Is the Cheltenham Gold Cup Galopin Des Champs’s to Lose?

Here we go. The Cheltenham Festival is galloping towards us at a speed only matched by Poet Prince and Roger Burfurd in the Gold Cup of 1941, and this is the time when speculation is at its hottest. Across the internet, conversations are going on about what horse has the best chance, with particular focus being paid to the most anticipated races, the Gold Cup.

Ever since the first Cheltenham Gold Cup took place in 1819, this has been one of the most coveted tournaments in horse racing, with the best of the best never failing to put in a show and spark the festival to life. But while this event is hotly anticipated, we used the word ‘conversations’ rather than ‘debates’ for a reason. It seems, wherever you look, every racing fan has a good idea about who is going to win the Gold Cup in 2024, and it all comes down to one horse. Galopin Des Champs.

The Thing About Galopin Des Champs

Aged eight years old and trained by the legendary Willie Mullins, the odds on Cheltenham favourite Galopin Des Champs are strong. After victories with Al Boum Photo in 2019 and 2020, Mullins seemingly has every chance to do the double again, with Galopin Des Champs staying in great form ever since he crossed the finish line at the last festival.

Just three months ago, for instance, Galopin Des Champs pulled off an incredible 23-length success at Leopardstown, earning a Timeform rating of 181 that made him the highest-rated horse in training. He may as well have turned up to the event in a Mercedes Benz, and he still would have secured the same time. It’s clear that this horse is not content with a single famous trophy to his name, and with Willie Mullins calling the shots at the training ground, there aren’t many who are betting against them.

The Thing About Willie Mullins

It would be hard to open a livery yard as successful as Willie Mullins’, who is responsible for the most successful stable of horses ever to grace the Cheltenham Festival. As of 2024, he has as many as 94 wins to his name, with a clear aim to hit the century mark by the time Cheltenham Festival 2024 is over. As mentioned previously, he has already seen great festival success with Al Boum Photo, but apart from that, he has dozens of other wins to draw from.

The Champion Bumper, for instance, is an event he has won a record 12 times, and this is alongside his Champion Hurdle and Stayers’ Hurdle wins. If anyone knows what it takes to train a strong competitor, it’s Mullins, and having just won all eight of the Grade 1s at Dublin Racing Festival, he’s showing no signs of slowing down.

Is the Cheltenham Gold Cup Galopin Des Champs’ to Lose?

With all this being said, although Mullins is clearly a force to be reckoned with, he hasn’t been completely infallible at the Cheltenham Festival since his career began in 1988. Despite having trained horses at the tournament for thirty-six years, Mullins has only won the Gold Cup twice, having been pipped to the post in every tournament before 2019. In this way, it’s not a surefire thing that Mullins knows what he’s doing in this specific event, and while Galopin Des Champs is clearly a hot favourite, there are other horses who can challenge him.

Fastorslow, for instance, beat Galopin Des Champs twice last year, while Shishkin, Gerri Colombe, and L’Homme Press have all shown promising signs to pull off something special. The competition might not be as fierce as it has been in the past – and in many ways, the Gold Cup is Galopin Des Champs’ to lose – there is still competition, and as we all know, anything can happen on the day. While it looks likely that Galopin Des Champs will secure the double for Mullins – who might even surpass a century of Cheltenham wins this year! – there are plenty of other horses who have something to say about it.