Ballyburn Cheltenham 2025

Very doubtful **.

After Impaire Et Passe last season, i would have thought 'no way he stays over hurdles'.

Mullins' comments in the media suggest he is seriously considering the champion hurdle.

If he goes chasing, I agree with you that the RSA would be favourite. But it's likely he'd go via the 2 1/2 mile race at the DRF (where there isn't a 3 m novice chase).

alot depends on form /well been of constit hill.mullins isnt going to throw 3 big darts ,state man,lossimouth and ballybarn at beat a peak constit hill when 2 other races would look like a possible  pen kick for lossy and ballyburn

I have spent most of this season arguing the case for Ballymore over Supreme, and ended up fully vindicated. Had the trainer ran the horse over the right trip to begin with there would have been no argument, and he would still be unbeaten.

Now after his frankly bonkers comments after the Ballymore, the media have jumped on the ludicrous idea of him wasting a season being cut back in trip (again), and targeting the Champion Hurdle. Is the trainer contrary or stupid? This is the best trainer we have got, but too often he spouts absolute rubbish.

You are absolutely right next season he should be campaigned as a staying novice chaser with a view to winning the Gold Cup the following season at age 8. If you choose to waste a year then it will be 9 unless you miss out a novice chase season. Then you have the issue of forcing a horse to do something that is not a natural fit which could eventually sour them. You only have to look at his pedigree. It would make sense to start at two and a half with a target of either Turners or Brown Advisory. The other two shouldn't even be on the list.

I hope this doesn't drag out again, and he is persuaded that he is talking absolute rubbish. The Gold Cup should be the priority, not fantasy land stuff.

Well said dad. It's obvious to serious racing people the gold cup is the target in 2 years. You target the 3 mile novice over Christmas at leopardstown. The one grangeclare west won. Think fact to file was 2nd. 7 is the perfect age for the brown advisory giving you 2 realistic chances of the gold cup aged 8 and 9. Just look at fact to file. 7-2 for next year's gold cup. So are we all getting on the slick train at 12s for the brown advisory...

..Well, I reckon Ballyburn could win over 2 miles, 3 miles, 4 miles, or 26 miles and 172 yards.
Over, hurdles , fences, or parked cars.

After the amount of money he won for me at Cheltenham, I have taken down all the photographs of my wife and children, and replaced them with his !

Mullins should be applauded for trying to do the Dawn Run thing winning and winning the Champion and Gold Cup with the same horse, the hardest bit for this horse is winning the Champion. Could soon find out and target it at whatever race State Man usually wins and see how he gets on or run it in the Fighting Fifth.

I'd rather this bold approach than the 1 or 2 runs and play it safe trainer

There's something in  that Richgit - it's possible to view Ballyburn's form as very strong indeed. At the DRF, over 2 miles, he easily beat the Supreme winner, who was well ahead of the third, with the County Hurdle winner in fourth. Earlier in the season, that Supreme winner beat the Albert Bartlett and Martin Pipe winners.

While I think pretty much everyone agrees 2 m over hurdles is not optimal for BB, he might be good enough to win a champion hurdle anyway. Having him there with State Man, Lossiemouth, and Constitution Hill (once upon a time a racehorse) would certainly add lustre to a division that's been lacking it for a few years. I concede going down the champion hurdle route might not be the best option for Ballyburn (only time will tell), but it could be good for the sport.

Stront.......Over two miles, I reckon Townsend would set off in front, and gradually break the hearts of those behind him............then again, I am totally biased, and infatuated ....lol

as ballyburn looks a strong stayer and some think lossimouth could have won ch hu as a 5 yr old, who,s to say the jp triumph winner or 2nd in the supreme couldnt /wouldnt beat ballyburn over 2 miles,yet alone established ch hurdlers

..........WHAT ??........blasphemy

Nobody will know until they race against each other, the way Mulllins campaigns his horses you will soon find out.
Thankfully the horse is with Mullins and not Henderson

Of course FTP - that's why races are run on the track, not discussion forums.

