JUST when you think he has raised his game to an all-time high, Willie Mullins somehow manages to raise the bar even higher.

The 2022 Cheltenham Festival saw Ireland’s 16-time champion trainer scale new heights with an unprecedented 10 winners across the 28 races at the meeting - despite starting the week by drawing a blank in the first six contests.

A phenomenal 1,518/1 five-timer on the final day elevated the Cloustton maestro to a record 88 career winners trained at the Cotswolds highlight, leaving him a dozen shy of becoming the first trainer in the sport’s history to break into triple figures for the meeting.

Mullins insists that trying to match or better last year’s tally of 10 is not on his mind, but it wouldn’t be a shock if he comes close to that staggering haul again given he supplies a number of favourites on each card this season.

Looking ahead to the 2023 bonanza with his squad of potentially more than 60 horses, Mullins said: “I’m not sure whether this will be the biggest team we’ve taken to Cheltenham, but we might have the best quality [team] that we’ve ever had.”

A frightening thought for opposing trainers as the countdown continues to the biggest four days in the National Hunt calendar.

Below are the trainer’s running plans as of February 6th.

It was disappointing that Facile Vega didn’t get to show his best when beaten at the Dublin Racing Festival, but when I saw the fast pace he was going when heading past the winning post for the first time I knew that unless he was an aeroplane he couldn’t keep that up. That was it. They went much faster in the early stages than was the case in the Irish Champion Hurdle. It was headless, what went on, and he couldn’t last that. Paul [Townend] is going to have to ride him like a racehorse rather than a machine.

I think it’s all systems go for the Supreme with him. There will be plenty of pace in that race, and I haven’t contemplated changing yet. It’s going to take a fair bit of recovering from that run because it was a hard race for him. We need all the time that we have.

I’ve always thought Il Etait Temps was a fair horse and that’s why we ran him in the top races we did last year. It was a good performance for him to win at the Dublin Racing Festival. I wanted to keep him as a novice for this season, but what disappointed me was his jumping. He just wasn’t putting it together, but Danny [Mullins] said to me that when he pulled him a bit wide last time at Leopardstown, he just pinged his hurdles down the back and did it well. I know the two in front [Facile Vega and High Definition] made it easier for him, but he’s going to keep learning. Once he gets it all together, and isn’t so keen, who knows how good he could be? He’s going to be a proper Grade 1 horse.

We ran plenty of our nice two-mile novice chasers in the Goffs Irish Arkle at the Dublin Racing Festival, and I was surprised that El Fabiolo was so far clear. Appreciate It [who finished third] was very disappointing and Dysart Dynamo [who finished fourth] ran well. I think jumping has made Dysart Dynamo a bit more tractable but there was so much pace in that race at Leopardstown. If you were lucky enough to get a race without that sort of pace maybe it could suit him but that’s always going to be Dysart Dynamo, I’m afraid. He goes flat out from the start.

We’ll have to figure out Appreciate It. I thought he ran flat, but he had put in a big effort on his previous start at Naas and he just mightn’t have recovered. I would have thought, on his last performance, he’s likely to go up in trip. We were amazed that he was able to do over two miles what he did in the beginning, but maybe now it’s looking like he should go up in trip.

El Fabiolo did everything right, and his run against Jonbon last season when runner-up at Aintree puts him right in the picture. That was only the second run for us, and to run Jonbon to a photo finish was a huge achievement. Jonbon was in his own backyard and we had to travel over to England. El Fabiolo goes there with a huge chance.

Horses for courses is the old saying in racing and it’s great to have the experience of a win at Cheltenham under State Man’s belt. It’s huge in our preparation. We are looking forward to meeting Constitution Hill there, and I’m sure his connections are looking forward to it too. There are other horses in the race as well, but at the moment State Man looks to be the leading Irish contender and Constitution Hill appears the leading British contender. Fingers crossed, we all get there to compete.

With everything State Man has been showing me all along, and we’re seeing that there’s still improvement to come in him, we think he’s good enough to compete in a Champion Hurdle. Constitution Hill could be a bit of a freak and maybe he’s going to be unlucky to come up against a horse like him, but it’s all there to play for at the moment. We’re living the dream as it stands. If you beat Honeysuckle around Leopardstown, you’d be thinking there’s only one more step to go, but Constitution Hill is there - and a few more too - and we’ve got to get there. Constitution Hill looks the complete package. He’s got speed, he can jump and he stays, so he’s going to be very tough to beat.

Vauban is only five and I think he still ran a fair race when third behind State Man and Honeysuckle in the Irish Champion Hurdle. To me, it’s very hard for five year olds, on their second season over hurdles, to compete with the older horses. I’m hoping next season he will be the finished article.

Gaelic Warrior was very impressive to win a big handicap like he did at the Dublin Racing Festival [in the Liffey Handicap Hurdle]. After having had two other wins, I thought it was a great trial for maybe going for the Ballymore; that’s the sort of race we would go for at the moment. He could go for the Supreme either, but if I had to make a decision at the moment the Ballymore is where I’d be going. We’ll see what happens in the meantime.

Impaire Et Passe has looked a bit special too. He could do two [miles in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle] but you’d probably be looking at going a bit further like two and a half miles [close to the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle trip]. I was certainly thinking that way last week, but now with Gaelic Warrior after stepping up again, it’s nice to have the choice.

Sir Gerhard’s hurdles form is good enough to go anywhere, but at the moment I would be thinking of looking at longer trips where they’re just going that bit steadier. Over a longer trip he’d have more jumps, and therefore more opportunity to make a mistake. However, with his lack of experience over fences, possibly you would take a chance on the Brown Advisory, where he would have the speed to maybe hunt around there. That’s the way I’m thinking at the moment but there’s nothing set in stone yet. I have to chat to [owner Cheveley Park Stud’s] Richard Thompson and see what he’d like to do as well.

