Mullins still has much to aim for
Jockey outlines hat-trick of Festival goals
THE mud-spattered teenager who returned in glory to the winner’s enclosure on Cousin Vinny 16 years ago knows the clock is ticking down, not up, on the next phase of his Cheltenham Festival career.
‘I’m 34. It’s not old but I count on my fingers the number of times I’m going to be going over there. I’m aware I won’t be riding there for as long as I’d like,’ observed Patrick Mullins, son of the Festival’s top trainer and a key allrounder in the Closutton team.
As his father, Willie, targets the 100-winner mark this week — he is currently on 94 — Patrick has his own hurdles to clear in jump racing’s Olympic Games.
‘There are three things I want to achieve at Cheltenham,’ he said.
‘I would love to win the Kim Muir, as John Oaksey and Derek O’Connor are the only amateurs to win all the three all-amateur races at the Festival.
‘I went and bought Meeting of the waters for the Kim Muir and of course, Danny (Mullins) won the Paddy Power by too far so he’s not qualified any more! We’ll have to wait for another year to try and find another one.
‘Jamie (Codd) has 10 Cheltenham winners; I’ve eight, so I want to try and get by him, and I’d also like to get one over the professionals over the jumps.’
Mullins has gone agonisingly close to chinning the pros with Wicklow Brave in the (2019) Coral Cup and Melon in the (2020) Marsh Chase (now Turner’s) but missed out narrowly each time.
With 60 or so arrows to aim, Mullins can expect to be kept busy this week as Paul Townend, and his cousin Danny, can’t ride them all.
‘I used to go there and have one or two rides. I’d ride on the Wednesday and we’d go out that night and the Thursday night too.
‘Now, I’m going over and I’ve got ten rides, the last two years, so you’re kept busy right though until Friday.’
WITH as many as 12 potential favourites trained by ‘WPM’, there is a view this is the strongest armada to set sail.
‘It’s where we want to be, where we should be,’ said Mullins. It’s as strong as we expect it to be. You don’t want to sound over-confident but that’s where we’re at at the moment.
‘We go over there with a big team of horses, and a lot of them are favourites. That’s the position Willie has put us in. If we’re not in that position, something’s gone wrong in the past 18-24 months.
‘What I see with Willie is the quantity of quality that we’re buying. The owners we have is extraordinary.
‘What I see coming into the yard this year is two or three years down the road. Willie is always thinking next year.
‘We’re always buying the young horses, getting them going but having them for next year. He’s not rushing them.’
While riding arrangements have yet to be finalised, Mullins has a handle on his best prospects.
‘I’m looking forward to Embassy Gardens in the National Hunt Chase. Normally, you like a horse with a bit more experience but since they brought in the new rules, it’s a smaller field so that negates the lack of experience.
‘If you could paint a horse to look like a National Hunt horse, it’s him. He’s big, wide, two big ears on him.
‘If Billaway could win the Hunters’ Chase, it would be very special. I don’t often get to ride the same horse regularly, and he’s a challenge to ride as well. He’s a favourite of mine. If he could win again that would be something.’
Mullins is guaranteed a fancy in the Bumper, a race he has won three times, on Cousin Vinny (2008), Champagne Fever (2012) and Facile Vega (2022).
‘The Bumper is not a clear-cut picture. Jasmin De Vaux was very impressive at Naas, Maughreen has caught the eye. Argento Boy, is a brother to Briar Hill and very like him. He doesn’t show much at home, like Briar Hill who was 20/1 when he won the Bumper.’
Mullins was denied 12 months ago on Fact To File, who has landed running in his debut season over fences and is all the rage for the Brown Advisory Chase, a race his father has won a record five times.
‘Fact To File is so straightforward. He settles, he jumps and he’s efficient. To me that’s everything a Gold Cup horse is,’ he said.
‘I wasn’t sure he was fast enough for the Champion Bumper. The only horse that beat him was A Dream To Share, who is a Flatbred horse. I couldn’t believe Fact To File had the speed he did but
Willie was adamant he was our Bumper horse.’
Three years ago, Mullins predicted great things of Galopin Des Champs who has duly delivered and is favourite to follow Al Boum Photo as a dual Gold Cup winner for the yard.
Is there a potential superstar among this year’s corps? ‘You’re always hoping. I’m a big fan of Ballyburn. He’s not fast but he’s got a sixth gear from a cruising speed,’ he said.
With a raft of runners in many races, such as the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, the Baring Bingham Novice Hurdle and Champion Bumper, there is often a late scatter for jockey appointments.
‘When we all used to live in the one house, the declarations would come out at 10.30 in the morning. ‘Willie would be in the middle of a fry. “Right, Ruby rides number one and the next four horses….” He’d make the jockeys up. It’s that off the cuff,’ he smiled.
When it comes to aiming horses at certain targets, the conclave of the Closutton cabinet is akin to a War Council, with Mullins father and son, Ruby Walsh and David Casey all having their say.
‘A lot of the time you don’t get too involved unless you have a strong opinion. Willie generally gets it right. It’s an annoying habit!’ he laughed.