Spindleberry maintained her unbeaten record over fences to provide Willie Mullins with a record sixth victory in the WillowWarm Gold Cup at Fairyhouse.
The champion trainer saddled three runners in the Grade One feature, although that number was soon reduced by one after the early pacesetter Ile Atlantique unseated his son Patrick at the third fence.
His exit left his stablemate and 7-4 favourite Champ Kiely in front and he quickly built up a buffer over the chasing pack under Paul Townend, with Danny Mullins and Spindleberry his closest pursuer.
Champ Kiely remained in front rounding the home turn, but Spindleberry took over coming to the final fence and found plenty on the run-in to score by four and a half lengths, with Gordon Elliott's Firefox staying on to beat Champ Kiely to the runner-up spot and deny Mullins a one-two.
💬 "I suppose she was the one coming in here with potential"
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Danny Mullins on winning with Spindleberry's in the WillowWarm Gold Cup at Fairyhouse
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Aurora Vega bounced back from Cheltenham Festival disappointment to lift the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Honeysuckle Mares Novice Hurdle.
A daughter of Walk In The Park out of the six-time Cheltenham heroine Quevega, the Willie Mullins-trained seven-year-old upheld family honour by winning six of her first nine starts under rules, including a Grade Three success at Fairyhouse in late January.
She failed to fire in the Ryanair Mares' Novices' Hurdle in the Cotswolds last month, but Paul Townend kept the faith on her return to home soil and was duly rewarded with a Grade One victory.
Mullins said: "Like her mother she's maturing with age. The family just seems to get better with age, and it looks like she'll stay further.
"Quevega had a big heart and she's breeding mares with a big heart as well."
Meanwhile, Cheltenham Festival hero Haiti Couleurs will go in search of another big-race victory in the BoyleSports Irish Grand National on Easter Monday.
The eight-year-old was an emphatic winner of the National Hunt Chase at Prestbury Park last month, providing his trainer Rebecca Curtis with a fifth Festival success.
The Welsh handler has sent a team of six horses to run across the three days of Fairyhouse's Easter Festival and is hopeful her stable star can become the first British-trained winner of the €500,000 since Jonjo O'Neill's Shutthefrontdoor struck gold 11 years ago.
"He seems in really good form, healthy and well," said Curtis.
"We're very excited to be bringing him over to Ireland. I couldn't be happier with the horse. It was great to win at Cheltenham and he came out of that really well.
Hillsdale held his stride to win the BoyleSports, Proud Sponsors Since 2014 Novice Handicap Chase
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"He had a nice easy couple of weeks after and he's been back in full swing for the last month. So, it's all systems go."
Jonjo O'Neill has two Irish Grand National wins on his training CV, having also claimed top honours with Butler's Cabin in 2007. Now in partnership with his son AJ, the trainer goes in search of the hat-trick with Johnnywho, was was narrowly denied a Cheltenham Festival win in the Kim Muir.
AJ O'Neill said: "He ran a lovely race at Cheltenham really and I suppose it seems the natural progression to go to Fairyhouse. He's in good form, we're looking forward to seeing him back on track and hopefully he can go one better.
"It's very competitive, but hopefully we're good enough on the day. It's a great race and it's great to have a runner who has shown good form on the way up."
Willie Mullins, Gavin Cromwell and Gordon Elliott will all be saddling multiple runners, while Paul Nolan fields the horse who beat Johnnywho by a neck in the Kim Muir, Daily Present.
He said: "He's in very good form, everything has has gone well with him and we're hoping he'll run a respectable race.
"He really stayed at Cheltenham, he's definitely a stayer and he got a very good ride.
Grann's Boy made a timely late surge to just about pip Sticwiththeprocess to victory in the Cawley Furniture Novice Handicap Hurdle at Fairyhouse
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"We're just hoping he can operate again, he's gone up a good chunk in the weights but it'd be great if he could still be competitive."
Willie Mullins has saddled two previous Irish Grand National winners in Burrows Saint (2019) and I Am Maximus and is this year represented by two novices in Quai De Bourbon and Sa Majeste.
Patrick Mullins, assistant to his father, said: "Quai De Bourbon has been unlucky in Cheltenham (unseated) and Aintree (brought down), but perhaps that will be the silver lining on two clouds as he comes into Fairyhouse without having had hard races.
"Obviously, his jumping will have to stand up, but I thought he jumped well in Aintree in the main.
"Sa Majeste gets in with a nice racing weight (10st 12lb). He ran very well in Cheltenham (third in Kim Muir) and nicer ground might bring more improvement in him."
Watch the Fairyhouse Easter Festival on Sunday from 1pm – 2.35pm on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player. Coverage continues on RTÉ Player from 2.35pm for the remainder of the card. Watch day two on Monday from 2.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player.
