Patrick Mullins appears on our Punchestown Festival Podcast previewing his mouthwatering book of rides for the week.
He could potentially start with a bang too as he partners Dysart Dynamo against stablemate Sir Gerhard in a fascinating clash in the Bective Stud Champion Novice Hurdle.
He told David Ord and Billy Nash on the Podcast: "I’m very excited to ride him.
"We obviously teamed up last year to win the winners’ bumper at the meeting. In his first ever race he’d raced quite lazily so we’d expected him to do the same that day but instead he ran like his tail was on fire.
"We tried to ride him normally and it was like wresting a bear."
Mullins went on: "The fact he was able to win after being so keen and fighting me for so long was testament to his ability.
"This year we’ve kind of gone with him, let him roll and use his cruising speed. It was hard to know where he was going to finish in the Sky Bet Supreme at Cheltenham but he was still going well when he fell.
"It’s hard to think he’d have beaten Constitution Hill but I think Punchestown will suit him a lot more. It will be slightly quieter than Cheltenham, if not by a lot, but it’s a track than can suit front-runners.
"We’ll be playing catch-me-if-you-can and I won’t be surprised if they can’t."
So what of Sir Gerhard and the drop back to the minimum trip?
“He was very keen in the Ballymore, particularly on the heavy ground, and he did well to win given that. He jumped better than he did at Leopardstown which was good to see. We wouldn’t have thought two miles would be a problem for him, he’s by Jeremy and with something of a flat-orientated pedigree.
"I don’t see the trip being an issue but with next year in mind you’d want to see him win well here if you’re going to think about taking on Honeysuckle or do you go chasing? This will be a help in that regard.
“I think he’s going to have to go to catch my fellow, though. I know Mikey Fogarty said to me before Punchestown last year he thought Dysart Dynamo was better than Kilcruit and Sir Gerhard. He'd be a fair judge and we’ll find out on Tuesday."