IT’S fast forward to the two days of brilliant racing next weekend, as the 2025 Dublin Racing Festival was highlighted by a morning in Closutton and a large turn-out of media and sponsors on Wednesday.

Leopardstown’s CEO, Tim Husbands acknowledged the key role of the sponsors, saying “they are a crucial part of the success of the Festival” and are the “unsung heroes” of the weekend.

With 38% of the 2024 attendance by travellers from Britain, the aim again is to maintain to pull in the travellers from across the water.

Champion trainer Willie Mullins said: “The DRF last year shows you what the British racegoer wants, and they’re taking that away from them, so we’re giving it.”

With the stable picking up full throttle after a few Christmas disappointments, the stars were all on show, as Galopin Des Champs, State Man, Lossiemouth, Fact To File, El Fabiolo, Gaelic Warrior, Majborough, Impaire Et Passe led a phenomenal team of stars.

Mullins reflected on the 2024 season, where he dominated the Dublin weekend with eight Grade 1 wins.

Phenomenal year

“I say it will never happen again. It was just a phenomenal year, apart from Dublin Racing Festival, the whole way. Think we were written off at Christmas and then the whole thing just came together.”

Is a repeat likely? “It’s like going to Cheltenham, if you have some years where you have maybe eight or 10 favourites and, if five of them can win, or if you can have five winners out of 10 favourites, say, and even your favourites mightn’t even win, so maybe [from] 10 favourites, you might win with three or four of them, but your second string might come through and beat you. I’m always amazed at the confidence people have in us going to somewhere like the Dublin Racing Festival or that other festival! And you know, they think it’s automatic. We think, we’re hoping, we’re not expecting.

There appears no fear of some of the stars avoiding each other. Mullins continued: “This is a festival that you are very happy to run two good horses against each other. I think the races are there for those horses.

“Those horses can’t run in other races. I think when people invest money in good horses, you’ve got to run them in the good races.”

Galopin Des Champs

Delighted how he’s come out of his race. I think we’re all set for Leopardstown and maybe another showdown with Fact To File and Embassy Gardens is in the mix as well.

To me, Galopin was awesome, and he put in two huge performances in Leopardstown and both other Gold Cups. He just loves Leopardstown, and hopefully he can do it one more time.

Embassy Gardens

Embassy Gardens just disappointed us a little last year in the National Hunt Chase. So this year, when we went down to Tramore, there was nothing making the pace, I said to Mikey, if you bounce out, he loves galloping, he loves jumping, see what happens. And it worked out fantastic. Mike was really delighted with him, Sean and Bernardine were as well. Fastorslow went, so now they might have another horse to take over as their number one horse.

We’re just a little bit worried about his second half of the season form last year, so we’re going to do a bit of soul searching. I think maybe I should have him fresher coming from home, rather than training him as hard as we did.

Fact To File

I think both J.P. and Mark are probably keen to take on Galopin Des Champs again, so I’m sure, all being well, he’ll line up.

I’ll leave it to Mark and see what he wants to do. He might have a different tactic up his sleeve, but I won’t discuss that until the parade ring before the race. He was a bit gassy alright [in the Savills Chase], but I think as horses go through the season, they’re inclined to be less keen, and he’d probably race a lot better for that.

El Fabiolo

Hopefully, I’ll have him ready. He did a nice bit of work yesterday. He just hasn’t been himself to my satisfaction this year. He’s a little bit more difficult to train. I hope to get a run into him there, and maybe he’ll be the last quarter of the season. So, I’m hoping to get a Grade 1 performance out of him yet. We’ve got a few festivals to go!

Gaelic Warrior

Jonbon will be a very hard nut to crack watching him the other day, but I feel we have a chance. Maybe Cheltenham isn’t his favourite track, so we’re hoping it might just edge our way. I know Cheltenham was left-handed, and Gaelic Warrior might be a little better right-handed, but I don’t let that worry me too much.

If a horse jumps a bit right, you’re trying to straighten up as much as you can and hope that your raw ability will get you through. Gaelic Warrior has run two cracking races at Cheltenham. To me, if you look a good horse, just run in whatever the better races are.

It’s really only in the last quarter of the race, maybe the last two fences, or last three fences, that is really going to count. If they don’t go on, we might just be as happy to let him along in front, especially now that he’s got that race under his belt.

State Man

He didn’t turn up the last day. We were very disappointed, pretty much disappointing on all camps, and I don’t know why, but hopefully we can get him back to himself and we’ll only know on the day, but we’re happy [with] what he’s doing at home.

The winner put in some performance. I’d be delighted to have her in the yard, but it was a huge performance. I was in the stand, I was in awe of the performance she put in.

But never knock a horse for one bad run. We don’t anyhow, you always forgive a horse one bad run and he’s our number one contender.

