THOUGHTS, plans, desires for the annual Cheltenham Festival begin in earnest each year once the nights close in around October. That applies to both punters and participants. Jumps horses come back into training and set out on that road to glory, so coveted by every National Hunt owner and trainer.
There are only 28 races at the Festival, and only five championship races (we’ll exclude the Mares' Hurdle) where horses come back each year to gain a piece of jumping immortality.
We have had some incredibly emotional days over the years and success to gladden the heart, such as the wins of Sprinter Sacre and Honeysuckle, and the memories of Michael O’Sullivan so strong in the winner’s enclosure last year.
Could we have a winner to compare to those this time? A winning return for Constitution Hill would be close and so too would one last day of glory for an old warrior on what is likely to be his last outing at the Festival.
Over the past 25 years Willie Mullins has become the dominant force at the Festival and he has been responsible for some great horses in that time. He is also the winning-most trainer with 113 Festival wins in the bag.
In Closutton, two of those stars are remembered in sculptures around the yard, Florida Pearl and Al Boum Photo. One campaigned gallantly but never won a Gold Cup, the other twice won jump racing’s Blue Riband. Equally popular were Hurricane Fly and Faugheen.
But the Mullins horse who most likely rates above them and would deserve to stand out on his own is the dual Gold Cup winner Galopin Des Champs.
The 10-year-old has gone to Cheltenham five times, for three wins and one terribly unlucky last fence fall when on his way to winning the Turners Novices, and a defeat in last year’s Gold Cup.
Raise the roof
Is there a case for believing he can raise the roof one more time?
Last year’s defeat to Inothewayurthinkin left doubts among many that it was the true Galopin Des Champs who had missed the three in a row.
Immediately afterwards Willie Mullins said in an Racing TV interview: “I thought when they jumped off, the plan was to be in the first two or three, even make the running, down to the first two or three. When he couldn’t even do that, I said 'this horse is not enjoying himself'.
“I was hoping he would come alive at some stage, he came alive for a few seconds around the fourth last, but it was not to be on the day. He just wasn’t jumping… he never let himself down to gallop or jump properly.” The feeling was that he had underperformed.
This year, after an early setback, he performed well despite finishing third in the Savills Chase at Christmas but was then third again at the DRF.
After his third place behind his two stable companions Fact To File and Gaelic Warrior, again Mullins seemed to think he could do better saying: “He ran a terrific race, I’d say just maybe the exertions at Christmas told against him but he’ll have a much longer break now for the Gold Cup in Cheltenham.”
Drifted out
So, what is the case for him, at 10 years of age this year?
He is the Gold Cup contender without a win this season. He’s drifted out to 9/1 in the ante-post betting.
Fact To File, Jango Baie, The Jukebox Man, Gaelic Warrior, Haiti Couleurs, Spillane’s Tower and Grey Dawning, all have a success to their names.
The weather has been pretty awful over the last six weeks. With more rain in the long-range forecast, the Gold Cup could well be one tough, dour race this year.
Galopin has been there, done that, the old dog for the hard road? At his best, he jumps and stays, neither of those factors are a given for Fact To File, Grey Dawning or Spillane’s Tower nor the three from the King George, run remarkably on good ground in December – Jango Baie, The Jukebox Man and Gaelic Warrior.
The stats men say he’s too old. Aside from the Cross-Country and the Hunter Chase, the last six years since 2000 have seen only eight Festival winners of 10 years or older. Only two, both in the Stayers' Hurdle, were Grade 1 winners – Sire Du Berlais and Bob Olinger.
You have to go back 28 years to 1998 when Cool Dawn won the Gold Cup as a 10-year-old but if you go back far enough, there are famous names on the Gold Cup who would now be considered veterans. Cottage Rake and Mandarin won it at 11. Desert Orchid and Silver Buck at 10.
In more recent times, Denman was 11 when he chased home Long Run in 2010 and had overcome a few issues. Galopin Des Champs appears to be coming off a clear run, physically.
And there are two other beacons among top chasers of the recent past. Moscow Flyer was 11 when he won his final Champion Chase. Not only that, he was sent off favourite to beat his two big rivals, the six-year-old Well Chief and the eight-year-old Azertyuiop.
Kauto Star was a few days short of this official 12th birthday when his won his fifth King George. Great horses defy statistics. Galopin Des Champs is not actually 10 until May.
For all the brilliant racing next month, we want that all-star, raise-the-roof win, to cap it off.
Let’s hope Galopin Des Champs goes there at the top of his form and, if so, bring it on, ye youngsters!
Oldest Cheltenham Championship winners since 2000
Champion Hurdle
2023 Rooster Booster 9
2013 Hurricane Fly 9
Champion Chase
2005 Moscow Flyer 11
2016 Sprinter Sacre 10
2017 Sizing Europe 10
Ryanair Chase (first run 2005)
2006 Fondmort 10
2008 Our Vic 10
2011 Albertas Run 10
Stayers' Hurdle
2023 Sire Du Berlais 11
2025 Bob Olinger 10
Gold Cup
2004 Best Mate 9
2009 Kauto Star 9
2010 Imperial Commander 9
2012 Synchronised 9
2016 Don Cossack 9