Willie Mullins secured his first champion trainer title in Ireland in 2000/1, but it has been since the 2007/8 campaign that he has taken his performance to previously unheard-of levels.
The 69-year-old has been crowned champion trainer every season since then and has continually raised the bar in terms of the record for number of winners in an Irish National Hunt campaign, with him setting a new record of 257 winners during the 2023/24 season.
Well established as the most successful Irish-based trainer in the history of the Cheltenham Festival with 113 winners at the meeting, Mullins has trained a sequence of household names such as Florida Pearl, Hedgehunter, Quevega, Hurricane Fly, Faugheen and Galopin Des Champs.
Such is the strength of Mullins’ team for the upcoming season, ATR’s Kevin Blake divided them into older and younger horses before speaking to him about their prospects. Here is what Willie had to say about his novice chasers, older hurdlers and older chasers.
Mullins has dominated the jumps scene in Ireland this century
Anzadam
5 b g | Authorized – Astaradame
A 157-rated hurdler, he is unbeaten in four starts over hurdles including an impressive winning Irish debut in a Grade Three hurdle at Fairyhouse in November and a similarly impressive victory in another Grade Three at Naas in January.
Mullins said: “He looks to have enough potential to be sent down the Champion Hurdle route. We had a few bits of bother with him last season, but so far this season he has been good. He has the ability, he has the engine, just sometimes his training schedule gets interrupted.
“If we get a clear run at him, we have the Fighting Fifth Hurdle in mind as his starting point. He’s owned by the same connections as State Man, so rather than them both running in the Morgiana, it will make sense to split them up.”
Ballyburn
7 b g | Flemensfirth – Old Moon
A 162-rated hurdler, he won two of his five starts in novice chases last season including the Ladbrokes Novice Chase at the Dublin Racing Festival.
“Ballyburn didn’t really seem to enjoy his time over fences last season and the plan is to send him back hurdling with the Stayers’ Hurdle as his long-term aim. We brought him back in early and did a lot of ground work with him to get him good and strong. He can of course go back over fences if we want to do that, but hurdling is what is on our minds for him for now.”
Ballyburn is to remain over hurdles at the start of 2025/26
Champ Kiely
9 b g Ocovango – Cregg So
A 158-rated chaser, he won three of his five starts in novice chases including the Dooley Insurance Group Champion Novice Chase at the Punchestown Festival.
“He’s improving and would look a candidate for the King George. We might start him off in the Clonmel Oil Chase or the John Durkan.”
Dinoblue
8 ch m | Doctor Dino – Blue Aster
A 160-rated chaser, she has won eight of her 16 starts over fences including the Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival last season.
Dinoblue won the Mares’ Chase last term
“She’s come back into the yard in great shape. We’ll send her down the same route as last season and will look to end up in the Mares’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. The more forward tactics paid off for her in the race last season.”
El Fabiolo
8 b g Spanish Moon – Sainte Mante
A 168-rated chaser, he has won six of his eight completed starts over fences including four Grade One races, but fell in three of his four starts last season.
“He had a difficult season between setbacks and falls. Going back over hurdles has crossed our minds, but I suspect we’ll stay chasing. I wasn’t happy with him when he came back in from grass, he didn’t do as well as the other horses, so I set his training schedule back by six weeks and that means he won’t run before Christmas.”
Embassy Gardens
9 b g | Shantou – Adriana Des Mottes
A 160-rated chaser, he has won three of his seven starts over fences including the O’Driscoll’s Irish Whiskey New Year’s Day Chase at Tramore last season.
“He finished lame at Aintree last season and he’s not back in with us yet.”
Fact To File
8 b g | Poliglote – Mitemps
A 173-rated chaser, he has won five of his nine starts over fences including the Ryanair Chase at the Cheltenham Festival in March.
“He’s obviously a Ryanair or Gold Cup type. JP McManus owns the Gold Cup winner Inothewayurthinkin, so he might want to keep them apart, we’ll have to cross those bridges when we get to them. We think the King George would be a lovely race for him and he is one of a few of ours that are in the mix for that.”
