Great and all as the Irish, Scottish and Welsh versions are, nothing quite compares with the Aintree Grand National.

It has been another incredible week for Willie and for him to become the leading trainer in Cheltenham Festival history is nothing short of remarkable, writes Ruby Walsh. But it’s no surprise to me, he is a genius.

It’s tough not being a part of the action on Gold Cup day, but that’s my lot for this Festival, unfortunately, writes Ruby Walsh.

After the highs of Tuesday, I suffered the lows of racing when falling from Al Boum Photo in yesterday’s RSA Chase.

Yesterday was a great day, a very emotional day, a day that I owe to a lot of people.

In keeping with other years, Willie wasn’t really keen on me riding this weekend, and when Lareena won it took a bit of pressure off everybody, so I’m sitting out the remainder of the week.

The country has almost ground to a halt, and so has racing, but being so close to the Cheltenham Festival it’s crucial that the horses continue to get their exercise.

Livelovelaugh, one of six runners this weekend for Willie, can get us off to a winning start, in the two-and-a-half-mile beginners’ chase at Cork this afternoon.

Leopardstown’s Christmas festival had everything, both from Willie Mullins’ point of view, and from the racecourse point of view, writes Ruby Walsh.