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Seven things we learned from the Dublin Racing Festival

New stars forged and history beckons, a weekend to remember at Leopardstown

Monday, 03 February 2025
Seven things we learned from the Dublin Racing Festival

Huge crowds welcome home Paul Townend and Galopin Des Champs after his Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup win at Dublin Racing Festival

"He could be the best horse we've had in Ireland since Arkle." - Ruby Walsh on Galopin Des Champ

Packed crowds and a packed card and plenty of pointers for the Cheltenham Festival, James Toney with seven things learned from a weekend to remember at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Glory beckons for Galopin as a nation expects

The Dublin Racing Festival has delivered some storied moments in the eight short years since its inaugural meeting.

Rachael Blackmore still counts the reception she received after Honeysuckle's win in 2022 as one of her favourite racing moments. However, a third Irish Gold Cup victory for Galopin Des Champs set the bar even higher.

The crowd gathered ten deep around the parade ring to cheer Paul Townend and Willie Mullins’s charge home after a flawless display of rhythm and precision delivered the moment of the weekend.

He toyed with his rivals and, when sensing a challenge, swatted them away with imperious disdain. A giddy Ruby Walsh immediately declared him the best Irish chaser since Arkle—high praise indeed, as no greater superlative exists.

It has been 59 years since "Himself" won the last of his three consecutive Gold Cups at Cheltenham, and now there are just 39 days to wait until Galopin Des Champs attempts to join him in the pantheon of Prestbury Park legends.

Between now and then, there isn’t enough cotton wool in County Carlow to wrap him in. A nation expects and await its new people's horse.

Final Demand makes Festival ambitions clear

The step up from maiden to Grade 1 company proved effortless for Final Demand, who left both Mullins and Townend purring about his Cheltenham Festival prospects following a dominant 12-length victory.

His Dublin Racing Festival win was a spectacle for his supporters, with Townend taking flight after the last to power away for a commanding success.

Mullins believes his emerging star could tackle any of the novice hurdle distances at the Festival, though the preference is clear—he is likely to target the Turners Novices' Hurdle, where he is now the new favourite ahead of Dan Skelton’s unbeaten home contender, The New Lion, a recent big-money purchase by JP McManus.

"When Paul gave him a little squeeze when turning for home, he just came alive," said Mullins.

Wingman, who finished a distant second, was no match for Final Demand over 2m6f. However, Gordon Elliott—who went winless at the meeting—is optimistic about his charge’s chances in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham.

“I’m very happy with that performance. It was a great run, and stepping up in trip will suit him,” he said.

Hello Winner’s Enclosure as Cromwell ends wait for Irish Grade 1

While it was another Dublin Racing Festival to remember for Mullins, Gavin Cromwell was the best of the rest, securing three wins, including his first Grade One victory on home soil in four years, when the unbeaten Hello Neighbour claimed the Juvenile Hurdle.

At the start of the season, he labelled the horse "one you’d have to be excited about," and he was not wrong.

Hello Neighbour travelled effortlessly and is now the leading Irish contender in the Triumph Hurdle, behind home hopes Lulamba and East India Dock, who strengthened their credentials with similarly dominant wins at Ascot and Cheltenham, respectively.

A Supreme Novices’ banker that looks just a bit special

Kopek Des Bordes is already being dubbed Kopek Des Banker after his 13-length masterclass, which stretched his unbeaten run to three.

Mullins has not won the Festival’s opening Supreme Novices’ Hurdle since Appreciate It’s 24-length demolition in 2021 behind closed doors, but this unbeaten five-year-old is maturing into something special.

If he obliges at the Festival, expect wild celebrations in the winner’s enclosure.

"When you see your sons cry… that is something you can’t buy," said owner Charlie McCarthy. "That is a feeling I will take to my grave.

"It’s very special for my boys and me—the horse is the talk of the town!"

Mullins has no concerns about Majborough’s jumping ahead of Sir Gino clash

Majborough delivered a dominant performance to win the Irish Arkle, and while his jumping occasionally raised concerns, his relentless galloping remains a joy to watch.

This was a fifth consecutive win in the race for Closutton, but history is against him—no winner of this race has gone on to do the Arkle double at Cheltenham since Footpad, who followed the route previously taken by legends Un De Sceaux and Douvan.

However, last year’s Triumph Hurdle winner is improving with every run over fences—this was only his second outing—and he is widely considered the best of the rest in the challenge against Nicky Henderson’s Sir Gino, with all eyes on his final prep run at Newbury this weekend.

If his supporters were worried about his novicey jumping, a typically composed Mullins was not.

He said: "I was watching from the stands, and while the whole crowd—both here and on TV—were going ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ every time he got close to one, from my vantage point, he never looked in danger of falling.

Ballyburn is every bit the staying chaser

Ballyburn has already been touted as a future Gold Cup horse, and he reinforced those staying chaser credentials by capitalising on Betterdaysahead’s absence to win the Ladbrokes Novice Chase.

It’s now clear that his previous disappointing run over two miles at Kempton was simply too sharp for him. He relished the steadier pace this time and will be even better over three miles in the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase, where he holds marginal favouritism over stablemate Dancing City.

"I never lost faith in him, but he’s back on track now," said Mullins. "All the schooling we did at home has paid off.

"He still has a lot to learn about settling in a race, but once he does, he could be a real force over three miles—he’s certainly bred for it."

Champion Hurdle questions remain after State Man success

There are still more questions than answers about the Champion Hurdle, even after two big races in the space of eight days.

Home hope Constitution Hill remains the favourite despite barely breaking a sweat on Cheltenham’s Trials Day—though he did give his supporters a scare with a mistake at the last.

State Man and Lossiemouth were set to battle in the Irish Champion Hurdle to determine the leading challenger, but the latter’s fall disrupted the showdown.

However, Lossiemouth’s absence should not detract from State Man’s performance. His focus remained impeccable despite having the race won early, and his sectionals at Leopardstown were significantly quicker than last year’s.

Most importantly, this 11th Grade One success marks a significant improvement from his last run at Christmas, meaning he has done all he can ahead of defending his title at Cheltenham.



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