'Mullins had 12 winners in 14 festivals - the era of Quevega changed everything'

Festival Legends: Quevega

Great horses come in all shapes and sizes, but it's fair to say that when future six-time festival queen Quevega walked off the lorry at Closutton, Willie Mullins was somewhat underwhelmed with what he saw.

The raw talent was clearly there – that much was obvious from a trio of wins in AQPS bumpers for Bertrand de Watrigant – but Mullins wondered what his French agent Pierre Boulard had found for him when she arrived small in stature.

Sixteen months later, in March 2009, she would head to Cheltenham to contest the second running of the Mares' Hurdle at a time when the Mullins juggernaut at Cheltenham had yet to really get rolling. The trainer had notched 12 winners at the meeting, but those had been spread across 14 festivals and he had only twice left Prestbury Park with a double at the end of the week.