When she went to Kempton, she just couldn’t handle the pace, because we’ve been settling her all the time in those two and a half mile races. She set off at a three-mile pace, and you could see that when the tapes went up, I said we’re not competitive here. To me, the race was gone before she hit the first hurdle. And I thought she ran well, considering where she jumped off, what was in her head and what we’ve been teaching over the last couple of years. It’ll be different next time.

Majborough

In great order. He looks the part, he handled Leopardstown well, so very pleased to go back. I mean, my heart was in my mouth when you have a horse like that, of that calibre.

When you’re watching your own horse do that, you say, oh, Jesus, will he fall to the next? So my heart is in my mouth every time he puts in one of those spectacular jumps.

Ile Atlantique

I think we’ll have to let him go in the Arkle and then we can decide whether you go back to Fairyhouse or to Aintree for the two and a half mile Grade 1.

Softer ground is probably better. He’s another one that maybe I just need to keep a little bit fresher at home. Sometimes you just keep training them and it’s only after the season is over, you think, oh, did we do too much after his first run?

Ballyburn, Impaire Et Passe, Champ Kiely

Not sure where Impaire Et Passe will go, Ballyburn will probably run.

We just found out there [at Kempton] that he couldn’t jump, but Sir Gino could be a superstar. If there wasn’t Sir Gino in the race, he might have been adequate, but at least we found out that we’re not going down the two-mile route with him, which was disappointing to bring him over there and get beaten. But my only other option was to go to Limerick, and we had the race set out for Impaire Et Passe.

I was surprised that he was favourite for the Supreme last year and we ran him in the other race. I think, with looking at his pedigree, look at this stamp of horse he is, he’s got stayer written all over. He’ll have to settle, and he’ll have to do a lot of things, but that’s all part of growing up.

Champ Kiely is good since [Fairyhouse]. He’d probably take his chance as well.

Jasmin De Vaux

I think if you’re back to his point-to-point, we were worried about it [his jumping]. And, when we spoke to people who point-to-point, he got over the bars of those point-to-point fences, but that was it. We’re schooling him, and we’re trying to give him confidence. And I wonder that it’s a confidence thing, because you’re worried when a horse does that, has he got a physical problem? But we can’t find any physical problem. I can put cheekpieces on, or put blinkers on him. We haven’t done that yet. We just gave him time to learn. I think confidence is the key with him.

Supersundae

I’d say he needs it (the two mile, six furlongs of the Nathaniel Lacy & Partners Solicitors Novice Hurdle). I think a lot of our horses, a lot of the races we contested, have been very slow paces and they pulled, so on their second run, they probably drop it a bit too. The excitement will be gone out of the system. Final Demand, Sounds Victorious, Jasmin De Vaux, they are all in that race.

Kaid D’Authie

Will go for the two miles (Tattersalls Ireland Novice Hurdle). From the first day in the stable, some horses hit you, like first day I saw Fact To File, Majborough... and Kaid D’Authie, just fine beasts that you’d want to buy and want to ride.

Kopek Des Bordes

I was disappointed with him jumping. I couldn’t understand that, because he jumps well at home, I’m wondering, in my mind if there was another reason for that.

I just think I have another reason, which I want to change the next day. And that’s not the jockey!

Sainte Lucie

I was really taken with her performance. I didn’t expect that. I thought she was half decent, but I thought it was a huge performance, knowing that she’s only half ready, so she’s going to improve a lot.

Lady Vega Allen

She put in some run the other day. We were only hoping to get a run into her to see what she you would like. I think with normal improvement, she’ll put in a really good run.

Suny Bill

Had plenty of experience in France so I don’t know how much improvement is in him, because he had all that experience, he wouldn’t have as much improvement as the other horse.

Meetingofthewaters

Lovely having that hurdle mark, but he mightn’t get in, because he’s 45 and I think it’s max 25. So we have to find a race where you can get in. And then maybe, maybe that’s as good as the usual. Some horses are just better over a fence.

One horse who won’t appear until that other Festival, but there was positive news, was Salvator Mundi, whose hurdle debut received mixed comments last week. Mullins said: “I was very happy, very happy with him. I thought jumping the third last, he had no chance. He took a breather and, to do what he did, come back and beat them all, after pulling as hard as they did and running his race, and I’d be quite forgiving of him, knowing how long it took us to get him ready.

“He’d be much better the next day. To me, that was very good, because he tends to jump a little bit better at home as well, than what we saw the last day.

“There’ll be a lot stronger pace at Cheltenham, he’ll let fly then.”

Unfortunately, there was less good news about one of last season’s DRF winners, Il Est Temps.

“I’m not sure Il Est Temps is going to make the season at all this year. We had him back in training, and then went wrong again. If he comes back, it’ll be for Punchestown, and that’ll be the best way.”

Another Grade 1 winner from last season may be on the way back. “Hopefully, we’ll have Jade De Grugy ready for the rest of the season,” the trainer said.