Gaelic Warrior once again proved he belongs to the upper echelon of staying chasers this season by adding the Ladbrokes Punchestown Gold Cup to his Cheltenham crown, delivering another masterclass performance. The eight‑year‑old, trained by the renowned Willie Mullins, travelled with ease from the start, maintaining a smooth rhythm that kept him comfortably in contention. As the 5/6 favourite, he settled behind his stablemate Fact To File, who had taken the lead three fences out.
At the penultimate obstacle, jockey Paul Townend urged Gaelic Warrior forward, and the horse responded instantly, leaping cleanly and pulling away with apparent effortlessness. The finish was almost anticlimactic for the spectators: Gaelic Warrior coasted across the line a staggering 26 lengths ahead of Fact To File, who had tried to dictate the pace from the front. Mullins could not hide his excitement, saying, "It was a huge performance.
My heart was in my mouth when Paul joined him (Fact To File) between the fourth‑last and the third‑last. I was thinking 'would they knock one another' or what would they do.
They were going some lick. Both jockeys just let fly. Over that trip Gaelic Warrior seemed to have the measure of Fact To File. Over a shorter trip it might be different.
It was a hell of a horse race. It takes two horses to do it. It was great that JP (McManus) allowed Fact To File to take him on.
It made for a memorable day. Both horses got the run of the race the way they wanted to.
Fact To File got a nice time in front and Paul was able to settle his fella in. Both jockeys got to ride their horse the way they wanted to. There were no excuses." Mullins also reflected on the demanding campaign Gaelic Warrior has endured this year. "He started off here in November and then on to Kempton (King George), Dublin Racing Festival, Cheltenham and here.
It's always my philosophy that if you have the horses and the sponsors put up nice money you should go for it. I try to run them as much as I can when we have nice opportunities," he explained.
The rivalry between Gaelic Warrior and Fact To File has been a recurring storyline this season. The two met for the third time at Punchestown after their initial clash in the John Durkan at the same venue and a subsequent reversal in the Irish Gold Cup, where Fact To File secured revenge. Mullins hinted that the pair could meet again in next season's John Durkan, noting, "That would look the right plan to do." Owner Rich Ricci was equally elated, adding, "We've never won this race before. It was very sporting of JP to run his horse, the ground probably didn't suit him, but he's a fantastic horse.
I'm so pleased to win it. I've not been here since Ruby (Walsh) retired in 2019. I've been busy and we had covid and those kind of things.
The people here are brilliant and I'm thrilled to win the race. I couldn't be more delighted." The meeting also featured other notable performances. In the Channor Real Estate Group Novice Hurdle, Le Frimeur kept an unbeaten record, cruising home to beat the well‑regarded Zanoosh and delivering trainer Harry Derham his first Grade One victory.
Derham, who confessed he "genuinely dream[s] about training Grade One winners," praised the quality of his stable: "It's absolutely unreal. Obviously it makes it an awful lot easier with very good horses.
Simon actually grabbed me on the arm at this meeting last year and said he was going to send me this horse. To have the access to horses like this is something unbelievable.
He got a little setback in the autumn and he's just improved and improved all spring." Jockey JJ Slevin echoed the sentiment, noting Derham's ambition: "Harry is a young trainer, very ambitious. He's only going one way and that's up. It was a big shout from Harry coming here, to run him in that race.
Rated 129, you would think a handicap would be a logical way to go, but I've been over there a few times riding out, great facilities, great schooling grounds, great gallop, so fair play to him, it's great." In the Punchestown Champion I.N.H. Flat Race, Josh Halford timed his ride perfectly on With Nolimit, securing a decisive win. The five‑year‑old, who finished ninth in the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham, held off a late surge from Festival hero The Mourne Rambler and finished a length and three‑quarters ahead of Noel Meade's 11/8 favourite.
Trainer Gordon Elliott praised the colt, saying, "To be fair he ran a good race in Cheltenham, he might have just done a little bit much. I probably gave Harry (Swan) the wrong instructions. We took our time with him a bit more today.
All credit to Josh, he gave him a great ride. I'm delighted for Josh, he works in the yard and he works very hard. He's a lovely fella, he's from good stock. He's with me now for a couple of years and got us a good few winners.
He comes in every day and doesn't say too much and doesn't give out. He's patient and I'm absolutely thrilled for him, to win a Grade One.
It's hard to get them." Elliott added that the victory brings his stable level with its best ever season in terms of Grade One wins, noting, "That's equal with our best‑ever season as regards Grade Ones (12). Hopefully we might get another one before the end of the week." Henry de Bromhead's Nouvotic (7/1) also made his mark, pulling clear of the field three fences out to take the Colm Quinn BMW Handicap Chase under jockey Darragh O'Keeffe.
De Bromhead expressed his delight, especially for long‑time supporter Roger Brookhouse: "It's lovely to get one, especially for Roger who is a brilliant supporter of Punchestown. He loves coming over, he comes over every year.
He's a great supporter of ours as well and that's the second time we've won this, we won it with Lets Go Champ a couple of years ago. I couldn't believe the easy lead Darragh got and I'm just delighted." When asked about a potential run in the Galway Plate, de Bromhead said, "He could, I was just thinking that but he may not be rated high enough. He was 130 there so he may not be rated high enough to get in, but he could be a horse for the Blazers or something like that. He loves that ground." Overall, Punchestown delivered a day packed with high‑quality racing, memorable duels, and breakthrough victories that will be discussed for weeks to come.
The performances of Gaelic Warrior, Le Frimeur, With Nolimit and Nouvotic underline the depth of talent across the Irish racing scene and set the stage for an exciting remainder of the festival and the upcoming season.