Champion Irish trainer Willie Mullins has dominated the first day of the Cheltenham Festival winning three of the four Grade One races.
The afternoon did not quite begin as many had expected, but there was an unerring sense of inevitability about rest of the day.
Min’s defeat by Altior in the Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle fleetingly muted those hordes of punters who had jumped on the Willie Mullins-Ruby Walsh-Rich Ricci bandwagon.
The subsequent shift in power was as dramatic as it was expected – normal service resumed.
The star name, of course, was Annie Power, whose 4-1/2 length defeat of My Tent Or Yours in the Champion Hurdle was stunning.
A more-than-able deputy for the injured Faugheen, she also became the first mare since Flakey Dove in 1994 to win the great race – and with it exorcising the ghosts of her final-flight fall at last year’s Festival.
“I thought she could win, but I didn’t think she could do it like that, coming off that preparation (just one race since last May),” Mullins said.
“She’s exceeded all my expectations.”
Earlier in the day, stablemate Douvan (1-4 favourite) stuck to his end of the deal in the Arkle Trophy with a crushing defeat of compatriot Sizing John.
“We think he could be a Champion Chase horse or he could be a Gold Cup horse. We just don’t know,” Mullins said.
“We think he could be anything and he hasn’t disproved that there.”
For good measure, the Ricci silks were carried by Walsh and Vroum Vroum Mag to a similarly uncompromising victory in the Mares’ Hurdle.
“Her work during the week was awesome and we all wondered whether we had put the right mare in the Champion Hurdle,” Mullins said.
“Ruby seemed to be cruising all the time.”
Nico de Boinville, too, must have experienced something like complete control after 4-1 chance Altior slammed Min by seven lengths in the Supreme.
“Hopefully Altior will be back here next year, but whether that is over hurdles or fences, I wouldn’t like to say just yet,” trainer Nicky Henderson said.
