What Mullins’ domination might mean for racing’s long-term interests

The Irish trainer took Leopardstown by storm and has seven of the 14 favourites at next month’s premier jump racing festival.

Fleur Au Fusil and Jody Townend with trainer Willie Mullins after win.

According to most of the headline numbers, the seventh running of the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown over the weekend was a triumph, both for the sport in Ireland as a whole and, of course, for its pre-eminent trainer, Willie Mullins, in particular.

The record crowd figure of 34,591 from 2023, which was a remarkable 40% jump from 2022, was broken once again, with 36,020 racegoers over the two days, and the estimated percentage travelling from the UK – and leaving significant sums behind in local hotels, restaurants and pubs – was also up, from 27% to 38%.