Ben Linfoot is our man at the Dublin Racing Festival as he watched Galopin Des Champs assert authority in the Gold Cup division on another magnificent day for Willie Mullins.
For Paul Townend, at least there was Galopin Des Champs. Here he is, the Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, operating in machine-like fashion again. An end of season blip at Punchestown and a start of season blip at the same track, both times losing to Fastorslow, asked questions of the eight-year-old. But he’s answering them in style.
At Christmas he was imperious around Leopardstown in the Savills Chase, Willie Mullins getting him back in the winning groove to the tune of 23 lengths. On day one of the Dublin Racing Festival the winning distance was much shorter, four-and-a-half lengths at the line, but it was an important one, with old rival Fastorslow the one chasing him home in second.
It never looked in doubt. Galopin was careful at one or two fences and he did the merest of jinks at the last before putting himself right, but then he put distance between himself and the runner-up, without any encouragement of the whip, Townend all hands and heels as he looked up at the big screen to see the winning margin widening with each stride.
After Danny Mullins had booted home a 535.5/1 treble for Uncle Willie in the first three Grade 1s of the meeting, Galopin Des Champs became even more significant for Townend by the time the Irish Gold Cup came around. And with the possibility of a tactical race at the forefront of his mind he took the bull by the horns, leading from flagfall, flying over the first with clear intent.
“I was just on the wrong ones,” Townend said with a wry smile, again looking up at Galopin Des Champs, this time in slow-motion, this time on the huge screen above the Leopardstown weighing room. “But he was the big bullet and he’s hit the bullseye.”
Before the DRF Townend was on a ridiculous streak, even by his and Mullins’ standards, hitting that bullseye with regularity. In fact, from the start of the year to the Friday before the DRF Townend had ridden 24 winners from 38 runners, a win strike-rate of 63.16%, the percentage of rivals beaten standing at 90.40%.
Given he was on the favourites for the first two Grade 1s and then 4/1 chance Facile Vega in the third you fancied him to add to those numbers in a positive manner before Galopin Des Champs, but as Danny Mullins rode to glory on Dancing City, Kargese and Il Etait Temps, the stable jockey was left licking his wounds, for all that he had the biggest of guns to come.
Some bookies cut Galopin Des Champs to 8/13 to go back-to-back in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and that looks a perfectly good assessment of his chance. The key thing is he didn’t look to have a hard race here, winning in third gear from the one horse who threatened to steal his crown, but it looks like the official handicapper – rating Galopin Des Champs 180 and Fastorslow 168 – might have got this one right.
Martin Brassil is clinging onto the hope his horse can make it 3-2 in their head-to-heads come Cheltenham. A more even gallop and better ground the two main reasons why he thinks his horse can beat Galopin once again.
But it’s very hard to envisage such a scenario after this piece of evidence, Mullins’ grip on Cheltenham, the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Dublin Racing Festival, that he simply owns, tightening with every race.
With all four Grade 1s in the bag on day one, including a 1-2 and a 1-2-3-4, with Marine Nationale, thought to be the toughest nut to crack according to the bookies, finishing second last in the Irish Arkle, thoughts now turn to day two and what should be the unthinkable – could Mullins win all eight Grade 1s?
Put simply, it is on. He trains the first three in the betting in the Ladbrokes Novice Chase; Gaelic Warrior, Fact To File and Grangeclare West. He’s got even-money favourite Ballyburn in the Tattersalls Novice Hurdle, El Fabiolo at 1/3 in the Dublin Chase and then State Man (1/3) and Impaire Et Passe (5/1) in the Irish Champion Hurdle. It will be more of a surprise if he doesn’t do it.
Danny Mullins bagging a Grade 1 treble was a surprise. But eyebrows won’t be raised if the ice-cool Townend, riding into day two on the back of that Galopin Des Champs buzz, keeps hitting the bullseye from now on. The Townend four-timer pays around 5/1 on Sunday (5/1!) which tells you the whole story. Welcome to the Dublin Racing Festival, or Planet Mullins, whichever you prefer.
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