'Galopin set to match Florida Pearl’s achievement' - Irish Gold Cup tips It’s the opening day of the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown on Saturday, a superb seven-race card, made up of four Grade 1s, a Grade 2 and a pair of Listed events. The pinnacle of all Cheltenham Festival Trials, Willie Mullins has a typically strong hand across the two days, though the decision to bypass the meeting with Kopek Des Bordes means a clean sweep of all eight Grade 1s is now unlikely. The feature race on Saturday’s card is the Irish Gold Cup and we’ve provided our selection and next best for the 3m contest, which is due off at 3.30pm. Galopin set to match Florida Pearl’s achievement Willie Mullins has won this race a remarkable 14 times, including the last three runnings with GALOPIN DES CHAMPS, who looks destined to go off a strong favourite for Saturday’s renewal following an encouraging run when third behind the reopposing Affordable Fury in the Savill’s Chase over course and distance last month. The dual Cheltenham Gold Cup winner is bidding to emulate Mullins’ Florida Pearl, who won the Irish Gold Cup on four occasions between 1999 and 2004, the last of those victories coming as a 12-year-old. Galopin Des Champs is now 10, and there’s a suspicion he’s not quite the force he was when at his peak in 2023 and 2024, when the gelding ran to Racing Post Ratings in the low 180s on four separate occasions. Indeed, he only ran to an RPR of 166 on his seasonal return over Christmas, but it looked as if the race was needed from a fitness perspective, as he faded quickly inside the final half-furlong after looking the likeliest winner jumping the last. That’s been something of a recurring theme for Mullins-trained runners on their debuts this term and, although he’s got a little over three lengths to find with Noel Meade’s winner and three-quarters of length to make up on his stablemate, I Am Maximus, that’s far from insurmountable, especially if returning to the form that saw him win the Punchestown Gold Cup by 22 lengths from Spillane’s Tower in April. Whether he represents value at his current odds of 11/8 is up for debate, but he’s 7-9 at Leopardstown and won’t be inconvenienced should the forecast rain arrive. Grangeclare a good each-way alternative Mullins is responsible for eight of the 13 runners to have been declared and it’s hard to rule many of them out in terms of place prospects. That includes Spindleberry, who is unbeaten in five starts over fences and will be in receipt of a handy 7lb mares’ allowance. This trip is an unknown, though her dam did win at 3m over hurdles, so it may not be beyond her. One that I’m keen to take on is the Mark Walsh-ridden Fact To File, who having lost out narrowly to Gaelic Warrior in an epic running of the John Durkan Memorial over 2m4f at Punchestown in November, was then well below that level when only sixth in the King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day - coming home nine lengths adrift of his Punchestown conqueror. He’s simply not the same horse over 3m as he is 2m4f. Beaten two noses when third at Kempton, Gaelic Warrior is tremendously versatile and looks sure to run a solid race under Patrick Mullins, but Grangeclare West might just provide the best each-way value, the 10-year-old having shaped with a ton of promise when fourth in the Savills Chase. Third in last season’s Grand National and a creditable fifth in the Bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown subsequently, he stays all day and landed the biggest success of his career over this course-and-distance as a novice in December 2023. Brian Hayes retains the ride.
