Galopin Des Champs is a thoroughbred horse that competes in the National Hunt. It’s one of the most famed horses around right now after it won the Gold Cup at the Cheltenham Festival earlier in 2023. While it was already held in high regard, the Gold Cup win really put the French-bred gelding on the map and is now one of the most exciting horses to watch.
Because of its success in the Gold Cup, there’s a clamour when news of Galopin Des Champs running surfaces. And as a fine chaser, there are plenty of options coming up where races are concerned, but it will come down to fitness and performances.
Over the upcoming festive period, there are two races that Galopin Des Champs could enter. There’s the iconic King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day. But there’s also the opportunity to run in the Grade 1 Savills Chase at Leopardstown on the 28th of December.
After the festive period, the next time Galopin Des Champs will race is at the 2024 Cheltenham Festival, where, according to Cheltenham Gold Cup odds, he’s the favourite to win. If Galopin Des Champs were to defend his crown, he’d be the first to do so since Al Boum Photo.
Galopin Des Champs Recent Form
Galopin Des Champs enjoyed great success over hurdles, winning three of six races with one second before progressing on to chasing as expected. His chasing career has gone great so far, and he’s now deemed one of the best since his Gold Cup success at Cheltenham 2023.
If you go back to December of 2022, since then, Galopin Des Champs has run five times. He won three of those races, which included his impressive Gold Cup win, where he finished seven lengths clear of Bravemansgame, proving he’s a horse that is made for the big occasions.
A second and a third then followed, both at Punchestown, with Fastorslow winning on both occasions. The hope will be that Galopin Des Champs can get back to winning ways in his next race, taking that form into the Cheltenham Gold Cup, where defending his crown will be the priority.
Who trains Galopin Des Champs?
Legendary trainer Willie Mullins trains Galopin Des Champs. Mullins, a seventeen-time National Hunt Champion Trainer, is one of the most outstanding horse racing trainers of all time. Mullins has dominated the Cheltenham Festival for decades, and you will often see his runners high up where horse racing odds are concerned.
Mullins, 67, has trained Galopin Des Champs since November 2020, where he trained him to success in the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle at the 2021 Cheltenham Festival and then the Irish Mirror Novice Hurdle at Punchestown the month after.
Since the 2021/22 season, Mullins, alongside jockey Paul Townend, have guided Galopin Des Champs to further successes in the Dr P. J. Moriarty Novice Chase, Fairyhouse Gold Cup, John Durkan Memorial Punchestown Chase and Irish Gold Cup. This all culminated in a comfortable victory in the 2023 Cheltenham Gold Cup, Mullins’ third time winning the iconic race.
Galopin Des Champs could run on Boxing Day, but King George VI Chase odds have him placed as an outsider to win. As mentioned above, winning the Cheltenham Gold Cup for the second year running is the priority. And if it happens, it would mean Mullins has trained two Gold Cup winners, who have both won the race and then come back the year after and won it again, the other being Al Boum Photo in 2019 and 2020.
