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Big names feature in Leopardstown Christmas entries

Mighty Potter Mighty Potter
© Photo Healy Racing

The Leopardstown Christmas Festival is less than four weeks away and the initial entries for the seven Grade 1 races and the valuable Paddy Power Chase at the four-day extravaganza were released yesterday morning at a yard visit to Gordon Elliott’s Cullentra Stables. The festival runs from St Stephen's Day, December 26 to Thursday, December 29.

Top-class performers Danoli (1996), Moscow Flyer (2001), Sizing Europe (2009), Douvan (2015), Min (2016) and Ferny Hollow (2021) have all been successful in the Grade 1 Brand New Racing Post App Novice Chase on the opening day of the Leopardstown Christmas Festival and 25 horses are on the early sheet for the upcoming renewal.

Elliott boasts a strong hand with Mighty Potter, Hollow Games and Three Stripe Life, the trio already winners over fences, among his team of five while Willie Mullins, who has won the race for the last two years, has nine entries including Flame Bearer, Sir Gerhard, Appreciate It and El Fabiolo. The Barry Connell-trained Enniskerry, Joseph O'Brien’s Banbridge and the Noel Meade-trained Highland Charge have the form to make their presence felt.

There’s a €200,000 pot on offer for the Paddy Power Chase on the second day of the festival and no surprise to see a bumper entry of 59 horses. Mullins is responsible for 12 of them with Paddy Power Cork Grand National winner Captain Kangaroo, Authorized Art and Bleu Berry chief among them.

Elliott has 11 entries to choose from with Irish Grand National runner-up and recent Galway winner Frontal Assault, Cork Grand National runner-up Defi Bleu and Hurricane Georgie on his team while Meade has Farceur Du Large among his squad.

Henry de Bromhead has a strong hand with both Ain’t That A Shame and Gabbys Cross entered. Recent Grade 2 winner Darrens Hope in the mix for Co Waterford trainer Bob Murphy with Final Orders perhaps bidding to extend his recent winning run to four race for Gavin Cromwell. Runner-up to Frodon on his most recent outing, Lord Accord has been entered by Neil Mulholland while Ben Case has entered Fern Hill, a winner at Uttoxeter eight days ago, another potential raider from across the Irish Sea.

The first of two Grade 1 races on the second day of the Leopardstown Christmas Festival is the Paddy's Rewards Club Chase. De Bromhead has both Captain Guinness and Coeur Sublime entered this time. Mullins tops the lot with five top-notch entries, Energumene, Ferny Hollow, Blue Lord, Chacun Pour Soi and Gentleman De Mee while Elliott has three entries, Andy Dufresne, Riviere D’etel and Battleoverdoyen. O'Brien, Pat Fahy and Cromwell have entered Darasso, Dunvegan and Jeremys Flame respectively.

The Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle is the first Grade 1 hurdle race of the Leopardstown Christmas Festival, one of three over the four days. Elliott’s team of nine includes American Mike, Absolute Notions, Itswhatunitesus and Irish Point while Facile Vega, Champ Kiely, Dark Raven, Ashroe Diamond and Gaelic Warrior are among 19 entries from Mullins. The Connell-trained Marine Nationale, de Bromhead’s Inthepocket and Cromwell’s pair Path D’oroux and Inothewayurthinkin are four others that have impressed to date.

In a cracking 2021 renewal, Elliott’s Galvin just got the better of de Bromhead’s subsequent Cheltenham Gold Cup winner A Plus Tard and the Mullins-trained Kemboy to land the spoils in the Grade 1 Savills Chase. The trio are entered again this year and certainly adding to the intrigue are Mullins’ Galopin Des Champs, who bounced back from his fall at the Cheltenham Festival to win at the Fairyhouse Easter Festival, and the de Bromhead-trained Envoi Allen, who landed the first Grade 1 of the season when successful at Down Royal at the start of the month. Elliott could also be represented by 2022 Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup winner Conflated and Fury Road while Stattler, Royal Rendezvous and Franco De Port make up the Mullins entry. Fakir D'oudairies and Busselton could both run for O'Brien while French Dynamite is there for Mouse Morris.

This year’s Christmas Hurdle will be run in the memory of Jack de Bromhead. Jack’s father Henry has earmarked the race for the classy Bob Olinger who is likely to come up against last year’s first and second in the race, the Mullins-trained Klassical Dream and the dual Cheltenham Festival winner, Flooring Porter, trained by Cromwell. Mullins has seven of the 22 entries, with Saldier and Echoes In Rain also on the team. Elliott has made five entries with Commander Of Fleet, Sire Du Berlais and Queens Brook among them while the recent Grade 2 winner Proschema has been given an entry by Dan Skelton while Meade’s Cheltenham Festival winner Jeff Kidder is also included.

While Mullins has by far and away the best recent record in the race, it’s Nicky Henderson who will grab the headlines here as his early Champion Hurdle favourite Constitution Hill tops the 13 entries. Mullins has made five entries and included among them is Sharjah who is likely to chase a remarkable fifth successive win in the race. Mullins might also target State Man, who beat Sharjah to win the Grade 1 Unibet Morgiana Hurdle at Punchestown, at the two-mile event while the unbeaten Vauban is another entry for the champion trainer. Elliott has made four entries with Pied Piper and Fil Dor among them while also in the mix are de Bromhead’s Bob Olinger and the Joseph O'Brien-trained Darasso.

Elliott enjoyed a one-two, with Fury Road beating Run Wild Fred, in the Grade 1 Neville Hotels Novice Chase last year and the Cullentra trainer has made a strong entry as he bids for a sixth win in the race with Mighty Potter, Hollow Games, Gerri Colombe and Three Stripe Life among his half-dozen. Mullins, the 2020 winner with Monkfish, has put nine in the race, including Kilcruit, Bronn and Minella Cocooner. Fresh from her success in the Grade 2 Liam & Valerie Brennan Novice Chase at Punchestown, Darrens Hope has been entered by Bob Murphy while Thedevilscoachman and Idas Boy are there for Meade.

Tim Husbands Leopardstown CEO, said: “It is an exciting time for everyone at Leopardstown and we could not be happier with the quality of entries for the seven Grade 1 races and the Paddy Power Chase at our Christmas Festival. We are really looking forward to welcoming back racegoers to one of the great Christmas sporting traditions. Once again, we are so grateful to have the support of so many sponsors, owners and trainers and thanks to them, we are set for four days of truly top-class racing beginning on St Stephen’s Day.”