Jockeys & Trainers / Wayne Bailey / 08 October 2009 / Leave a comment

Wayne Bailey takes a look at the record of the man who looks set to dominate Irish racing once again this winter...

“Interestingly, Mullins’ most successful course over the past six years was Bellewstown where he shows a strike rate of 31%. Next comes Kilbeggan with a similar strike rate - while Limerick is some way behind at 25%.”

Willie Mullins needs no introduction.

His domination of the Irish National Hunt scene in recent years has been profound; alongside considerable success in the UK. Last season, he had arguably his strongest team ever and he looks set to continue his success in the upcoming 2009/2010 campaign. Already, the Irish are looking forward to Cheltenham!

I won't give a history lesson here; but the Mullins family are synonymous with Irish racing and Willie was a jockey of significant note before he took out a training licence in 1988. He actually continued to ride while training and is one of the few people that rode their own horse to victory at Cheltenham (Wither Or Which in the 1996 Champion Bumper) - but he eventually hung up the silks soon afterwards.

Whether or not it was his best horse, it's fair to say that Florida Pearl is the most popular he has ever trained and it was the one that put Mullins firmly on the map on both sides of the Irish Sea.

The bay had a huge following in Ireland and it was horses like this that got me seriously interested in racing back in the late 90s along with other greats like Istabraq (Aidan O'Brien) - and latterly Moscow Flyer (Jessica Harrington). It was a great time to get into in the sport - and a good time for Irish horses.

I know this sounds a bit Father Ted like, but Moscow Flyer actually got huge applause in our local St Patricks Day parade this year and it was great to 'meet' the horse once again!

Florida Pearl went on to win nine Grade One races including the King George at Kempton and remains one of Ireland's favourite horses. I've always been interested in racing but as I hit my late teens and early 20s, these horses made me realise just how exciting National Hunt can be.

Latterly, we've seen other stars emerge from the Mullins yard, most notably Mikael D'Haguenet, Cooldine and Quevega to name just three - and the first horse listed has been put in the notebook as one to follow seriously in the upcoming season. I saw the horse in the flesh at Punchestown and he looks an outstanding prospect.

Here's a quick look at the stand out stats (all data is from 2003 to 2009):

Courses

Interestingly, Mullins' most successful course over the past six years was Bellewstown where he shows a strike rate of 31%. Next comes Kilbeggan with a similar strike rate - while Limerick is some way behind at 25%. Irish punters would most associate Mullins with Punchestown; and out of 431 races at the Kildare venue since 2003, he's had 84 winners. In fact, he manages to show a profit overall at Punchestown but the layers put a stop to that in 2009 and the prices of his horses were suitably trimmed!

Races

Mullins has always been associated with outstanding bumper horses and that is reflected in his win rate when broken down by race: Hurdle (18%), Chase (20%), Bumper (24%).

Indeed, had you backed his bumper horses blindly since 2003, you'd show a profit of 37 points - but once again the well ran dry in 2009 as the layers adapted the prices accordingly.

Jockeys

Mullins is lucky enough to have one of the best in the business at his disposal and Ruby Walsh has a strike-rate of 25% when riding for Willie. However, with Ruby now largely based in the UK, Mullins often employs others to ride with varying success. Perhaps the most noteworthy in recent times was young Patrick Mullins - a jockey I've noted on these pages before; and Willie's son has shown a level stakes profit in past two years with a fantastic overall strike-rate of 28%. Ruby's sister Katie is also a notable booking and has shown a very good win-rate over the past couple of years. I'm also a big fan of Paul Townend and have sung his praises on these pages in the past.

Irish Champion Trainer?

I can't find markets on this as yet but I doubt you'll find good odds on Mullins retaining his title when the betting starts. It's fair to say that his main adversary Noel Meade hasn't quite had the same firepower in recent times and it's hard to see anyone but Mullins taking the championship again. Then again, you never know what's around the corner and a clearer picture should emerge by the New Year.

As usual, your thoughts and comments are welcome so feel free to make a post below.

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Tags: Cheltenham, Cooldine, Irish Racing, Mikael D'Haguenet, National Hunt 2009/2010, Patrick Mullins, Quevega, Ruby Walsh, Trainer Championship, Wayne Bailey, Willie Mullins