Four Willie Mullins-trained horses to watch next season
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For the best part of the last decade, Irish handler Willie Mullins has dominated the sport of National Hunt racing. The horse racing betting sites took a hit this year as his grip on jumps racing was more apparent than ever in the recent 2023-24 campaign.
The master of Closutton became the first trainer to surpass 100 wins at the iconic Cheltenham Festival, while he also won the prestigious Grand National en route to landing his first British Champions Trainer title.
The jumps racing season might officially be on hiatus, but the hard work never stops behind the scenes for Mullins and his team of experts at Closutton Stables in County Carlow. That said, let’s take a look at four of the most powerful thoroughbreds Mullins is set to unleash in the 2024-25 season.
Ballyburn
One of the most exciting horses currently in his ranks, Ballyburn blew away horse racing pundits and enthusiasts alike with some stunning performances throughout the campaign.
The six-year-old was second to Firefox on his seasonal reappearance at Fairyhouse in December, and went on a four-race unbeaten streak that included Grade 1 wins at Leopardstown, Cheltenham, and Punchestown.
It’s yet to be confirmed what Mullins plans to do with Ballyburn next season, but novice chasing looks like the most probable route.
Ballyburn is the 5/1 favourite for the Arkle and even shorter in the Turners’ Novice Chase, with odds of 7/2 making that his likeliest target for the 2025 Cheltenham Festival.
Fact To File
Fact To File is another exciting horse from the 2023-24 season, and he’s certainly worth watching throughout the upcoming campaign, as he’s set to try and dethrone stablemate Galopin Des Champs in the Gold Cup.
Like Ballyburn, Fact To File was beaten on his reappearance at Navan in November. However, he racked up three impressive wins on the trot, including a commanding victory in the Grade 1 Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.
Hopes are high for the JP McManus-owned seven-year-old ahead of next season, as he’s the 4/1 joint-favourite for the Gold Cup.
Galopin Des Champs gunning for a historic third successive Gold Cup with Fact To File hoping to spoil the party is sure to be one of the stories of the year.
Jasmin De Vaux
One of two promising youngsters set to make the switch from bumpers to hurdles for Mullins next season, the other being Maughreen, Jasmin De Vaux caught the eye when he won his rules debut at Naas by a whopping 15 lengths over his Nibs.
The upward trajectory continued for the five-year-old when he scored again in the lucrative Champion Bumper at Prestbury Park, which was also notably Mullins’ 100th victory at the Cheltenham Festival.
However, Jasmin De Vaux flattered to deceive when he was a distant eighth in the Punchestown Champion Bumper to round off the season. He should progress nicely over the summer though, and a switch to hurdles could see further improvement.
Jasmin De Vaux is currently priced at 14/1 in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and 12/1 in the Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle, but those odds are sure to shorten should he make a winner start to life over obstacles in the coming months.
Dancing City
Dancing City might not be one of the first names that comes to mind when you draw up a list of Mullins-trained horses to add to your tracker for next season.
However, you can’t deny that what he achieved this year wasn’t impressive. The seven-year-old landed three Group 1s at Leopardstown, Aintree, and Punchestown while placing in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham.
Dancing City looks ready-made for a switch to the bigger obstacles, and he’s currently 8/1 for the National Hunt Chase or 12/1 for the Brown Advisory Novice Chase. It’ll be interesting to see how his season develops.
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