Cheltenham Day 1

With a strong book of rides for the Cheltenham Festival, Mullins offers his thoughts on his own Day 1 chances, as well as which horses he would include in a Placepot for the rest of the day’s action.

For every day of the Cheltenham Festival 2022, we are pitting Mullins’ Placepot picks against those from oddschecker horse racing expert Steve Ryder to see who comes out on top!

RACE NUMBER DANNY MULLINS STEVE RYDER
1 Jonbon Dysart Dynamo
2 Edwardstone Haut En Couleurs
3 Noble Yeats & Ben Dundee Frodon
4 Honeysuckle Honeysuckle
5 Stormy Ireland Stormy Ireland
6 Gaelic Warrior & Ebasari Doctor Brown Bear

 

And don’t forget, there is a FREE Placepot for all tote.co.uk customers on each and every day of the Festival. For all the information you need, click on the offer below.

Sunday’s Placepot at Sandown showed just what can be won from the bet with a £39k dividend. Even better, a £42,901 payout to a £1 stake for customers betting at Tote.co.uk thanks to Tote+.

Race 1 (13:30) - Supreme Novices’ Hurdle

Danny Mullins - Jonbon 

He’s been very good so far this season; he’s a good, slick jumper and I think he’s the one that will take the beating in the Supreme.

Steve Ryder - Dysart Dynamo 

The Willie Mullins trained Dysart Dynamo is unbeaten in his four career starts under rules and looks to hold strong claims in this opener if coping well with the preliminaries.

He has won by 19 lengths on both of his starts over hurdles so far and it seems significant that he was the chosen runner for Willie Mullins in the Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle in a race that Vautour, Douvan, Min and Getabird all won before running in this race. Both Vautour and Douvan were successful and I expect Dysart Dynamo to emulate his stablemates and get the Irish off to the perfect start.

Race 2 (14:10) - Arkle Novices’ Chase

Danny Mullins – Edwardstone

Edwardstone is the one I'd go for in the Arkle. He’s been very good in what he’s done so far - he’s won on stiff tracks, and he’s won around fast tracks. His latest win at Warwick was very good.

Steve Ryder - Haut En Couleurs 

Edwardstone looks a vulnerable favourite at the top of the market and I am willing to take a chance on Haut En Couleurs in this competitive renewal of the Arkle. The five-year-old has to overcome a few trends to be successful but I feel he can upset his better fancied stablemate Blue Lord in this. 

His chasing debut at Leopardstown was a fantastic performance and I was impressed with how well he ran as a juvenile at the Cheltenham Festival last year on his stable debut when third in the Triumph Hurdle. He was sent off only 100/30 for the Irish Arkle last time when he fell but I am hoping he can emulate stablemate Un De Sceaux who won this race despite falling earlier in his novice season. 

Race 3 (14:50) - Ultima Handicap Chase

Danny Mullins - Noble Yeats & Ben Dundee 

It looks like Emmet Mullins has laid this horse out for this race with a possible tilt at the Grand National afterwards. 

I ride Ben Dundee here. He was a good second in a competitive handicap chase at Leopardstown over Christmas, and he has a good chance at filling the places again in this one.

Steve Ryder - Frodon

This is a race that the UK trainers have a good record in and I believe the handicapper has been extremely generous with the rating of 164 awarded to Frodon.

The former Ryanair Chase and King George VI Chase winner made a successful reappearance at Down Royal in the Grade 1 Ladbrokes Champion Chase where he beat leading Gold Cup contenders Galvin and Minella Indo with Delta Work back in fourth.

He ran below par in both the King George VI Chase and the Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown but he is now down to the same mark as he won a C&D handicap in October 2020 and he should make a bold bid from the front in a race which often suits horses who race prominently. 

Race 4 (15:30) - Champion Hurdle

Danny Mullins - Honeysuckle 

Is there anymore that needs to be said? 

She looks unstoppable at the moment. A few will try and dethrone her but she’s the one you have to have on your team in the Champion Hurdle.

Steve Ryder - Honeysuckle

The superstar mare Honeysuckle is unbeaten in her 15 career starts so it would be a shock to see her not retain her Champion Hurdle crown. She has no question marks to answer with regards to track, trip and ground and is tactically versatile too.

Appreciate It looks the biggest danger to her but he could be vulnerable late on if trying to beat the mare and it looks the safest option to just include Honeysuckle instead. 

Race 5 (16:10) - Mares’ Hurdle

Danny Mullins - Stormy Ireland

Stormy Ireland is the one I'll go for in the Mares’ Hurdle. 

There are plenty of others that could be put in the Placepot too, including Heaven Help Us who I will ride. I think she’ll run a big race but Stormy Ireland has track form and after the way she won in the Relkeel she can't be out of the first three. 

Steve Ryder - Stormy Ireland

Paul Townend will have had a difficult choice to make on whether to ride Stormy Ireland, Burning Victory or Echoes In Rain but I feel he has made the correct choice. The eight-year-old has been beaten in this race twice previously but this does not look as strong a renewal as previously. 

She has won a Grade 1 and two Grade 2s since re-joining Willie Mullins from Paul Nicholls with her only disappointing effort coming in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle against Honeysuckle. She comes into the race having won the Relkeel Hurdle here in January against the boys and she should prove hard to beat if she runs up to her rating of 150. 

Race 6 (16:50) - Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle

Danny Mullins - Gaelic Warrior and Ebasari 

Gaelic Warrior looks very good in his work at home for Willie Mullins. Ebasari, meanwhile, won a nice Maiden Hurdle at Cork on his first start over Hurdles, and he looks like one that has been mapped out for this race since then.

Steve Ryder - Doctor Brown Bear

Gaelic Warrior arrives at this race with a huge reputation and could prove extremely well handicapped off a mark of 129 but I am going to take a chance on Doctor Brown Bear on his stable debut for Martin Brassil. 

He had five low key hurdle runs for Brendan Duke (0-35 this year over jumps) but his latest run was full of promise when he finished only four lengths behind the Triumph Hurdle bound Icare Allen in December. 

That rival is rated 139 which makes Doctor Brown Bear look well handicapped off a mark of 125 (2lbs higher than his Irish mark) without even factoring the improvement expected from the trainer switch and the fitting of a first-time tongue tie.