This Saturday at the Dublin Racing Festival will surround the Irish Gold Cup, where the winner of the last two runnings Galopin Des Champs will be the star attraction again – but does the Willie Mullins star chaser fit the key Irish Gold Cup trends – or is there anything to cling to if you want to take him on?
Does Galopin Des Champs Fit The Key Irish Gold Cup Trends?
It’s a big season for Galopin Des Champs.
He’s already 75% of the way to cementing himself as one of the staying chasing greats but 2025 could boost that up to 100% if he can land a third Irish Gold Cup on Saturday and then also land a trio of Cheltenham Gold Cups in March.
The best horse racing betting sites in the UK are making him odds-on already for both – and first up is another clash with stablemate Fact To File at Leopardstown.
Galopin Des Champs was beaten by Fact To File in the John Durkan Memorial Chase back in November at Punchestown – but gained his revenge in the Savills Chase at his beloved Leopardstown over Christmas.
That was his sixth win over fences at the Dublin track – the Willie Mullins-trained 9 year-old is yet to lose a race over the bigger obstacles there.
So, with the first leg of his history making – before trying to become the first horse since Best Mate to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup – being the Irish Gold Cup on Saturday, does he tick the key trends?
Irish Gold Cup Trends: Galopin Falls Down On Just TWO Stats
The good news for Galopin Des Champs backers is that the key Irish Gold Cup trends see him get a thumbs-up for all-bar-two.
He only falls down on not being Irish-bred (French) – as 14 of the last 22 winners were.
Plus, not winning between 3-5 races over fences – but, don’t worry Galopin Des Champs fans – he’s actually won 10 chase races (from his 15 starts)
Therefore, it’s not hard to see why he’s described by many as one of the main Dublin Racing Festival bankers for 2025.
- 22/22 – Had run at Leopardstown over fences before ✅
- 21/22 – Last race 6 weeks or less ✅
- 19/22 – Won over at least 3m before in their career (any code) ✅
- 18/22– Aged 9 or younger ✅
- 18/22 – Won a Grade 1 Chase before ✅
- 16/22 – Won between 3-5 times over fences (rules) before ❌
- 16/22 – Raced in the Savills Chase (Leopardstown) last time out ✅
- 16/22 – Favourites placed ✅
- 16/22 – Came from the top 3 in the betting ✅
- 16/22 – Winners that went onto run in that season’s Gold Cup (3 winners, Galopin Des Champs 2023, 2024, Sizing John 2017) ✅
- 14/22 – Irish-bred ❌
- 14/22 – Won over fences at Leopardstown ✅
- 14/22 – Rated 160 or higher ✅
- 14/22 – Placed in the top 3 last time out ✅
- 9/22 – Trained by Willie Mullins (13 wins in total) ✅
- 9/22 – Won last time out ✅
- 8/22 – Favourites ✅
- 4/22 – Won by a previous winner of the race ✅
- The average winning SP in the last 22 runnings is 11/2
Irish Gold Cup Details 2025
📅Date: Saturday 1st February 2025
⌚Time: 3:30pm
🏇Racecourse: Leopardstown
🔄Trip: 3m 1/2f
💷Winning Purse: €140,000
📺 TV: ITV / RTV – Full ITV Racing coverage here
Who Are The Irish Gold Cup Runners 2025?
- Conflated (G Elliott)
- Embassy Gardens (W Mullins)
- Fact To File (W Mullins)
- Galopin Des Champs (W Mullins)
- Grangeclare West (W Mullins)
- Hewick (Miss Tara Lee Cogan)
- I Am Maximus (W Mullins)
- Inotherwayurthinkin (Gavin Cromwell)
- Minella Cocooner (W Mullins)
- Monty’s Star (Henry De Bromhead)
Irish Gold Cup Recent Winners
- 2024 – Galopin Des Champs (1/3 fav)
- 2023 – Galopin Des Champs (3/10 fav)
- 2022 – Conflated (18/1)
- 2021 – Kemboy (11/4)
- 2020 – Delta Work (5/2)
- 2019 – Bellshill (2/1)
- 2018 – Edwulf (33/1)
- 2017 – Sizing John (100/30)
- 2016 – Carlingford Lough (20/1)
- 2015 – Carlingford Lough (4/1)
