Racing’s massive Christmas schedule gets under way on St Stephen’s Day with Leopardstown and Limerick starting four-day festival programmes with Down Royal added for good measure.
It’s a festive sporting splurge that also includes eight cross-channel cards for punters and fans to get stuck into.
Over 60,000 people are expected through the gates at Leopardstown over the four days where Willie Mullins will again be expected to dominate the week overall.
Jump racing’s dominant figure saddled 16 Christmas winners between Leopardstown and Limerick in 2023, a notable tally considering he experienced a rare St Stephen’s Day blank at the Foxrock track. The bounce back from that was immediate with a 102-1 six-timer on day two.
Gordon Elliott saddles three of the four runners in Leopardstown’s €100k St Stephen’s Day feature
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It’s noticeable how Mullins will have twice as many runners on Friday in comparison to St Stephen’s Day, where he won’t be represented at all in the new €100,000 Grade One feature.
The Racing Post Long Distance Novice Chase has been switched from later in the festival schedule only to attract a disappointing turnout of just four runners.
A Gordon Elliott trio will take on Buddy One who represents the father and son team of Paul and Jack Gilligan. It’s another Gilligan, Danny, who could ultimately prove a winner as he teams up with Elliott’s Better Days Ahead.
The Cheltenham Festival winner has been passed over by Sam Ewing in favour of the Drinmore winner Croke Park, a call the man filling in for injured champion jockey Jack Kennedy may come to regret.
With Paul Townend at Kempton, Patrick Mullins is on duty in Leopardstown where the most successful amateur in racing history will team up with Redemption Day in a potentially significant maiden hurdle.
Redemption Day raced seven times in bumpers and persistence paid off in the Punchestown championship last season.
On that occasion he had William Munny well behind him in third but the transition to jumps is a different matter and Barry Connell’s hope is an exciting prospect. His rider Finny Maguire continues the top amateur theme in the race.
The Mullins team has four for Sunday’s main support contest at Leopardstown, the Grade Two Juvenile Hurdle, where the expensive Fairyhouse flop Willy De Houelle gets another crack at Naturally Nimble.
An interesting alternative is the filly Murcia, winner of a Listed race by 12 lengths on her last start in Auteuil during the summer.
Ground conditions at Leopardstown are forecast to be yielding this week with unseasonably mild temperatures expected.
“Overall, we are very happy with the racecourse. It walks very nice ground and is a credit to the team,” clerk of the course Lorcan Wyer reported. “We started a programme of watering from late summer into the autumn and combined that with in excess of 250mm of rain since the start of September. It has left us in a good place ahead of this Christmas Festival.”
The normal attritional going at Limerick over Christmas doesn’t look like applying this time with yielding to soft conditions currently in place ahead of a largely dry week.
Limerick’s Grade One feature will be Saturday’s Guinness Faugheen Novice Chase but the day one highlight is a Grade Two novice hurdle with luminaries such as Penhill on its roll of honour.
One of two mares in the six-strong field is The Big Westerner, who broke her maiden in impressive style at Punchestown ahead of Argento Boy. Henry de Bromhead’s hope could edge Fleur In The Park over the near three-mile trip.
Willie Mullins and Michael O’Leary’s Gigginstown team introduce an interesting French recruit in Limerick’s opener with Lincoln Du Seuil. This one landed his only start to date in a bumper.
The same combination has Karamoja in the following maiden and the application of a first-time hood could help his chances after he spoiled his hopes at Clonmel by running too free.
With Rachael Blackmore on King George hope Enovi Allen at Kempton, and Darragh O’Keeffe in action at Limerick, Seán Flanagan has some promising rides for De Bromhead in Down Royal.
Air Of Entitlement and Downmexicoway hold clear claims in maiden hurdles while the ex-point-to-point winner Banprionsa is one to note in a Beginners’ Chase against all-male rivals.
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