Patrick Mullins is relishing the prospect of reuniting with Gaelic Warrior as he clashes with Galopin Des Champs in the Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup Chase at Leopardstown on Saturday.
Leopardstown will inspect at 8am on Saturday ahead of the first day of the Dublin Racing Festival, while a contingency plan to run the card on Bank Holiday Monday has been announced in the event that racing cannot go ahead.
Mullins has ridden the Rich and Susannah Ricci-owned eight-year-old four times to date, most recently partnering him to victory in the Bowl at Aintree during last year's Grand National meeting.
This season he got his campaign under way with a mammoth effort to win the John Durkan ahead of another stablemate, Fact To File, after which he went down by just a short head when third in a thrilling finish to the King George at Kempton.
With Closutton stable jockey Paul Townend taking the ride on Galopin Des Champs and Mark Walsh once again aboard Fact To File, Mullins is looking forward to what promises to be an immensely competitive race.
"I’m delighted to get the ride and be getting back on him," said Mullins, who is assistant trainer to his father, Willie.
"To ride a horse like him him in a race like the Irish Gold Cup is very special.
"I remember growing up watching Florida Pearl win it, watching Richard Dunwoody, Paul Carberry and Richard Johnson – I can’t wait."
Galopin Des Champs is bidding for a fourth successive victory having lost his Savills Chase title when third shortly after Christmas, whereas Fact To File is on the comeback trail to an extent having been beaten into sixth place in the King George.
"He’s the horse they have to beat and I think he’ll have come on a lot from Christmas," said Mullins of the former.
"He’s trying to match Florida Pearl in winning a fourth Irish Gold Cup, he’s 10 years old now but we still think he’s as good as ever and he’s still the one they all have to beat."
The reigning Gold Cup hero is in the mix in the shape of Gavin Cromwell’s Inothewayurthinkin, although he has yet to rediscover that form and has been well beaten in both the John Durkan and the Savills Chase this season.
"I’m happy with him and hopefully we can see a different horse at the weekend," said Cromwell.
"He was very quiet for a while after Christmas, but he’s starting to show plenty more life and hopefully he’ll bring that to the track.
"Everything about the run at Leopardstown was disappointing – he never showed up at all which is obviously very disappointing for everybody.
"He’s the reigning Gold Cup horse and you’d love to be going to those races and being competitive."
Inothewayurthinkin (Keith Donoghue) is one of three contenders owned by JP McManus, with Fact To File and Savills Chase runner-up I Am Maximus (Jack Kennedy) the others.
Frank Berry, racing manager to McManus, said of the trio: "All three have got a chance. Obviously Mark has gone with Fact To File, but it was a hard decision, I’m sure.
"Fact To File has won a Ryanair, but he’s going over three miles again here. He’s never run a bad race really.
"Obviously it means he’s got off the Gold Cup winner in Inothewayurthinkin, but they are two very good horses and it must have been a very hard choice to make. Hopefully they all run well.
"Gavin’s horses have bounced right back to form now and he seems much happier than he was with him earlier in the season.
"You couldn’t rule out I Am Maximus, I think he’s got a big chance in these conditions. He ran really well at Christmas and the one thing we know about him as a National winner is that he will keep going.
"We’ve got our fingers crossed and just hoping for the best."
Noel Meade’s Affordale Fury has been in superb form this season and swept aside a raft of big names to win the Savills Chase.
Henry de Bromhead is represented by Monty’s Star and Gordon Elliott has two runners in Firefox and Stellar Story, with the rest of the field made up of a list of Mullins-trained runners including Champ Kiely, Grangeclare West, Lecky Watson and the prolific mare Spindleberry.
