Sunday's John Durkan Memorial Punchestown Chase was lauded by many as one of the best fields to have been assembled in recent years, and it lived up to expectations with a thrilling finish.

All eyes were on dual Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Galopin Des Champs, but in the end it was his Closutton stablemate Fact To File (7/2) who claimed top honours, after rallying to deny Jimmy Mangan’s Spillane’s Tower by half a length.

Fact To File was one of four runners for Willie Mullins and three runners for JP McManus in a field of eight, following Blue Lord’s absence due to a temperature. Absent since March, Mark Walsh’s mount raced in touch with the leaders for much of the way and was travelling strongly with three to jump.

Pushed along on the turn for home and ridden from the second last, he dug deep when Spillane’s Tower lay down a challenge on the run-in, battling back to lead by half a length on the line. The pair rallied two and a quarter lengths clear of Galop Des Champs in third, with another two and three quarter lengths back to last year’s winner Fastorslow in fourth.

Mullins impressed

“It’s probably the best John Durkan I’ve ever seen,” said Mullins, who has won eight of the last ten runnings, three of them with Min. His latest winner is now 11/4 favourite for the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

“I thought we were beaten when Spillane Tower came alongside us halfway up the run-in. It just showed that he’s made that leap from novice to senior company, that he was able to pull out more when it looked like he was beaten. I love that in a horse, that he found a bit extra to get home.”

Mullins was quick to compliment Galopin Des Champs, too, saying: “What I loved about Galopin Des Champs was that the horse who tried to keep up with him pulled up before the last, so it shows they went a true gallop, and Galopin still ran on to be third. So, that was a fantastic run I thought.

“You can take a lot of pluses from a lot of horses. I think these horses are all going to win big races later in the season. It’s just fantastic that Punchestown have pulled it back to this time of the season. All of those horses should recover enough to run again at Christmas or the new year.

Mullins went on to describe the winner as “over 17 hands. He’s a big, athletic horse with a lovely temperament.” The French-bred son of Poliglote was always expected to excel chasing, having impressive in a five-year-old maiden at Belharbour before being purchased privately by current connections.

He made a perfect start under rules in a bumper at the Leopardstown Christmas Festival, before finishing second in a Grade 2 at the track and in the Grade 1 Champion Bumper at Cheltenham.

Runner-up on chase debut a year ago, Fact To File has won all of his four starts since, the last three at Grade 1 level.