SO often we associate Willie Mullins with having a vice-like grip on the Christmas action but nobody trained more winners on St Stephen’s Day in Ireland last year than Henry de Bromhead.

A four-timer across Leopardstown, Limerick and Down Royal on December 26th got the festive period off to a flyer for the leading trainer, followed by another two winners at Leopardstown and Limerick over the next three days.

After a Christmas like that, it made perfect sense that Leopardstown and Horse Racing Ireland chose de Bromhead’s Knockeen, Co Waterford yard as its base to launch the 2025 Leopardstown Christmas Festival.

There are entries from the Grand National-winning trainer in nearly all the Grade 1s run over the four-day window at Leopardstown, and his prospects of a bright beginning in December 26th’s Grade 1 Racing Post Novice Chase only increased this week when hot favourite Kopek Des Bordes was ruled out with a setback. July Flower, a bold winner in Grade 2 company at the Cheltenham November Meeting when last seen, looks one of the top prospects in the mix now.

Bob Olinger has the option of running in the Grade 2 Dornan Engineering Relkeel Hurdle at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day, a race the Robcour ownership team love to target due to their sponsorship of the contest, but de Bromhead indicated that Leopardstown’s Grade 1 Christmas Hurdle over just shy of three miles will be strongly considered (on December 27th). The reigning Stayers’ Hurdle champion is only a 5/1 chance for that opportunity on home soil.

There is excitement around the Munster operation that the future is bright with humorously-named novice Mister Pessimistic, trained by a man who often suggests he can view his racing expectations in a glass-half-empty way.

With the form of the four-year-old’s bumper win at Listowel working out so well (second-placed Saint Clovis subsequently a listed bumper winner at Cheltenham), and the runner-up from his Cork maiden hurdle victory, Grey Jude, following up since, maybe now is the time to get optimistic about his credentials in the Grade 1 Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle on December 27th.

With a host of quality names to look forward to over the festive period and beyond, the Cheltenham grand-slam-winning trainer opened his doors this week to give the lowdown on a strong selection of horses in his care.

Air Of Entitlement

“She might run in the Neville Hotels Premier Handicap Hurdle, though she’s also in a 0-140 handicap hurdle and will have an entry in the Grade 3 [Irish Stallion Farms EBF Kerrymount] Mares Hurdle. As well as that, she’s got an entry at Ascot in the Ladbrokes Handicap Hurdle on December 20th. She has options all over the place. I thought she was a bit disappointing on her first start back at Fairyhouse when second but she seems to be coming to herself now [having won last season’s Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham].”

Bob Olinger

“He’s in the Grade 1 three-mile hurdle at Leopardstown, and I think we’re heading that way. There’s that or the Relkeel Hurdle at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day, the race he won a couple of years ago. He does have a great record around Cheltenham, but he’d have a Grade 1 penalty there, whereas he’d be running off levels here. We’ll balance that out and see. He’s in good form.”

Captain Guinness

“Look, he’s gone a little bit inconsistent but he still came back and finished third in the Champion Chase at Cheltenham last season. He’s getting a bit older, so we’ll see. He was disappointing in the Fortria, but on heavy ground at this stage of his life…. I wanted to get a run into him and probably regretted it afterwards but Darragh [O’Keeffe] looked after him. Leopardstown probably wouldn’t be his favourite track but it’s a good race and a good opportunity for him to have a run.”

Gomez Addams

“He’ll go for the winners’ bumper [on December 29th]. He looks a nice horse who won a bumper for Andy Slattery at the Galway Festival - that form looks strong and he seemed smart then. He works nicely and he’s being aimed at Leopardstown. Some of the better spring bumpers could be on our minds after that, all being well.”

Heart Wood

“He was well beaten in the John Durkan [when fourth] but, in fairness, that was such a good race. It was just a savage race; he looked to be on his head the whole way. He’s got the option of the Savills Chase at Leopardstown or the O’Driscoll’s Irish Whiskey Chase at Tramore, where there’s a €50,000 bonus if he wins there and goes on to win any race at the 2026 Cheltenham Festival - we might be tempted by Tramore.”

Hiddenvalley Lake

“He could go to the three-mile Grade 1 Christmas Hurdle too. It’d be around a flat, left-handed track, like Aintree, so he’d like that. It was great to see him winning his Grade 1 at Aintree last spring.”

July Flower

“She’ll run in the Grade 1 Racing Post Novice Chase on December 26th, the race that was gone last year but is back now. She won well at Limerick, and we then went to Cheltenham for the Arkle trial and she was good there. She’s a mare we like a lot, and has done little wrong over fences. She was brave in her jumping at Cheltenham, as was Darragh [O’Keeffe] coming to the third last!”

