State Man leads the way as Willie Mullins dominates opening day of Cheltenham

Paul Townend celebrates on State Man after winning the Champion Hurdle on day one of the 2024 Cheltenham Festival.

Even Mullins has been known to play it, most notably at last year’s Dublin Racing Festival. But if success has characterised Townend’s career, so has resilience. The 2-5 favourite to take advantage of Constitution Hill’s absence was many people’s banker of the week but testing ground underlined how little is a given at championship level.

“He’s a very simple horse to ride. On the ground, I probably could have waited a bit longer, but I didn’t doubt his stamina either. He’s an old favourite of mine and he deserves a big day like this,” Townend said.It completed his collection of Cheltenham’s championship races and leaves only Thursday’s Turners as the sole festival Grade One he has yet to win.“I was amazed the way Paul rode him, I thought he would be much more forward.

Not many would have predicted Gaelic Warrior might prove an easier steering job but that’s how it unfolded.

Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Bookies report strong support for Willie Mullins-trained pair at CheltenhamWillie Mullins is sending a seriously strong team of horses to the Cotswolds
Source: IrishMirror - 🏆 4. / 98 Read more »

Willie Mullins camp recreate famous Patrick-Danny row ahead of CheltenhamTeam Clossuton have landed in the Cotswolds and were in a jovial mood as they stretched the legs of many of their equine superstars on Sunday morning
Source: IrishMirror - 🏆 4. / 98 Read more »

The Willie Mullins 2,111/1 accumulator for the Cheltenham FestivalThere is every chance that Mullins could hit double figures for winners this year after having six winners at last year's festival
Source: IrishMirror - 🏆 4. / 98 Read more »

Willie Mullins and Paul Townend land pre-Cheltenham Festival trebleThe trainer/jockey partnership is widely expected to dominate proceedings at Prestbury Park this week
Source: IrishMirror - 🏆 4. / 98 Read more »

Cheltenham 2024 day two live updates: Willie Mullins looks set to dominate once againWith odds-on favourites in the three biggest races, Mullins could well become the first trainer ever to reach 100 festival winners this afternoon
Source: IrishTimes - 🏆 3. / 98 Read more »

Mary Hannigan: ‘All dominant’ Willie Mullins closes on century of Cheltenham winsTrainer needs three victories to hit milestone, while Gordon D’Arcy calls for statement performance against Scotland
Source: IrishTimes - 🏆 3. / 98 Read more »