Options remain open for Fact To File
Final Demand
6 b g | Walk In The Park – Zuzka
A 158-rated hurdler, he won three of his four starts over hurdles last season including Grade One races at the Dublin Racing Festival and the Punchestown Festival.
“He’s a really exciting horse for novice chases and will be one for the staying division. He’s a huge horse, well over 17hh, and he has lots of scope to jump. We won’t worry too much about what trip we start him off over, but as the season progresses and he goes up in grade, he’ll go up in trip.”
Gaelic Warrior
7 b g | Maxios – Game Of Legs
A 165-rated chaser, he has won five of his nine starts over fences including the Bowl Chase at Aintree and the Oaksey Chase at Sandown last season.
“I’ve always thought that he had no trouble staying. He jumps to his right, but it doesn’t stop him winning left handed. He’ll start off in the John Durkan and then his target is the King George. We’ll see after that, but looking at his age and profile, I feel he could be a coming force in the Gold Cup.”
Galopin Des Champs
9 bl g | Timos – Manon Des Champs
A 176-rated chaser, he has won 12 of his 18 starts over fences including 11 Grade one contests, most notably two renewals of the Gold Cup at the Cheltenham Festival.
“We keep it nice and simple with Galopin Des Champs and the same five races as last season are the plan for him. We talked about maybe giving him one race less this season, but he was brilliant at the Punchestown Festival and we’ll put him on the same schedule again. All seems great with him since he’s come back in.”
Galopin Des Champs
Gameofinches
6 br g Blue Bresil – Wild Blueberry
A winning point-to-pointer, he won a bumper at Punchestown in February prior to finishing mid-division in the Champion Bumper at the Cheltenham Festival.
“He’s a huge horse and his summer break has done him the power of good. He’s turning seven and with the size of him, we don’t think he’d have much respect for hurdles, so I think we’re going to go straight over fences with him. He looks a staying type.”
Il Etait Temps
7 gr g | Jukebox Jury – Une Des Sources
A 169-rated chaser, he has won five of his seven starts over fences and made a stunning return from an absence of a year when winning the Celebration Stakes at Sandown in April.
“We are aiming him at the Tingle Creek Chase. We don’t usually like to go there with horses having their first run of the season, but he performed so well when fresh in the Celebration Chase that it made us think it might be an option. He could possibly go for the Clonmel Oil Chase first if he’s ready and the ground is suitable, otherwise we’ll go to Sandown without a run. Based on what he showed at Sandown, he looks likely to be a big player in the two-mile chase division.”
Impaire Et Passe
7 b g Diamond Boy – Brune Ecossaise
A 158-rated chaser, he won three of his five starts in novice chases last season including the Faugheen Novice Chase at Limerick’s Christmas meeting.
“He would look an obvious candidate for the John Durkan and then end up in the Ryanair Chase. We would be open to trying him over longer trips again.”
Jade De Grugy
6 b m | Doctor Dino – Diane De Grugy
A 150-rated hurdler, she has won five of her seven starts over hurdles including the Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle at the Punchestown Festival.
“I’d like to go novice chasing with her, but we’ll have to see. I need to discuss it with her owners and school her over fences before we make a decision.”
Kargese
5 b m | Jeu St Eloi – Rive Gauche
A 152-rated hurdler, she has won five of her 11 starts over hurdles including the County Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival last season.
“We are undecided as to whether to stay hurdling or go novice chasing with her. We’ll school her over fences and see what her owners would like to do before deciding.”
Kitzbuhel
5 gr g | Cokoriko – Valgardena
A 153-rated hurdler, he won two of his four starts over hurdles after joining Mullins last season.
“He’ll be one for novice chasing and looks one for the staying division. I don’t think we’ve seen the best of him yet.”
Kopek Des Bordes
5 b g No Risk At All – Miss Berry
A 158-rated hurdler, he won three of his four starts in novice hurdles last season including the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.
“He’s going novice chasing. He is every inch a chaser and I’m really looking forward to seeing him race over a fence. He’s a very keen horse and I think fences will help him settle. He could be careless at his hurdles last season, but he should respect fences more and I think he’ll be well suited by them. He looks one for the Arkle.”
Lecky Watson
7 ch g | Valirann – Anno Whyte
A 159-rated chaser, he won three of his four starts in novice chases last season including the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.