Koktail Divin

“He’ll run in the two-mile-five-furlong [Ballymaloe Relish Rising Stars] Beginners Chase on December 28th. I thought he ran well at Punchestown when second in the Florida Pearl Novice Chase last time, but I’d say three miles and the heavy ground probably caught him out a little bit.”

Lieber Nicc

“It would be fantastic for the Schusters if he could follow up at Leopardstown in the valuable Neville Hotels Premier Handicap Hurdle. These horses run in memory of their son, Niccolai. We had a winner for them there in 2017 with a mare called Ellie Mac, who went to the races for all the wrong reasons. She was 50/1 and I didn’t think she had a chance.

“I was trying to explain to John Schuster, who runs the syndicate, that she’d have a much better chance at Limerick, where she’d have an 8lb allowance, but he said, ‘It’s Leopardstown, it’s friends and family coming together, and that’s what this syndicate is all about’.

“I think that’s what the Leopardstown Christmas Festival is all about too. It’s a great few days, and that was one of those winners that meant a huge amount.

“Lieber Nicc has taken up the mantle. He won well at Down Royal last time out, which was great, and I’d imagine he’ll go for the Nevilles.”

Mister Pessimistic

“A couple of people I know are enjoying the fact I train a horse with this name! Sean Doyle trained him as a point-to-pointer, and he must have had me in mind to buy him. I couldn’t not buy him when I heard what he was called!

“He’s a nice young horse who has done very little wrong. He won his bumper at Listowel and then won his maiden hurdle at Cork; everything behind him has won since. We backed off him then.

“It’s quite hard after you’ve won your maiden in Ireland because you’re straight into these graded novices.

“It was either go to the Royal Bond at Fairyhouse or go here to the [Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle] at Christmas. I think he might have a preference for nicer ground. It’s obviously a good race, but he’s a good horse so we’re looking forward to him.

“We were going to stay in bumpers this year but he jumps so well, we decided to go hurdling. He’s only a four-year-old, but we did win this race with a four-year-old before - Sizing John in 2014.”

Monty’s Star

“He’s entered in the Savills Chase and is in good form. He was probably a bit disappointing in the Coral Gold Cup [when 14th] but he might have needed the run. Unfortunately, he had a setback last year when he got kicked by another horse. We had to reconstruct a bit of his face.

“I’d say he just may not be the horse he was, but we feel he’s better and more like himself this year. Last year, he probably didn’t progress like we thought he would.”

Quilixios

“He won’t make it out to run at Christmas after a little setback. He’s back flying now but sadly we won’t get him there. I would have had to have rushed him, so we’ll aim for the Dublin Racing Festival and then maybe the Champion Chase, hopefully. He seems good now.”

Slade Steel

“I was frustrated that he didn’t manage to win last weekend at Navan when second to a good horse in Predator’s Gold; I thought coming to two out he was going to put up a display. Annoyingly, the winner just came back at us, but it was still a savage run and I was happy with him.

“With Leopardstown no longer having a Grade 1 three-mile novice chase, we’ll go to Naas for a new three-mile chase [winners-of-one novice on January 4th].

“I sort of get it, but I’m not sure why they really made the changes they did to remove the Leopardstown Grade 1 option that was there.”

The Big Westerner

“She has options at Limerick. We have her entered in the Grade 1 [Guinness 00 ]Faugheen Novice Chase but I’d say we’re leaning towards the Grade 2 [McMahons Builders Providers Irish EBF Dawn Run] Mares Novice Chase.

“Obviously she’s probably better against her own sex, but she’s a very good mare to be getting 7lb from geldings. We need to weigh that up as we get there.

“It was frustrating to see her getting beaten at Fairyhouse, as it always is when you’re running your real Grade 1 horses, but she’ll come and she did meet a good horse [Jimmy Du Seuil]. I was still very happy with her.”

Walks In June

“I was probably leaning towards the two-and-a-half-mile novice handicap with Walks In June, but he’s also in the two-mile option. I’ll see what way the ground is. He wasn’t right after disappointing at Navan; he had a dirty scope.”

Workahead

“He got hurt at Cheltenham [when last to finish in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle]. He’s back now and might run at Leopardstown but I’d say it will possibly be coming too soon. His form is rock-solid. He’s had a niggle ever since we bought him, unfortunately, but if we can keep him right, he’s a good horse. He won a very good maiden hurdle, beating William Munny, who is rated 156, at Leopardstown last Christmas. With his leg issue, I’d say less jumping would help keep him right so I’d imagine he’ll stick to hurdling.”

Some other names to note

“Fort Dino is entered in the Future Champions Novice but I’d say won’t go, even though he looks a lovely horse. He won at Auteuil on his only start and looks nice. I don’t think he’ll be ready for that.