I’d imagine Gaillard Du Mesnil would look a candidate for the National Hunt Chase [on day two] but he’s also in the Brown Advisory so we’ll see what way we have horses to divide up.

It was great to finally win the Champion Chase with Energumene last year. I think his performance [when third] in the rescheduled Clarence House Chase at Cheltenham in January showed that he just needed the run. He needed to see the different style of fences [compared to Irish fences], even though he had schooled over them at home here, but sometimes a horse just needs to get out and see the thing on the track itself. I’m sure that experience will stand to him when it comes to jumping off in the Champion Chase. I think a strong pace will suit us. We’re looking forward to a good pace.

I was disappointed with Blue Lord in the Dublin Chase but it was fantastic for Gentleman De Mee and great for Danny [Mullins] that they managed to land the spoils. Things didn’t go right for him at Christmas but possibly the little bit of drier ground at the Dublin Racing Festival played to his strengths.

Blue Lord had a very hard race at Christmas and Paul thought that might have had an effect, but I think maybe it was just the change of ground. Hopefully he’ll bounce back. Maybe he needs to go a bit longer, as we thought, but I thought his Christmas performance was very good and he’s entitled to take a stab at the Champion Chase.

In terms of this race, I’m not going beyond Energumene, for the time being anyway. You need plenty of horses for these races and if they all get there I’ll be delighted.

I think we still have a few nice horses who have yet to run in the bumper division. Whether we’ll get them out in time, I’m not sure, but we’ll see. It’s For Me, who made a winning debut at Navan on his only start for us, looks a nice type, Westport Cove showed a fair amount of ability when winning at Fairyhouse and Western Diego was impressive at Naas. Special Cadeau was disappointing at the Dublin Racing Festival but he wasn’t 100% when he came home from there so I think he’ll be all right.

I was a little disappointed with Chosen Witness[when fifth] at the Dublin Racing Festival. However, if the ground comes up similar to last year’s Champion Bumper - like a bog - he might come into the reckoning after his win at Limerick over Christmas. Jody [Townend] was very taken with him there but we probably didn’t make enough use of him at Leopardstown.

Fun Fun Fun would look automatic to go to Cheltenham but we’ll see as there’s also the Grade 2 Goffs UK Nickel Coin Mares Bumper for her at Aintree. I would have thought she would automatically go to Cheltenham in an ordinary year with what she did at Leopardstown. I didn’t think she would be fit enough to do it with the prep she had going to the Dublin Racing Festival. She looked to be under pressure but took off after getting her second wind.

There looked to be depth to that race. Last year’s winner finished second and all the others were also winners, yet Patrick [Mullins] went by them as if he jumped in at where there would have been the second last hurdle. That was a huge performance. She has the pedigree to win it - and the ability - but I’ll see what Patrick wants to do between himself, Simon [Munir] and Isaac [Soeude]. I’ll leave that to them.

Klassical Dream got a hold-up that meant he hasn’t run since the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle in November but he’s coming back into the picture. It’s going to be touch and go as to whether he makes it. We’ll have to wait and see.

Blood Destiny looks very good. We could have run him at the Dublin Racing Festival but I just felt it was only three weeks since his last run, he’s only four and it was going to be a hard race if he ran it. It could have turned out to be a race like Facile Vega at the same meeting where they just locked on in front, and we didn’t want that to happen. He will go there a bit fresher. He looks a fair sort.

I think Lossiemouth is still the one to beat in this division, given her run at the Dublin Racing Festival. To me, she was just very unlucky. Gala Marceau is improving. She’s probably her own worst enemy because she pulls so hard. She’s going to have to settle a good bit but she’s going to improve as well. It’s shaping up to be a good division this season.

Galopin Des Champs has done everything right. I was very happy with what he did when

winning the Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown, and Paul was very happy too. The horse settled, jumped and came through when Paul wanted him to come through. Paul was very happy that he had plenty of horse under him passing through the line, and that’s important because there’s another two furlongs at Cheltenham.

You know, when he won over three miles as a novice over hurdles I was never worried about his stamina after that. It’s just all about temperament, that the horse has to settle during the race. He has done that in his last runs so Paul is much happier with him. Paul has confidence in him now that he’ll settle and be able to use him in a race when he wants to use him. This horse is becoming the complete package. In terms of the occasion of a Cheltenham Gold Cup, I’ve never been worried about him losing the plot, as they say. I think he’s a cool customer. He’ll handle it all right.

I thought Stattler ran a cracker behind Galopin Des Champs in the Irish Gold Cup. I thought he was going to fade out of it but he stayed on again to be second. I think Patrick has booked his ride at Cheltenham. Stattler’s owner Ronnie Bartlett was very happy with the run, as we all were. He was up there, jumping fantastic and making the running. It was a hard thing to do, and then to stay on again to be second, I thought it was a great effort.

Capodanno hasn’t run yet this season but is still in the mix, though we’ll see how his preparations go as Aintree is also a possibility for him.

All is good with Allegorie De Vassy. Of course you’d be concerned by her lack of experience as a chaser - she’s only had two starts over fences this season - but she has huge ability. Colreevy was also a novice when winning the Mares’ Chase in 2021 but went there with one more run than Allegorie De Vassy had over fences. It’s probably a big thing to say, but I think Allegorie De Vassy potentially would have more ability than Colreevy, over this trip anyway. Also in the mix for this race is last year’s winner Elimay. The plan is for her to go back for it again.

This article is taken from The Irish Field Cheltenham Magazine 2023. CLICK HERE TO ORDER YOUR COPY