Galopin Des Champs 'right up there' with my best ever says Willie Mullins after Fastorslow defeats are avenged

At a time when so much of jump racing's narrative is dictated by aggro over horses being sparingly campaigned with a view to a certain four-day fixture in March, Willie Mullins was minded to cherish a bird in the hand after Galopin Des Champs confirmed his thundering resurgence by swatting away the spirited challenge of nemesis Fastorslow to secure back-to-back Irish Gold Cups.

On an occasion when a whopping 20,017 poured into Leopardstown for the opening leg of the Dublin Racing Festival, the Paddy Power-sponsored showpiece dangled a definitive showdown between two fantastic staying chasers. Yes, it was a card Mullins bossed, claiming all four of the Grade 1s, but the one thing everyone walking through the gates wanted was this €250,000 contest to deliver on all of its tantalising promise. That it did. 

Fastorslow did his best to keep Galopin Des Champs honest, but he was chasing shadows. 

With the Conflated team changing tack and dropping in, Paul Townend was left to his own devices up front. JJ Slevin kept him in his sights atop Fastorslow, but in essence it was a freebie for a horse whose 23-length Savills Chase rout at Christmas smacked of rare superiority.

When Slevin tried to lay it down to the 1-3 favourite from two out, he fleetingly made him sweat. As he brought Fastorslow around Galopin Des Champs on the run to the last, be it by accident or design, the reigning Gold Cup hero jinked right. It was just enough to intimidate the challenger and, when Slevin manoeuvred to go inside after the fence, Townend's mount veered left. At that stage, after gallant effort, the white flag went up.

Galopin Des Champs is the best horse on the planet according to official ratings but he ran only twice before Cheltenham glory last term. When Mullins was asked how much he had deliberated over running Greg and Audrey Turley's eight-year-old for a third time before the sport's pinnacle event in March, having also run Al Boum Photo only once before his two triumphs in the race, his response was immediate.

"It wasn't a hard decision," he said. "Moving the John Durkan back two weeks gave us much more scope to run in that, run at Christmas and have enough time to take this race in and go to Cheltenham. He's had a tremendous season now so no matter what happens, to me, this is an end in itself. The next stage is the next stage. If it doesn't happen for whatever reason, we have this on the trophy cabinet.

"It's tremendous prize-money and a tremendous day here at Leopardstown. Some people think it's a trial for Cheltenham but to me it's a race in its own right and they need to be respected and raced for. I just bring my best horses here to do that."

Paul Townend raises his arms in celebration after his first victory at the 2024 Dublin Racing FestivalCredit: Patrick McCann

Mullins does love an Irish Gold Cup. This was his 13th in all, and few of the previous dozen will have proved so sweet because they've had to feel their way around with Galopin Des Champs.

He was thwarted by Fastorslow at Punchestown last April after a performance for the ages at Cheltenham in March, and he didn't lay a glove on him when they clashed in the Durkan. With the more aggressive tactics of old redeployed at Christmas, Galopin Des Champs posted another huge display to rank among the best ever witnessed at the Foxrock venue. 

Mullins was asked if he feared he might again pay a price for that here, but he pointed to what they learned about the horse in defeat. 

"No," he responded. "I thought if things were different at Punchestown the result might have been different, but we learned from that race. If you don't run you don't learn and I'm happy to let them run. If you get beaten you get beaten, and you try and figure out why. 

"He was so keen early in his career, but he's relaxing now, that's key. For these long-distance chasers, you need them to relax, and he was racing like a two or two-and-a-half miler over three miles. Now he's completely changed. The tactics we were using, I think he is benefitting from those tactics now. 

He added: "It was a terrific performance. Paul had to grab the race by the horns and he did, and it worked out. He didn't wait around for anyone and did everything right."

This emphatic four-and-a-half length verdict confirmed Galopin Des Champs' status as an animal of real calibre. He is now 8-13 from 10-11 with Saturday's sponsors to emulate Al Boum Photo and retain the coveted Cotswolds crown. 

Asked if this is as good a horse as he has ever trained, Mullins provided a qualified answer, citing Florida Pearl, his first Irish Gold Cup winner 25 years ago who went on to farm three more. "I'm not going to start comparing top horses, but he's certainly right up there," Mullins said. "We've had some fantastic chasers. Take Florida Pearl, he never won the Gold Cup but he was as good a horse as I ever trained, and this fellow is right up there."

Connections of Galopin Des Champs after his second Irish Gold Cup successCredit: Patrick McCann

Townend kicked on at the start when Jack Kennedy reined back on Conflated, who was just about clinging on in there in third when blundering Kennedy out of the saddle at the final fence, and he made sure to get first run at the finish when Slevin came for him. Having coughed up the first three Grade 1s to Danny Mullins, he got it right when he really needed to.

"They are saying it's the DRF, Danny's Racing Festival, so Paul was delighted Danny hadn't a ride there!" Mullins quipped. "Danny's had such a huge day, I'm delighted for him, and Paul got the one that mattered."

Brassil and Slevin were both magnanimous in defeat. Neither offered much in the way of an excuse for Fastorslow other than to suggest the "cat-and-mouse" gallop wouldn't have been ideal, but they acknowledged finding a way to return the score to 3-2 in their favour in March won't be easy.

Townend was glad to get off the mark, and he didn't even have to raise his whip in anger to do so. "He's so honest," he said of his partner.

"It probably turned into a bit of a dash but I thought it would take a fair one to come by me when I was left to do it my own way like that."

Of Fastorslow's threat in the straight, he added: "We were quickening at that stage and JJ would nearly have had to quicken twice to get to me, but he was dancing to my tune today rather than me dancing to his in the John Durkan when I ended up behind him."

And it is some tune. Simply the best.

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