“We do have a couple of nice horses in maidens: Tim Toe and Midnight Jet could go for the four-year-old and Forty Coats might go for the five-year-old.

“Tim Toe won his bumper at Thurles but just didn’t jump great in heavy ground the other day at Gowran [when second]. Hopefully we’ll get better ground for him at Leopardstown.

“Another nice horse is Ace Brannigan, who beat Letos. He’ll line up over Christmas as well, I’d say. Mossy Fen Park will go for the Paddy Power Chase on December 27th.

“We probably dropped back in trip a little too much at Cork on good ground, at a fast track and over two and a half miles [when third to Ol Man Dingle last time]. He’s a real three-miler and beat a good horse [Oscar’s Brother] at Listowel. He’s a good horse off a nice mark.

“Waterford Whispers [also in the Paddy Power] could be off a nice mark. He was disappointing at Punchestown, when he jumped left, but hopefully he’ll be better back left-handed.”

ONE star of the de Bromhead team who won’t be seen this Christmas is Envoi Allen. In fact, it looks likely that he will be seen just once more on a racecourse in his career, his trainer revealed on Thursday morning.

Cheveley Park Stud’s prolific veteran will turn 12 in the new year, and connections have decided that his farewell run will come in National Hunt racing’s greatest prize at the Cheltenham Festival.

“Envoi Allen is brilliant, really, really good,” said de Bromhead.

“He’s going to have his last hurrah in the Gold Cup, that’s what we’ve agreed and we’re really looking forward to it. He goes straight there. I think that was one of his best performances up at Down Royal and we said we would just keep him fresh. Like myself, he’s getting older, so less is more for him nowadays.

“We’ll have him primed for Cheltenham and give it a go. The Thompsons are keen to do it, and so are we. The plan is for it to be his last start, though if he bolted up in that we might have to rethink it!”

After winning the 10th Grade 1 of his career at Down Royal in the Ladbrokes Champion Chase last month, the three-time Cheltenham Festival winner (also placed at three other editions of the meeting) is a 66/1 chance to become the oldest Gold Cup winner since What A Myth in 1969.

De Bromhead is still seeing great enthusiasm in the popular chaser in his homework, adding: “He’s unbelievable, and how much he enjoys it all. You could go and loose school him in the indoor school and he’s like a three-year-old going round. He just loves the game.”

Mastering longevity

It has been a theme of many of de Bromhead’s brightest stars that they have been able to compete at a high level late into their careers. Envoi Allen’s latest Grade 1 win came as an 11-year-old, Bob Olinger was 10 when winning this year’s Stayers’ Hurdle, while Special Tiara was also a 10-year-old winner of the Champion Chase in 2017. Even Balko Des Flos finished second (behind stablemate Minella Times) as a 10-year-old in the 2021 Grand National.

How is the Co Waterford trainer keeping his horses young?

“It’s a good question. I suppose maybe we’re not as hard on them when they’re younger, but my main thing is that it’s so hard to get a good horse. When you do get them, it’s about trying to maintain them, to keep them at that level for as long as you can,” he explained.

“You know, we wouldn’t have the same turnover as some of the other yards in terms of numbers of horses coming in. We’re lucky to have great support, but we don’t have those big numbers. Like football clubs in a transfer market, the more you spend, and the more horses you have coming in, the likelier you are to stumble on those good ones. So when we find them, our aim is to maintain them for as long as we can.

“We have Emily Kate [Robinson] with us and she does dressage with our horses, flat work that I’d compare to the likes of Ryan Giggs or Johnny Sexton doing pilates. It’s all about trying to maintain them, and keeping them as agile as you possibly can. We don’t tend to run those horses a huge number of times a year either; we might run those Grade 1 horses maybe four or five times a season.”

Optimum going

It has been remarked over several seasons that de Bromhead’s string doesn’t quite operate to the same level when deep winter conditions take hold, and the trainer also is of the view that the majority of his runners prefer racing on sounder surfaces.

“A lot of our horses would have a preference for nicer ground, and that’s why a lot of mine target Leopardstown,” he said.

“The two places in Ireland that you usually find those nicer conditions at this time of year are Thurles and Leopardstown; especially after a wetter autumn than normal.

“In terms of why that might be the case with our horses preferring nicer ground, a factor is probably how we train them. If we have horses who go on heavy ground, that’s fine, but I probably wouldn’t train them to make them go on it.

“Now, it can be a bit frustrating when you have a longer winter, but we often have about 10 months where there isn’t heavy ground - it’s typically yielding or so. This year is slightly different, but that’s the way it goes.”