Willie Mullins and Paul Townend were the toast of Cheltenham on Tuesday after landing a treble with three well-backed favourites as Gaelic Warrior, State Man and Lossiemouth won their respective races.
Ahead of the meeting, Cork jockey Townend spoke of the pressure on his shoulders riding such fancied horses at Prestbury Park, but after Tuesday's treble he stated: "The pressure is a privilege."
The 33-year-old added: "There's no doubt about that, anyone would want it, but it's pressure at the same time and it's a relief when it goes right."
READ MORE:Rachael Blackmore wins opening race of the Cheltenham Festival to maintain incredible day 1 record
On where Tuesday ranked in terms of his days in the saddle, Townend said: "Any day you come here with a winner is huge and I wouldn't be here without Willie. From the first day I had a ride here, he brought me through nicely and I'm just fortunate for all the work of everyone at home and the other jockeys and everyone wins together. I'm just the fortunate one who gets to ride the very good ones."
The successes took Mullins to just three wins away from reaching the milestone of 100 winners at the Festival and with a number of other strongly fancied favourites to come on Wednesday, it would be no surprise if he achieves it by this evening.
Gaelic Warrior (2/1) got the ball rolling for the Closutton team on Tuesday by winning the Arkle after Mystical Power was just denied in the opener for the champion trainer.
And some 80 minutes later, Townend made his way back into the winners enclosure after winning the Champion Hurdle on board State Man to give the jockey his first success in the race - and the trainer his fifth.
Wearing the colours of former bookie and art collector Joe Donnelly's wife Marie, Townend saluted the crowd as the winning owners added a championship race to Al Boum Photo's two Gold Cup successes after the 2/5 favourite powered into the race and came home ahead of the Gordon Elliott-trained Irish Point in second.
And Mullins and Townend were celebrating once again in the next race as Lossiemouth won the Mares' Hurdle by beating the Rachael Blackmore-ridden Telmesomethinggirl by three lengths.
So impressive was the Rich Ricci-owned mare that she was cut into 7/2 to win next year's Champion Hurdle by betting firms after the race.
The former Barclays boss said afterwards: “It's fantastic. Unbelievable. One hundred per cent I’d like to bring her back here next year - that's been the plan.
“Let’s see if she is up for it and able for it, but that is the plan. She’s been wonderful to own, and she’d be undefeated if she hadn’t run into trouble at Leopardstown last year, and I’m delighted with her. We’ve been very lucky with our mares. She’s brilliant.”
While punters will rejoice in pubs all over Cheltenham and much further afield, bookies are licking their wounds.
Brian O'Keeffe, spokesperson for BoyleSports, said: "Paul Townend and Willie Mullins dominated the opening day with a short-priced treble that has left us licking our wounds. Lossiemouth was the nail in the coffin for the bookies, but with three days of top-class action to come, the battle isn't over yet!"
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Nicola McGeady of Ladbrokes added: “Punters have hit the ground running on day one of the Cheltenham Festival. With the bankers obliging and some, it has been a day to forget for the bookies. However, with three more days to go, it’s still all to play for.”
Meanwhile, Blackmore maintained her incredible Festival opening day record by winning a race on the Tuesday for a sixth consecutive time.
The Tipperary jockey rode Slade Steel (7/2) to victory in the first race of the meeting for Henry de Bromhead, with the horse battling brilliantly up the famous hill to beat Mystical Power.
Slade Steel's success in the Supreme Novices' Hurdle followed opening day victories for Blackmore on Honeysuckle (Mares Hurdle 2020 and 2023 & Champion Hurdle 2021 and 2022) after a handicap chase win on A Plus Tard in 2019, which was the jockey's first ever Festival victory.
Blackmore said afterwards: “It’s unbelievable, I just love this place. It’s just amazing to be coming here and riding these kinds of horses. It’s unbelievable. Henry’s training of them every year, to bring them here in the way he does, is incredible. Davy Roche and all his team at home do some job with all the horses."
She added: “It’s what every jockey wants to happen - to win the first race, to get that done. Getting to win the first race on the Tuesday is just massive. I’ve been so lucky here the last couple of years on the Tuesday, and I can’t believe my luck is continuing.
“I knew I had a really good chance coming into the race. He’s a really, really tough horse with a massive future. He battled back really well after the line, and I think he won with a little bit [in hand] as well. It was a really good performance."
De Bromhead commented: “Rachael was superb, brilliant as usual. Cool as a breeze. She said she couldn’t believe how well she was going turning in. I was slagging her, saying she obviously wanted a lead longer to let the other horse go past her, but no, she said the horse was just a little bit slow at the last and that probably helped her. It was brilliant.
“This is an amazing place. We’ve had a lot of luck here. It’s done so well, they look after us so well; it’s a cliche, but it’s our Olympics and we’re lucky to be able to take part.”
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