Nathaniel Lacy & Partners Solicitors Novice Hurdle (Grade 1)

WILLIE Mullins has won the Nathaniel Lacy & Partners Solicitors Novice Hurdle seven times in the last 14 years, but hardly any of his winners here were as impressive as 2025 scorer Final Demand. It was truly a case of one-way traffic in this 12-length romp for the new Turners Novices’ Hurdle favourite (now as short as 7/4 from 7/1).

The Dublin Racing Festival got off to a flying start for favourite backers, with the well-backed 11/8 winner picking up in the style of a top prospect when asked to go by the front-running Wingmen in the straight.

Albeit he didn’t have lots of room down the inner for much of the contest, Paul Townend had an armchair ride on the recent Limerick maiden hurdle winner, who is owned by Bryan Drew and Prof Caroline Tisdall.

Many of Mullins’ winners of this two-mile-six-furlong event have gone on to tackle the Albert Bartlett at Cheltenham, like Minella Cocooner and Dancing City in recent years.

However, when asked whether this €230,000 store purchase might have more pace than plenty of his past winners of this race who ended up being three milers, Mullins said: “I wouldn’t mind going back in trip and I’m wondering should this race actually be a two-and-a-half mile race rather than a two-mile-six-furlong race?

“I’m not sure we need this to be a two-mile-six-furlong race - I know we’re very lucky in it, though, and I shouldn’t be asking for it to be changed! It is what it is.”

'Huge performance'

On the overall display, the most successful trainer in Dublin Racing Festival history added: “It was a huge performance, absolutely huge. Paul was in a lovely position the whole way and the horse did everything fairly right. Turning for home, when he started to niggle, I wondered what was going to be in the tank - little did I think that he was going to have that much in the tank. He was probably going better at the winning post than he was at any part of the race.

“There were a good few disappointments there, including plenty of mine. For him to be able to do that on his second run over hurdles was a huge achievement. He was a good horse coming into this and what he did from the last home sets him way apart from a lot of other horses.

“He is a specimen, he was probably one of the most expensive stores of his generation and so often they don’t work out, but this fella looks like he’s worked out. To win a Grade 1 here on what I view as our champions weekend for Irish jumps racing is fantastic.

Wingmen, who was well backed from 25/1 to 8/1, rewarded that solid each-way support to finish second for Danny Gilligan and Gordon Elliott, while the Declan Queally-trained Mozzies Sister earned valuable blacktype under Shane Fitzgerald in third. She just edged out an improved hurdling effort from Jasmin De Vaux for that spot.