Willie Mullins says Un De Sceaux in terrific form for Cheltenham Champion Chase
Last year’s Arkle Trophy hero is set for what could be the spectacle of the meeting on the second day of the Festival as he crosses swords with resurgent former two-mile king Sprinter Sacre.
Un De Sceaux made amends for a fall at Christmas with a dominant display in the Clarence House Chase at Ascot in January, and has Mullins “counting down the days”.
The trainer said: “He seems in great form. I would love it if the race was tomorrow. I’m just counting down the days with him, he’s in terrific order.
“What I loved about Ascot was the manner of his racing. He switched off and settled and looked at his fences and jumped them, rather than going down and flying out over them.
“Sometimes with a horse like him they just get faster and faster until they blow their lid, but he seems to be coming around now, which is good.”
Un De Sceaux will be ridden by Ruby Walsh and he believes a repeat of the performance at Ascot will do the trick tomorrow fortnight.
“He has his own way of doing it, he jumps, he goes, he wears his heart on his sleeve and he’s a very good horse,” Walsh said. “He’s in very good form, he was very good in Ascot in the Clarence House Chase and if he can reproduce that run, it would be wonderful to win a Champion Chase. Much as I’d love to win another one, I think the people that own him, the O’Connell’s, it would be something special for them.”
The build-up to Cheltenham has been far from troublefree for Mullins with with Faugheen and Arctic Fire — last year’s first and second — both being ruled out of the Champion Hurdle through injury.
The same fate befell Killultagh Vic who had been a short-priced favourite for the JLT Novices’ Chase.
“We’ve had a few setbacks the last couple of weeks and we’re just hoping we don’t have anymore,” Mullins told reporters at a pre-Cheltenham open day yesterday. “But we just have to keep working, you can’t let that get into your head, not work the horses and try and mind them.
“We’re very conscious that these are championship races, the horses need to be worked and worked hard and we just have to keep going.”
With Faugheen and Arctic Fire out, the Mullins charge is likely to be led by Annie Power.
“She’s in great form, she’s doing everything well — it’s probably a year she should run in it given the more open nature of the race. Her form is good enough.”
Annie Power’s last trip to Cheltenham ended in dramatic circumstances as she crashed out at the last flight with the OLBG Mares’ Hurdle at her mercy.
The mishap, Mullins revealed yesterday, went down particularly badly with a stream of invective sent to his inbox.
“When we have a disappointing favourite, or a horse falls, the sort of emails that you get through with people slagging you off are extraordinary,” said Mullins. “You have to ignore that. Some of them are funny, other ones you just delete.
“Any time you have a faller at the last — you should’ve seen the stuff we got after Annie Power. People thought it was on purpose! Absolutely incredible, you wouldn’t believe it.”
