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The Punchestown Festival kicks off on Tuesday

Four things to note at the Punchestown Festival


The Punchestown Festival begins on Tuesday and Timeform's Tony McFadden highlights four things to watch out for.


Even more of a Mullins monopoly than usual?

Willie Mullins broke his own record for winners at a single Punchestown Festival when he sent out a remarkable 19 in 2021, but it would be little surprise were that tally to be topped this year.

Mullins is enjoying his most productive Irish jumps campaign yet and broke his previous best tally - 212 - when saddling an astonishing across-the-card eight-timer on Easter Sunday.

That figure has increased to 219 and there will surely be plenty more to come at Punchestown, particularly as old adversary Gordon Elliott - who pushed him all the way to the Irish trainers' title in 2017 and 2018 - aimed some of his best horses at Aintree's Grand National meeting, a decision which was vindicated by Grade 1 victories for Gerri Colombe, Irish Point and Sire du Berlais.

While some of his Aintree runners could be turned out quickly - including the thriving Sire du Berlais who also won the Stayers' Hurdle at Cheltenham - the result may be less competition than usual at Punchestown from Elliott, who has mustered only one runner across the three Grade 1s on Tuesday's card.

Those three races have attracted a cumulative total of 17 runners, 11 of which hail from Mullins' Closutton powerhouse.


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A handicap with a rich roll of honour

The handicaps provide more of a level playing field than the graded events, but there is one event Mullins has still dominated in recent years: the novice handicap chase on the Friday.

Mullins has won the last four editions and there's a notable roll of honour, with Kemboy, Real Steel and Asterion Forlonge winning on their way to showing at least high-class form, while last year's winner El Barra wasn't beaten far in third in the Galway Plate on his next outing.

Mullins has a host of entries to choose from this time around but one who would be of interest if taking his chance is Ha d'Or.

He hasn't kicked on as expected after winning his novice chase in impressive fashion at Fairyhouse in December, though he has faced some stiff tasks since, including in the Sporting Life Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival last month.

Prior to that he had finished runner-up in the Grade 3 Flyingbolt Novice Chase (replay below), earning a note from Timeform's reporter that he "appeals as a suitable type for the valuable novice handicaps at the Fairyhouse and Punchestown Festivals".

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Champions to be crowned

There are some divisions in which the champion for the season has effectively already been established.

The likes of Constitution Hill (177p), Galopin des Champs (181), Energumene (180) and El Fabiolo (175p) have earned a Timeform rating that it is incredibly difficult to see being topped by a rival at Punchestown. Similarly, Impaire et Passe (162p) and Lossiemouth (146) set a standard in their divisions which is unlikely to be surpassed.

However, there is more to play for among the staying hurdlers and the bumper performers.

Sire du Berlais (163) sets the standard among the staying hurdlers after a fine spring which, at the age of 11, has yielded victories in two of the most significant races in the division: the Stayers' Hurdle and the Liverpool Hurdle.

It would be little surprise, though, were his Gordon Elliott-trained stablemate Teahupoo (158) to raise his game having finished third in the Stayers' Hurdle last month. He is five years younger than his stablemate and remains capable of better as a stayer after only two starts at around three miles.

Sire du Berlais' owner JP McManus also has the standard-setter in the bumper division courtesy of a A Dream To Share (122) who has won all four starts, most notably the Future Stars Bumper at the Dublin Racing Festival and the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham.

John Kiely's charge could be challenged, though, by a host of promising performers from the Mullins stable, including Champion Bumper fifth It's For Me (117) and once-raced winners Ballyburn (110p) and Tullyhill (108p), in what promises to be a fascinating event.

In-form Honeyball a trainer to note

Dorset-based Anthony Honeyball has fared well with the small team he has sent to Punchestown in recent years, sending out two winners and a second from just ten runners - all in competitive handicaps - at the last five Festivals.

And few trainers have their horses in better order at present than Honeyball whose ten runners in the last week have included four winners, while another three were placed.

Lilith provided one of Honeyball's Punchestown Festival winners in the mares' handicap chase last season and could bid to land that race again (Honeyball has also entered Credo and Good Luck Charm in the same event), while Kilbeg King is an interesting contender for the staying handicap hurdle having made a positive start to his career. It will be worth watching out for whether Honeyball makes any entries for the two handicap chases on Saturday's card.


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