Horses with Tipperary connections on course for Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown

Galopin Des Champs will get the opportunity to light up Leopardstown once again as he heads a stellar cast for the eight Grade 1 races at the Dublin Racing Festival on Saturday, February 3 and Sunday, February 4.

On the back of his spectacular success in the Grade 1 Savills Chase at the Leopardstown Christmas Festival, Willie Mullins’ star chaser features among an entry of nine horses for the Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup on the opening afternoon of the two-day extravaganza, at which he’s been a winner for the past two years.

While his great adversary Fastorslow has also been given an entry in the Ladbrokes Dublin Chase on the second day of the Festival, a clash between the two is very much on the cards. Most recently, Martin Brassil’s charge beat Galopin Des Champs at the Punchestown festival in April and again outpointed the reigning Cheltenham Gold Cup hero in the John Durkan Memorial Punchestown Chase in November.

The big two could be joined by the Mouse Morris-trained Gentlemansgame, a winner at Wetherby in November, and Gordon Elliott’s Gerri Colombe which has 23 lengths to make up on Galopin Des Champs on their Christmas clash.

Both horses are owned by Clonmel businessman Brian Acheson and race in the Robcour colours, with Gentlemansgame trained by Mouse Morris in Fethard.

Willie Mullins has also entered his Irish Grand National winner I Am Maximus and the long-absent Monkfish, while Elliott could also call upon his 2022 Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup winner Conflated and last year’s Troytown Chase winner Coko Beach.

The Henry de Bromhead-trained Jungle Boogie gets an entry after his Grade 3 success at Tramore on New Year's Day.