice race tomorrow and so this has some Hamlet-Without-The-Prince vibes. Mullins has won it seven times but if either Mystical Power or Tullyhill were superstars, there’s a fair chance they wouldn’t be so easy to back here. Plenty are looking toward Henry De Bromhead’s Slade Steel, especially since the rain has come. There will be huge interest in Jeriko De Reponet - Nicky Henderson’s yard has been in terrible form over the past month so if this horse bombs out, the warning signs will be there for the rest of the week.
We’re just half an hour away from the first race, the traditional festival-opening Supreme Novices’ Hurdle. These are the horses that will look to be big players at the festival for the next few years – you win the Supreme today and there’s a fair chance you’ll be favourite for either the Arkle or the Champion Hurdle in 2025. Willie Mullins has won it seven times and he has the top two in the market in this year’s edition.
Here’s how they bet…
Mystical Power (Willie Mullins/Mark Walsh) 11/4
Tullyhill (Willie Mullins/Paul Townend) 11/4
Slade Steel (Henry De Bromhead/Rachael Blackmore) 9/2
Firefox (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) 6/1
Jeriko De Reponet (Nicky Henderson/Nico De Boinville) 8/1
Mistergif (Willie Mullins/Daryl Jacob) 11/1
16/1 Bar
The going has, as expected, caused a few trainers to pull their horses from the first day’s action. Willie Mullins now has only five in the Supreme after taking the Gigginstown horse Gold Dancer out of the opener. And there are two non-runners in the Ultima - Risk and Roll for James Evans and Found On for Martin Keighley.
The rain seems to have caught pretty much everyone by surprise, including the Cheltenham Clerk of the Course John Pullin. On Sunday afternoon, he was getting Prestbury Park ready for “the odd light shower over the next 48 hours”. What he got instead was rain all day Monday and 11mls of it overnight. The going will be heavy, unquestionably. Which is likely to put paid to at least half of everything you heard on the preview night circuit over the past few weeks. Ah well.
It’s Willie Mullins’s world and the rest of us just live in it. Denis Walsh has laid out how the master trainer got here - and why nothing about his dominance was inevitable.
The rain is down, the going is heavy, nobody has a clue how to get ahead. But enough about life in Ireland – it’s Cheltenham week!
For the next four days at least, we can put the real world to one side and indulge ourselves in a little bit of fantasy. The biggest week in National Hunt racing has clearly lost a little of its sheen over the years but it still beats the usual grind. Mary Harney used to say that the worst day in government is better than the best day in opposition and there’s a bit of that here. No matter how well the races go for you between now and Friday, just remember that when it’s over, there’s 361 days to wait until it starts again. Act accordingly.
Malachy Clerkin here to see you through to the last runner home in the Martin Pipe on Friday. I’ll have all the build-up each day with links to our comprehensive coverage. I’ll be keeping an eye on the declarations as we go along too, as well as the non-runners (which could be more plentiful than you think, given the amount of rain there’s been). And most of all, I’ll bring you every race as it happens, with reaction from the winners – and losers – of all 28 races.
The first is off at 1.30, with Supreme Novices Hurdle the opening race as always.
A Happy Cheltenham to all who celebrate.
Top Reads:
To get us started, some reading material to enjoy over the next few hours.
- First up, here’s our racing correspondent Brian O’Connor with his preview of the Champion Hurdle.
- Brian has also interviewed Danny Mullins, easily one of the most interesting jockeys on the scene, to get a flavour of what life is like as such a vital cog in the Willie Mullins machine.
- Irish supporters are in a confident mood as annual Cheltenham invasion begins, Frank McNally reports
