This afternoon at Cork Racecourse, Mallow, the Willie Mullins-trained duo of Chacun Pour Soi and Bachasson are set to clash in the Grade 3 Bar One Racing Chase.
A field of five runners will contest the three-mile race which is littered with interesting angles as the Ciaran Murphy-trained Ronald Pump, twice runner-up behind Honeysuckle, is joined by the Emmet Mullins-trained Feronily, an impressive Point to Point winner who will be having his first start over fences on the racecourses.
Six-time winner The Little Yank completes the line-up for trainer John Ryan who won the race with Waitnsee in 2021.
Bachasson is coming off the back of a successful reappearance at Clonmel last month when bridging a two year absence to win impressively and Patrick Mullins has hailed the 12-year-old as “an incredible horse.”
The champion amateur jockey and assistant trainer to his father Willie added, “He has won 16 races in total and won his last six. He has never won over three miles although he did run in a Gold Cup and I don’t see why it should be a problem.
“The bigger worry is maybe coming back quick after a long lay-off but he seems to have come out of his Clonmel race very well and no doubt he will run well again. He has been an incredible horse and is a real yard favourite. Usually as horses get older they get white but he seems to be a Peter Pan and a steel grey which is quite unusual.”
Seán Flanagan will partner Bachasson while Mullins has booked last month’s dual Cheltenham Festival winning jockey Michael O’Sullivan for Grade 1 winner Chacun Pour Soi.
Patrick Mullins said: “Chacun Pour Soi is stepping up to three miles and it is a little bit of a shot in the dark. He has to give away an awful lot of weight which won’t make life easy on him either.
“But Chacun Pour Soi has won at Cork before so we are just hoping he can get somewhere back to his best form as he doesn’t seem to be at his best this season so far.”
O’Sullivan will also partner an interesting contender L’yser in the Bar One Racing Price Boosts Everyday Easter Handicap Hurdle for trainer Barry Connell.
The six-year-old won nicely at Fairyhouse last time out and takes on a competitive field of 13 rivals including other recent winners Spillane’s Tower and Heliko Conti.
A field of eight runners go to post for the Bar One Racing Bet €10 Get €50 Sign Up Offer Hurdle. The Willie Mullins-trained Cash Back is joined by stable companion Mister Policeman who is making his debut for the Closutton team.
The Gordon Elliott-trained Fils D’oudairies is an interesting runner having won nicely at Leopardstown last time out while the Noel Meade-trained Cask Mate returns jumping for the first time since last year’s Cheltenham Festival.
