Irish dozen declared for bumper

Irish-trained horses make-up half of the 24 runners declared for the Weatherbys Champion Bumper at Cheltenham tomorrow, with Noel Glynn's Old McDonald one of those taken out.

Willie Mullins bids to land this race for a seventh time, and the champion trainer has three runners Bishopsfurze (Paul Townend), Day Of A Lifetime (Patrick Mullins) and Up Ou That (David Casey). Ruby Walsh has elected to ride the Paul Nicholls-trained Al Ferof.

Dermot Weld is doubly represented with Elegant Concorde (Robbie McNamara) and Hidden Universe (Pat Smullen), while other significant Irish runners are Tavern Times (Davy Russell), Drumbaloo (Robert Thornton) and Shot From The Hip (J P Magnier).