Willie Mullins reveals his Cheltenham Festival ‘banker’ as horse is labelled best Irish novice in 50 years

WILLIE MULLINS says Supreme hotpot Kopek Des Bordes is his Cheltenham Festival banker.

The champion trainer was ‘blown away’ erstwhile the five-year-old romped to triumph astatine the Dublin Racing Festival connected Sunday.

And helium revealed Ted Walsh phoned him up the time aft to wax lyrical astir the horse, comparing him to the superb but ill-fated Irish novice Golden Cygnet.

Mullins said: "The show blew my mind, to beryllium honorable with you, due to the fact that it was a tract with plentifulness of spot successful depth.

“They were bully horses and helium conscionable dominated them, Paul Townend said the equine astir ran distant with him 3 times successful the contention but helium inactive had much than capable successful the vessel to propulsion distant aft the last.

“Ted Walsh rang maine to accidental it was the champion show from a novice helium had seen since Golden Cygnet, which is beauteous immense for him to consciousness the request to prime up the telephone and archer maine that.

“He wouldn’t telephone maine precise often, truthful I was beauteous taken aback, I deliberation it was a immense statement.”

Kopek Des Bordes is simply a top-price even-money for the Festival curtain raiser connected March 11.

Mullins added: “He came retired of the contention astatine Leopardstown successful large shape. If you were to inquire maine for our banker of the week it would person to beryllium him, it’s hard to prime immoderate holes successful him.”

Mullins besides confirmed that his different hugely breathtaking novice hurdler, Final Demand, would spell for the Turners' Novices Hurdle astatine the Festival.

He bolted up astatine the Dublin Racing Festival and the Albert Bartlett had been mooted arsenic a imaginable target.

He said: "The Albert Bartlett wouldn’t beryllium a contention I’d privation to spell for with him. He’s lone had 2 runs, and I’d similar a equine who started earlier successful the play for that one.

"I deliberation it’s a pugnacious contention connected horses for the remainder of their vocation and I don’t deliberation helium needs that. I deliberation 2 miles 5 connected that way astatine Cheltenham successful the Turners, up that hill, is precise pugnacious connected a equine and that would beryllium a large capable question to inquire him astatine this stage.

"Looking astatine him, helium looks a existent chaser. He indispensable beryllium 17.2, he’s arsenic beardown arsenic immoderate equine I’ve had.

"Strength wise, helium astir apt looks much similar Florida Pearl, he’s truthful beardown done the assemblage whereas Galopin Des Champs is simply a precise antithetic benignant of horse, he’s overmuch much evenly balanced done the assemblage and a lighter framed individual.

"This chap is simply a large portion and I’m blessed to bash that (the Turners) earlier going novice chasing adjacent season."

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