I have a suspicion that the CH route will be followed. WM has won loads of big races, just as AO'B/Coolmore have on the flat. There must be a little bit of a stone his shoe about doing the same as his dad, as there is. I think, with Coolmore trying to get a Triple Crown winner. As one gets older, with lots of success already achieved, the attraction of "The Big One" becomes greater (unless you are NH of course!). I have no idea about the character of Mr Bartlett ( and the other co-owner) but he does seem ......capable of persuasion (I recall a late switch by Simonsig many years ago). It rather depends if you are just after victory or total, complete,eternal glory. I have no doubt that Ballyburn represents the best chance I have seen for a couple of decades of emulating Dawn Run but every choice comes with risks attached.

...Good post Sir...

I'm in no doubt that Ballyburn would've won the Supreme easy enough, that doesn't mean though that that distance is his best. Must be great to have a horse where you have all these options.

Just seen the mullins write up in post. Bartlett has got to take control here. If mullins wants the special double why did he not attempt it this year? Worst champion hurdle in living memory won by a good but not great state man. Who beat a load of mediocre 2m horses by a couple of lengths. Ballyburn would have had an excellent chance. We don't know if he would have won. If you spend another year hurdling speed will be blunted. He is a STAYER. If he stays hurdling he has to win the big one. Then what. An 8 year old novice chase campaign. Too old to go novice chasing leaving you with one realistic gold cup chance as a 9 year old. Or go straight into 3m open company as an 8 year old. Very risky. The obvious path is brown advisory then 2 great chances of 2 gold cups. This idea of staying hurdling needs to be shelved. Anyway I'm on at 12s for brown advisory. Wont hurt. Great value as it is the race he SHOULD be aimed at.

...Good luck with your bet Slick.......I'm going to wait till the stable video tours are shown next year, to try and glean a clue from WM.

...Good luck with your bet Slick.......I'm going to wait till the stable video tours are shown next year, to try and glean a clue from WM.

as DD says the problem is his age..already six..so if he stays hurdling thats seven, then novice chasing thats eight and evenyually a Gold Cup at nine..so too old really

Dawn Run won it as , effectively, a novice having her novice season reduced to 1 race by injury. If WM was minded to try to emulate her I would have thought it would be on the basis that he would have no qualms running him as a novice. For my own part, I would take the view that with a horse of this immense ability, the season "wasted" would be that spent winning 4 runner novice chases at 1/8 and another procession in the Browns Brothers. This horse should be running in open company for the rest of his life imho.

7 champion hurdle, 5 arkle, 7/2 turners, 12 browns

...4/6 your money

priced up like its there on the day already

crackers imo

what price is he to even be fit on the day & running in the browns...6/1?

differentdrum 19 Mar 24 11:19 
I have spent most of this season arguing the case for Ballymore over Supreme, and ended up fully vindicated.

Do you think that the horse that he battered at the DRF would have somehow reversed the form in the Supreme should Ballyburn have run in it, if you do then you can feel vindicated, what most think I would imagine is that Mullins took the gimme hoping that one of his others would get the job done in his stead, as it turned out he won the lesser of the two races.

The likely truth is that if BB ran in the Supreme, he'd have won that and SS would have won the Ballymore.

SS winning the Supreme allayed the argument about the apparent worry of BB not having the pace because SS wasn't one of the 2 milers that were supposed to have the pace to trouble him, SS was a horse that was supposed to be more at home to the longer race just like BB was, as it transpired the 2 mile speedsters weren't a factor.

If connections knew beforehand what the ground conditions on the day were going to be the likelihood is that BB would have run in the Supreme.

What I'm trying to get at is that it is extremely hard to argue that what SS did in the Supreme wouldn't have been replicated and probably to an even more impressive degree should BB had been there instead of SS, certainly on what we've seen between the two horses previously.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/xtb42kYmymdHvmYJ/

Of course it was fully vindicated. He was the most impressive winner of the meeting, and one of the best ever winners of the Ballymore. He won in a manner that suggested he will be even better over further.

Even if you believe he would have won the Supreme it's crazy to think he would have won by 15 lengths running away. The Ballymore was always the right option for the horse, and consequently, the easier option as well.

Ground was always going be testing on the opening day, and it's ridiculous to pretend that you knew what connections would have done.

he beat a 66 shot stablemate ,looking far less impressive than the likes of sir gerhard did in a harder race for example, and he,s now known as SIR WHO,despite been tipped to win boat race,fa cup,ch hurdle,gold cup ,stayer,s  etc ,etc after winning ballymore