Willie Mullins will take some of his promising young stable stars out from under wraps at the weekend as the champion trainer's team enters the higher gears.
Cheltenham ante-post fancies Min, Invitation Only and Bellshill feature for Mullins on a quality weekend of jumps racing in Ireland.
The Graham Wylie-owned Bellshill begins his chasing career in the Irish Stallion Farms European Breeders Fund Beginners Steeplechase at Gowran Park tomorrow.
Last seen winning the Grade One Irish Daily Mail Novice Hurdle at Punchestown in April, Mullins will be hoping he can make a winning return when going over 2m 4f at his local track.
However, he will not be the only Grade One winner from the season-ending Punchestown Festival to make his debut in the race, as Jessica Harrington sends out Don't Touch It, winner of the Herald Champion Novice Hurdle.
Mullins also takes the wraps off Racing Post Arkle fancy Min, who is declared to run at Navan on Sunday.
One of the brightest prospects at Closutton last season, Min won on his first two starts for Mullins before finishing a well-beaten second to Altior in the opening Supreme Novices Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, a race in which he picked up an injury.
The Rich Ricci-owned five-year-old is second favourite for the Arkle - a race Mullins has turned into his own personal fiefdom in recent years - and many will be expecting the French import to make a big impression in Co Meath.
In what may be a very promising sign, Min's race has been won by Douvan and Vautour in the past two seasons before they went on to win novice chases at the Festival.
Meanwhile, Mullins will also give two promising bumper horses their first starts over obstacles at the weekend.
Battleford won his first start at Punchestown in January before being just touched off by Ballyandy in the Champion Bumper at the Festival and by Bacardys next time out at Aintree.
While neither of those horses have won since, the form is franked somewhat by Ballyandy's recent runs at Cheltenham and Perth, where he twice finished behind 2015 Champion Bumper winner Moon Racer - the current favourite for the Supreme Novices Hurdle.
Battleford is currently a 20/1 choice for that race, a price that may not be available for long if he shows an aptitude for hurdling at Navan on Sunday.
The other potential star in the Mullins firmament is Invitation Only, another Wylie horse who is unbeaten on his two racecourse appearance so far and a warm fancy for the Neptune Investments Hurdle at Cheltenham.
The son of Flemensfirth won at Navan last March before following that up with a win in the Kildare Post Flat Race at Punchestown in March.
The five-year-old will take on ten rivals in the Race That Stops A County Maiden Hurdle at Gowran on Saturday.
