BRILLIANT, legendary, genius, dominant, maestro — words which describe Willie Mullins perfectly.
Genial, and a right proper gent too.
All eyes will be on the massive army of superstars Willie Mullins is set to unleash this jumps seasonSportsfile
And the fact Mullins is such a nice guy means there were no grumbles in Britain when the king of Closutton respectfully lifted his trilby at Sandown in April.
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Even the punters were rooting for him. Gracious Mullins is popular despite his dominance and that says so much about him.
Fred Winter, Vincent O’Brien, Tom Dreaper, Martin Pipe and Paul Nicholls were all top of the charts — but none of them got to the level Mullins has reached on both sides of the Irish Sea.
To have a winner at the Cheltenham Festival has always been the holy grail, but for the Closutton handler his week is simply a failure if he does not bag at least five winners at Prestbury Park.
The only way his rivals might lay a glove on him is if he turns his back on the sport.
Fat chance.
He said: “Winning is never boring. The horses we buy are available to everyone. Hopefully we’ll be at the top for another five years with all the youngsters coming through.”
And Mullins, 68, is driven by a fear of failure, having watched successful trainers fall by the wayside in the past.
He added: “I try to learn lessons from other trainers down the years. I’m always amazed, when you look at some fantastic trainers, why it reaches a pitch and then it goes down.
“You ask yourself: “What did they do wrong?
“I try to analyse everything. The system we have here has been working so far. That’s why we are the team on top at the moment but it could all change.”
I hate to be the one to break the news to Willie, but the changing of the guard is unlikely.
He is currently sitting on a record 103 Cheltenham Festival winners with Nicky Henderson second on 73.
Records are there to be broken, but Mullins is smashing them — he’s a tour de force!
Last season he won 285 races in Britain and Ireland and well over £10m in prize money.
Not only was he champion trainer in Ireland he was also champ in Britain, a feat which has not been achieved since the legendary Vincent O’Brien did it way back in 1954.
Mullins smiled: “It’s probably a once in a lifetime thing, but we’ve done it, 70 years after Vincent O’Brien.”
And there are no signs of Mullins’ battalion slowing down in Britain and Ireland — all you have to do is take one glance at the talent he has at his disposal.
Dual Gold Cup hero Galopin Des Champs heads the long list of stars but he might not have things all his own way in the staying division because stablemate Fact To File looks a serious threat to his crown.
Arkle hero Gaelic Warrior is an extraordinary horse and Mullins reckons he could be the perfect Christmas present in the King George at Kempton.
Lossiemouth is an exciting contender for the Champion Hurdle and it will be interesting to see if she runs in Britain or takes on her stablemate and reigning champion State Man in Ireland.
The Closutton legend is strong in all departments and he has the market leaders for every novice race.
It would take forever to list every contender he hs but there is no doubt Ballyburn is the star of the show.
He already looks the Irish banker for the Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival.
Mullins is never one to keep standing still and has been busy at the sales.
Here are a few purchases to keep an eye on: Leader des Bordes (€210,000), Arslan (€180,000), Boedic (€175,000) and Blue Velvet (€170,000).
Leader des Bordes is by Tunis and his half-brother has already started making waves.
After buying the former, bloodstock expert Harold Kirk said: “I always knew he was going to be very popular, as he’s a stunning horse with a huge pedigree. He’s for an existing owner in the yard.
“His half-brother [Kopek Des Bordes] won the Tattersalls Ireland George Mernagh Memorial Bumper last season and we’ll be hoping this one can win the Goffs Defender Bumper next year. That’ll be the first plan anyway.”
Arslan finished second on his sole point-to-point at Tralee last May.
Boedic was a top lot on day of the Tattersalls Ireland sales in June.
He is by No Risk At All and Kirk said: “He is a stunning individual, has fantastic movement and he just ticked every box.
“Every time I saw him, I loved him more and he is for an owner in Willie’s yard.”
Blue Velvet unseated in his only point-to-point when leading and sent off 2-1 fav, but was still picked up by Mullins and Kirk a few days later.
STABLE STAR
GALOPIN DES CHAMPS has won two Gold Cups and still has plenty left in the tank to complete the hat-trick in the Blue Riband at Cheltenham.
Willie says: “He’s a superstar. He gallops, he jumps, he stays. What more do you need?”
FESTIVAL FANCY
BALLYBURN produced one of the best performances in the Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and he looks a special talent.
Willie says: “Once Ballyburn learns to settle I think he’ll be a super horse.”
MONEY MAKER
QUAI DE BOURBON might not have the sexy profile of some of his stablemates, but he was just marking time over timber before he is unleashed over fences.
Willie says: “He’s a really strong stayer and could be a huge improver once he sees a fence over a trip.”
DARK HORSE
PORT JOULAIN was an impressive winner of a Gowran Park bumper in March.
The likes of Yorkhill, Bob Olinger and Journey With Me have all won that race before going on to better things.
He flopped at Punchestown but he still rates a top prospect for hurdling.
Willie says: “I was very pleased with him at Gowran Park. He’s a real galloper and could reach the top as a chaser or hurdler.”
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