Punchestown gets green light to run John Durkan card on Monday

The Cheltenham Gold Cup favourite Galopin Des Champs will make his eagerly awaited seasonal debut in next Monday’s rescheduled Grade 1 John Durkan Chase at Punchestown.

Confirmation came from Horse Racing Ireland on Monday that the Grade 1 programme, which had been scheduled for last Sunday but was called off 24 hours in advance due to snow and freezing conditions, will now take place just six days before Christmas.

Galopin Des Champs had been declared for the €85,000 feature but after the weekend cancellation, trainer Willie Mullins didn’t rule out possible alternative targets such as the Savills Chase at Leopardstown over Christmas and a race at Tramore on New Year’s Day.

However, when asked about taking up the delayed Durkan option with Galopin Des Champs, he confirmed on Monday night: “Yes, I’m happy to run him there.”

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It is a bonus for Punchestown officials who had been relieved simply to be able to run the Grade 1 John Durkan Chase programme next Monday. With a thaw forecast to finally arrive this weekend, the card will be run eight days late on the eve of Christmas.

Officials admit the rescheduling is going to prove costly to the track’s financial bottom-line but are happy to get the meeting run.

“It does have an impact but given the circumstances we’re just happy to be able to run the fixture full stop,” racing manager Richie Galway said.

“They (cancellations) are damaging. It’s obviously expensive to prep for the meeting. Obviously, we tried to run it at the weekend, so it is a cost. But we’re just delighted to be able to run the meeting in advance of Christmas. It’s unusual for Punchestown not to be able to run a race meeting; normally we’re able to race in most conditions,” Galway added.

The Durkan was delayed by 48 hours due to frost in 2008 and was held on December 15 two years later as part of a rejigged Winter Festival card at Fairyhouse due to heavy snowfall.

Although weather conditions are forecast to get even colder in places during this week, the Met office has told Punchestown to expect a weekend thaw and potentially even some rainfall.

“The Met Office have told us that we should be able to go ahead, and we have full confidence in that,” Galway reported.

In other news, the €175,000 Savills Chase on day three of Leopardstown’s Christmas festival is again a festive target for the reigning Gold Cup holder A Plus Tard.

A Savills winner in 2020, and runner up to Galvin last year,  A Plus Tard flopped on his return to action at Haydock last month.

However, trainer Henry de Bromhead confirmed a problem was subsequently diagnosed and the brilliant winner of last season’s blue-riband is on track to return to action at Leopardstown.

“His work had been really good and his run in Haydock was just too bad to be true,” de Bromhead reported.

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“We took bloods from him on the Monday before he was to go and they were perfect. The Monday, two days after he ran, one of the readings was sky high – off the Richter scale. The vets think it showed a bizarre allergic reaction to something.

“He seems in mighty form. I saw him this morning when he loose schooled brilliant and he looks great. That was how he was before he went to Haydock.

“He’s being geared towards the Savills Chase at Leopardstown. He’ll have to come through all the checks before he can run but it’s nice to have a reason for the run in Haydock,” he added.

There will be close focus on the weather outlook ahead of Ascot’s Grade 1 programme on Saturday. Gordon Elliott’s mare Queen’s Brook is one of seven entries left in the Howden Long Walk Hurdle after Monday’s latest acceptance stage.

Runner up in the mares hurdle at Cheltenham last March, Queen’s Brook won at Listed level on her last start but could wind up taking on two of Britain’s top stayers, Champ and Paisley Park.

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Those old rivals fought out a memorable finish at Newbury last time and top ante-post betting lists for the three-mile marathon contest.

Paisley Park is a former dual winner of the Long Walk in 2018 and 2020 while Champ got the better of the argument in last year’s contest.

Not So Sleepy, third to the outstanding Constitution Hill in last month’s Fighting Fifth at Newcastle, is another contender and could try three miles for the first time.

The weather could yet prove a spoilsport though with officials anxious about freezing conditions.

“We will be lucky to be racing. It is going to be very challenging,” admitted clerk of the course Chris Stickels on Monday.

“We are not raceable at the moment. It is frozen in places and we have a light covering of snow. We have frost covers down on vulnerable areas, but we still have got frozen areas of the track, and temperatures look like they are going to be sub-zero every night. It could be minus 2 tonight, then it gets colder, actually,” he added.