Mullins awards Facile Vega "nearly 11 and a half" out of ten

Willie Mullins was once again full of praise for Facile Vega after seeing his star youngster stamp his class on the Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown.

The outstanding performer in the bumper sphere last season with wins at the Dublin Racing Festival, the Cheltenham Festival and the Punchestown Festival, the five-year-old made a smooth transition to the jumping game at Fairyhouse earlier in the month.

Returning to Grade One level, the son of Walk In The Park and six-time Cheltenham Festival heroine Quevega was the 2-9 favourite to make it six from six and the result was never really in doubt.

After initially taking a lead from Il Etait Temps, Facile Vega almost jumped into the back of his stablemate at the first hurdle and was subsequently allowed to stride on in front.

Il Etait Temps hung in there and tried to throw down a renewed challenge from the home turn, but Facile Vega was in full command as he passed the post with four lengths in hand. Ashroe Diamond stayed on from the rear to make it a Mullins one-two-three.

When asked to give his star youngster a mark out of 10, Mullins said: “I’d nearly have to give him 11 and a half, I think!

“Plan A obviously went out the window after the first hurdle. Thankfully Il Etait Temps didn’t bring him down, Paul said he was very close to it because he absolutely winged the hurdle.

“Then he had no lead and had to go and make his own running. He did it well, he got very free at the first hurdle down the back and took some jump at it. I was delighted to see that but I knew he couldn’t keep that up.

“Paul got him back, got him into a slower rhythm and got him jumping better. He said he was still racing in his hands the whole way but he eventually settled for him.

“I think he’ll learn an awful lot today. The big crowd and all the buzz before the race itself, all that will be a help for him in the future.”

Facile Vega remains an evens favourite with Betfair to provide the champion trainer with a record eighth win in the Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March.

The longer Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle is an alternative option, but when asked if he will stick to two miles, Mullins added: “I wouldn’t be looking for anything else.”

Dysart Dynamo threw his hat into the Sporting Life Arkle ring with a foot-perfect display in the Paddy Power “From The Horse’s Mouth Podcast” Beginners Chase at Leopardstown.

A brilliant winner of last season’s Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle, the Willie Mullins-trained six-year-old subsequently fell three from home when still travelling well in the Supreme at Cheltenham.

He failed to fire on his final outing of the campaign at the Punchestown Festival, but was nevertheless a warm order to make a successful reappearance and chasing debut as the 2-5 favourite.

Those who took the cramped odds will have had few concerns, with the keen-going gelding quickly pulling clear of his rivals and jumping accurately in front throughout in the hands of Paul Townend.

With his chief rival Slip Of The Tongue an early faller, Dysart Dynamo rounded the home turn with a massive lead and skipped over the final fence to seal a 28-length success over Irascible.

Betfair cut the winner’s Arkle odds to 5-1 from 11-1, while he is 12-1 from 20s for the longer Turners Novices’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.

Mullins said: “He was pretty fast over the first couple of fences but then he settled into a rhythm. He threw in a huge jump at the first ditch down the back, but then Paul seemed to pull him back and get him into a better rhythm – he measured and jumped his fences from there on home without any problems.

“He is what you see – he gallops and jumps. He does that at home and the few times I’ve brought him away to school he’s done the same thing. He just gets out there and loves jumping and galloping.

“I think he’s settled a lot better over fences than he did over hurdles. That’s what I took from the first time I saw him schooling on grass. He really looks at his fences and takes notice of them, he wasn’t taking any notice of hurdles. That will be a big plus with him in the future.

“If you were going to draw a chaser, he’s the one you’d like.”

When asked whether a return to Leopardstown for the Irish Arkle in February could be on the agenda, the Closutton handler added: “We have a lot of horses that would fit that bill and we’ll see if there are alternatives for some of them.

“He came here and did it, so if you were coming back over course and distance he’d be one of the favourites to come back here.”

The champion trainer also claimed the opening Paddy Power “I Have No Idea What Day It Is” 3-Y-O Maiden Hurdle with the promising Tekao.

Beaten into third place when odds-on for his Irish debut at Navan last month, the French recruit rewarded those who kept the faith with a cosy half-length success over Ascending under Mark Walsh.

Paddy Power cut Tekao to 25-1 from 33-1 for the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham, with his stablemate Lossiemouth a hot favourite at 6-4 following her runaway success on Monday.

“He took a keen hold but Mark said he was travelling well all the time. He was happy that he had come on from his last run so we’re very pleased with him,” said Mullins.

“He’ll have to step up in class. We’ll see what way this race works out but any time you win a three-year-old maiden around Leopardstown, it’s usually a good sign.”