“He had a great season and got a great ride to win the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase. He’s rated 159, so he’d have the option of a Grand National campaign, but he went so well at Cheltenham last season that you’d be tempted to run him in the Gold Cup if all goes well to that point.”
Lossiemouth
6 gr f | Great Pretender – Mariner’s Light
A 159-rated hurdler, she has won 11 of her 14 starts over hurdles including the Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in 2023 and the last two renewals of the Mares’ Hurdle at the same meeting.
Lossiemouth starred in the 2025 Mares’ Hurdle
“We’ll look to get her started in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle. After that, you’ll all just have to guess which race she’ll go for! I don’t want to get into the hassle we had last season with last-minute changes. She’ll tell us how she is, but she’d look very tough to beat in the Mares’ Hurdle if we pointed her that way.”
Majborough
5 b g | Martinborough – Janimone
A 164-rated chaser, he won three of his four starts in novice chases last season including Grade One races at the Dublin Racing Festival and at the Punchestown Festival.
“The plan is to start him off in the Hilly Way Chase. It was a big surprise to us that he made the jumping mistakes that he did at Cheltenham. It wasn’t like him at all. We just want to work out whether jumping at two-mile pace is an issue for him, whether we got the riding tactics wrong or whether it was just a one off.
“Our inclination is to start him off over two miles and if he jumps well, he might well stay at around that trip. If his jumping hints that he might need a change, we have the option of going up with trip. He looks stronger than ever this season.”
Nick Rockett
8 b g | Walk In The Park – Eireann Rose
A 169-rated chaser, he has won four of his nine starts over fences including the Grand National at Aintree in April.
“To me he is quite entitled to be entered in the Gold Cup. However, looking at how much of a natural he was over the Grand National fences, that is always in the back of our mind. It will probably be a case of getting him started in graded company and assessing his performances to see if we think he has improved enough to warrant a shot at the Gold Cup.”
Nick Rockett, jockey Patrick Mullins and trainer Willie Mullins after winning the Randox Grand National
Poniros
4 b g | Golden Horn – Rue Renan
A 149-rated hurdler, he made a winning hurdling debut in the Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and went on to finish second to Lulamba in the equivalent race at the Punchestown Festival.
“We won’t be in a rush with him and I’d say he won’t run until after Christmas. It’s tough for them when four rising five and I’m happy to give them an easier time in this season. We might look to run him over two-and-a-half miles and avoid the Champion Hurdle horses.”
Salvator Mundi
5 b g | No Risk At All – Stacicaya
A 156-rated hurdler, he has won three of his seven starts over hurdles including the Top Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree in April.
“He’s a very strong-going horse. The Donnellys have State Man and Anzadam already, but I think this fella could be another one of Champion Hurdle quality if he was asked to do that. However, looking at how keen he is in his races, we’re going to go over fences with him and give him the chance to be an Arkle horse.
“He has huge ability, a lot more than he has shown on the track so far. If he settles better over fences, he’ll hopefully show on the track what he has shown us at home.”
Spindleberry
7 b m | Policy Maker – Sapphire Rouge
A 149-rated chaser, she won all three of her starts over fences last season including the WillowWarm Gold Cup at the Fairyhouse Easter Festival.
“The obvious thing to do with her is aim for the Mares’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. She might start off in the mares’ chase at Clonmel. Her form might suggest that she is a right-handed mare, but that’s just the way the races fell and I’m sure she’ll be fine going left handed.”
State Man
8 ch g | Doctor Dino – Arret Station
A 167-rated hurdler, he has won 14 of his 20 starts over hurdles including 12 Grade One races.
“He was just very unlucky in the Champion Hurdle last season. That showed all of us what Paul Townend had been telling me about him. He had no doubt in his mind that he was going to ride State Man in the Champion Hurdle even if Lossiemouth turned up.
“He has always had State Man way ahead of her. It didn’t look that way at times last season, but State Man is an older, lazier horse and was only doing half what he was capable of until we put the cheekpieces on him. Those Doctor Dinos can be lazy and the cheekpieces were a huge help to him. We’ll look to start him in the Morgiana and put him on a similar schedule to last season.”