Racing:Champion trainer Willie Mullins dominated a truncated Punchestown card as gruelling conditions dominated day two of the national hunt festival.
Heavy rain, mixed with strong winds, forced the two chases to be scrapped on the day, including the feature Gold Cup, but that did not stop the Co Carlow handler claiming four winners on an all-hurdles and bumper card which totalled five races.
Champagne Fever was the headline act as he followed up his Cheltenham success by making every post a winning one in the betchronicle.com Champion INH Flat Race.
The grey, owned by Rich Ricci, had demonstrated his class when winning the Weatherbys Champion Bumper and showed here he has guts to match.
The tiring ground took its toll on several of the field, including Cheltenham runner-up New Year’s Eve, who was a spent force some way from home.
Champagne Fever had to show tremendous determination to shrug off a strong challenge from Jeremy Scott’s Melodic Rendezvous in the straight.
Amazingly the 11-4 favourite pulled away in the final furlong for the trainer’s son, Patrick, to score by seven and a half lengths. Mullins’s other runner, Mozoltov, was third.
The winning trainer said: “That was an extraordinary performance, he is a super horse.
“I don’t know what we’ll do next year; we were thinking of going straight over fences like we did with Florida Pearl (after he won the Cheltenham bumper), but I’m not sure now.
“I thought he was out on his feet in the straight, but Patrick said he was just idling. We know that the third (Mozoltov) is a good horse but Champagne Fever obviously stays well and is a good jumper. He is one that we are really looking forward to and has huge ability.”
Mullins junior doubled up, and made it four for his father, as Flash Of Genius (11-4 favourite) proved aptly named for the pair in the At The Races INH Flat Race, this time in the Gigginstown House Stud colours.
Marasonnien (12-1) headed a clean sweep for Mullins and Ricci in the Irish Daily Mirror War Of Attrition Novice Hurdle.
The three-mile Grade One contest was run at a very sensible pace in the wet ground and there were many in with chances coming to the third-last flight.
Paul Townend brought Marasonnien to lead at the penultimate hurdle and the six-year-old kept on strongly to win by three lengths from Vesper Bell (14-1) with the 7-2 favourite Sous Les Cieux only third. All three carried the Ricci colours.
Mullins said: “I don’t think I’ve ever done that before and it’s great for the owners.
“The winner loved the ground and Ruby (Walsh) said that Sous Les Cieux didn’t stay so he’ll step back in trip.
“I would think all three of them will go over fences. They are three stayers that we thought were the types to make chasers when we got them.”
Townend added: “He’s a fine size of a horse and has plenty of scope. They were probably going too slow for him. He has a nice future and he had his day today.”
Loch Ard got the ball rolling for the Mullins team as he ran out a convincing winner of the Louis Fitzgerald Hotel Hurdle.
Wrekin Rock made a brave bid to lead all the way but he was headed by Walsh on Mullins’s charge before the final flight, where he came down.
That left the 6-4 favourite to bound clear and score by 33 lengths from Un Beau Matin with Dysios third.
“We’ll try to find another race for him if the weather stays like this but he’s on the team for France and will probably go for the four-year-old hurdle at Auteuil next,” said Mullins.
Walsh said: “Loch Ard travelled well, jumped well and found plenty in. He’s a fairish horse and he did it well.
“The ground isn’t too bad, the water is lying on top but it’s all surface water. There’s a good bottom to it and it is perfectly safe.”
Shamiran (12-1) got the better of British raider Weekend Millionair in the Martinstown Opportunity Series Final Handicap Hurdle.
The two principals were always to the fore and had the race between them as Shamiran (12-1) took it up just before the final flight in the hands of Ian McCarthy.
He pulled away from the David Pipe-trained runner to score by two and three-quarter lengths for County Kildare trainer Stephen Nolan.