Fountain kicks off Punchestown festival in style

It was the plan all year to come here and it has worked out. I didn't think he'd do it that easy but he is a proper horse and we've had great fun along the way with him,. He is a family-owned horse, we own him ourselves and unfortunately his regular rider Eoin Mahon was injured today. It was also Eoin that advised me to buy him and the horse hasn't looked back since then. I'm mainly into breaking and pre-training but keep a couple of these for the enjoyment. . We'll get him home now and hopefully we might run him again on Friday or Saturday. . Next year, for sure and following that performance today, we'll look at the La Touche back here. I think he is really coming into his own now and that is as good a performance as he has done.

Punchestown hat-trick for Powerful

He is a lovely horse and we had this race in mind since he won the qualifier here last November. He had a lot of weight on his back but is a very big horse and still did it,. He a gentle giant and being a five-year-old, he could go chasing next year but I don't know yet. . He slightly struggled on heavy ground but loves that good ground and jumped really well. We have one (Punchestown winner) on the board which is great, as I don't have that many national hunt horses now.

Cleary-Farrell collects again with Kalix

Each comes into his Own in Champion Novice

Western claims top level honours for Elliott

That is great and while I was nervous of the three miles, the last two times we tried him over it, we rode him too handy,. We rode him cold today and it was a good performance. Some horses come to the end of their season around now but he has been busier than most and is one of the top five earners this season. We initially thought about going for the American Grand National, a race Zanahiyr won last year for us, and while we have tried Western Fold in open company in Ireland and it didn't work out, the American race is a Grade 1 so is nothing to be sneezed at. I'm not saying we won't go to America but there is also the PWC Champion Chase at Gowran in October for him too and maybe we could pot hunt too. The key to this horse is the ground and he is a stone better on it. He will have a little break now and while I'd love to go back for the Galway Plate, he might be too high in the weights after today.

Abbeyglen makes impressive debut in Defender bumper

It was just lovely to get him here today and everything worked out,. We were minding him as he is a big leggy horse and he fulfilled what we were hoping. He shows a bit at home and we were happy to let him take his chance. . He will get a break now as we want to let him mature a bit so he can withstand the rigours of jumping. He is a very exciting horse with a lovely pedigree.

Temps on top again in Champion Chase at Punchestown

He is a hell of a horse and when you look at him, he doesn' exactly scream a big chaser to you. He isn't a big horse but is strong. He has huge reserves as, having made that mistake, I thought 'wow' as he came up beside Marine Nationale afterwards at the third-last. Marine Nationale is a fair horse to beat as he has a fair engine. To do what he did having fallen at Sandown and come back to win at Cheltenham was special, when Paul was in top-flight jockey mode.

Delamotte completes Mullins hat-trick in finale