Galopin to Gold glory for historic hat-trick

GALOPIN DES CHAMPS can land an historic third straight victory in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup Chase (GBB Race) (4pm) on the final day of the 2025 Cheltenham Festival.

- By CHRIS WRIGHT

Willie Mullins' nine-year-old can land the Grade One feature for a third successive season and join chasing immortals like five-time winner Golden Miller and hat-trick heroes Cottage Rake, Arkle and Best Mate.

Galopin Des Champs has already won 10 chases at Grade One level and completed a hat-trick of wins in the Irish Gold Cup on his most recent start at Leopardstown at the Dublin Racing Festival in February. That came off the back of a second successive success in the Grade One Savills Chase at Leopardstown and he is the leading staying chaser of his generation.

There doesn’t look to be any chinks in his amour as he travels, jumps and stays superbly and has saved his best for both the Irish Gold Cup and the blue riband at Cheltenham.

He can triumph again and give his trainer Mullins - who went years without winning the Gold Cup before the first of Al Boum Photo's two successes in 2019 - a fifth victory in the Cheltenham showpiece in the past seven years.