Willie Mullins has been the pre-eminent figure since the inauguration of the Dublin Racing Festival and he secured four winners on Saturday, including the first three Grade 1 races on the card.

The quick-fire treble began with Minella Cocooner (11/1), who benefited from an absolute peach of a ride by red-hot jockey Danny Mullins to score in the Grade 1 Nathaniel Lacy Solicitors Novice Hurdle by two and three-quarter lengths from another John Nallen product, Minella Crooner.

It was a ninth Grade 1 triumph for the trainer’s nephew since winning at this meeting on Asterion Forlonge two years ago, a period that also included a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a broken neck.

“He’s very slick at his hurdles for a horse that stays well,” noted Mullins Jnr. “All the way down the back he was getting a length or two at each hurdle, which allowed me to fill him up… I knew I would have more for the business end.”

Vauban (9/4) and Paul Townend lowered the colours of previously unbeaten Fil Dor (6/5f) in stunning fashion, travelling powerfully throughout and though the runner-up battled hard, he was no match for the Rich Ricci-owned four-year-old. who had a cosy three lengths to spare at the line in the Grade 1 Racing TV €12 Per Month Juvenile Hurdle.

“It’s tremendous to win another Grade 1,” declared a beaming Mullins. “We're delighted he won today, put it all together and he learned and got his experience today.

“It's a nice way to break your maiden. I don't know if many horses have broken their maiden in a Grade 1 but it's a nice achievement for him anyhow. We thought he was a nice horse when we bought him.”

It was much harder work for Townend as he completed his double on Blue Lord (5/2) in the Grade 1 Ward Solicitors Irish Arkle Novice Chase.

Simon Munir and Isaac Souede’s seven-year-old had to pull out all the stops to hold off the rallying 2/1 favourite Riviere D’etel by a half-length, who might be deemed an unlucky loser having led at the last before making a critical error. However, the winning trainer maintained that his charge was idling rather than tiring.

The winner had to survive a stewards’ enquiry after veering across the runner-up after the last, while stablemate Saint Sam boxed on well after setting a searching gallop back in third.

“He jumped well today and I couldn’t fault what he did,” Mullins stated. “Paul said when he got to the front, he did just what he did in Naas, he idled. Between the wind and the crowd, you could see him looking around.”

The four-timer was completed by the day’s most spectacular victor, as Facile Vega (8/11f), a son of six-time Cheltenham heroine Quevega, bolted home under Patrick Mullins in the Grade 2 Goffs Future Stars INH Flat Race by 12 lengths from Sandor Clegane.