On Sunday, the eyes of the racing world turned to Cheltenham for the final day of the November Meeting. As ever, Prestbury Park delivered a cracking afternoon of action headlined by Alexei’s excellent Greatwood Gold Cup success for Joe Tizzard. No doubt many of the November meeting runners will return in March, but there may have been more Cheltenham Festival Grade 1 stars on show in Ireland.
Kicking off on Sunday, the two-day fixture from Navan featured six contests rated at Listed level or above and an eye-catching list of entries from the leading Irish yards. Included among that number were a pair of Willie Mullins stars expected to take high rank in the novice chase division this season.
Final Demand and Kopek Des Bordes were the horses in question. Both started at prohibitively short odds, and both enhanced their claims of success on the biggest stage of all.
Final Demand Delivers on Chase Debut
Final Demand was the first to take to the track in the Race and Stay Irish EBF Beginners Chase. One of the more imposing specimens in the Mullins yard, this strapping sort has looked like a chaser since making his rules debut in December 2024. It’s a testament to his raw ability that he won three of four starts over hurdles last season, including Grade 1 events at Leopardstown and Punchestown. The only minor blip came when third behind The New Lion and The Yellow Clay in the Turners Novices’ Hurdle.
Race And Stay Irish EBF Beginners Chase 2025 Result
| Pos. | Horse | SP | Trainer | Jockey |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Final Demand | 2/7 | Willie Mullins | Paul Townend |
| 2 | Wingmen | 5/1 | Gordon Elliott | Jack Kennedy |
| 3 | Now Is The Hour | 33/1 | Gavin Cromwell | Sean Flanagan |
Despite that hurdling talent, Final Demand skips open hurdles and moves straight into novice chasing in 2025/26. On the evidence of this display, it’s easy to see why connections have made that decision. Sent off as the red-hot 2/7 favourite, the mount of Paul Townend was in a different league to these rivals. Foot-perfect at his obstacles, Final Demand only needed to be shaken up to forge 13 lengths clear on the run to the line.
This win completed a fine weekend for owners Bryan Drew and Caroline Tisdall, who claimed the November Meeting centrepiece of the Paddy Power Gold Cup with Panic Attack. Reflecting on this dominant display, Bryan Drew said:
“He’s categorically the best horse I’ve owned, without hesitation.”
That’s some statement from a man who celebrated three Grade 1 triumphs with Bravemansgame, including the 2022 King George VI Chase. However, it’s hard to disagree. Final Demand ended his novice hurdle season with a rating of 158 – eight pounds higher than Bravemansgame at the same stage of his career. If he builds on the promise of this run, it’s easy to see the Walk In The Park gelding landing a Grade 1 over fences sooner rather than later.
A trip to Limerick for the Faugheen Novice Chase may be next on the agenda, followed by an appearance at the Dublin Racing Festival. Should all go to plan, Final Demand will then tackle the Brown Advisory Novice Chase at the Cheltenham Festival – a race for which he is now the clear favourite at a best price of 7/4.
Kopek Des Bordes a Class Apart
Mullins’ star turn on Monday afternoon lined up in the Pat Sheils Memorial Irish EBF Beginners Chase. Following a novice hurdle season which included a 13-length rout in the Grade 1 Tattersalls Ireland Novice Hurdle and Supreme Novices’ Hurdle glory, the Champion Hurdle looked like a legitimate option for Kopek Des Bordes.
Like Final Demand, this son of No Risk At All switches to the larger obstacles for a novice chase campaign. On the pick of his hurdling form, odds of 2/9 looked perfectly fair for this chase debut. However, Kopek Des Bordes did have a slight question to answer following a dismal effort in the KPMG Champion Novice Hurdle when last sighted in April.
Pat Sheils Memorial Irish EBF Beginners Chase 2025 Result
| Pos. | Horse | SP | Trainer | Jockey |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kopek Des Bordes | 2/9 | Willie Mullins | Paul Townend |
| 2 | Lovely Hurling | 9/2 | Colm Murphy | Mark Walsh |
| 3 | Shraheen | 50/1 | Philip Fenton | Darragh O’Keeffe |
Whatever went wrong that day at Punchestown remains a mystery, but the 202-day break seems to have done Kopek Des Bordes the world of good. Looking as though the pace of his rivals was merely holding him back from an early stage, the five-year-old responded emphatically when allowed to lengthen his stride. Hitting the front after the fourth fence, he sauntered along at the head of affairs before drawing effortlessly clear in the straight to score by 13 lengths.
Mullins previously won this race with the supremely talented duo of Vautour (2014) and Douvan (2015). Neither of those Rich Ricci stars could match this double-figure winning margin, but both went on to novice chase success at the Cheltenham Festival – Vautour winning the JLT Novices’ Chase and Douvan the Arkle Chase.
Given his speed and the way he attacked the Navan fences, the Arkle Chase looks the obvious target for Kopek Des Bordes. On the back of this effort, Mullins’ latest two-mile chase star is the clear Arkle favourite at a best price of 2/1.