Franco De Port heads out on Grand Steeple-Chase trail for Mullins and Reveley

Sunday: Auteuil

Willie Mullins has conquered most summits in jump racing and has been a regular and successful visitor to Auteuil for more than 20 years.

One major prize that has eluded him though is the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris, but after Franco De Port finished a gallant third in May, Mullins may have found the horse with the right combination of jumping ability and stamina to mount a serious challenge.

It is with that target in mind that Franco De Port returns to Auteuil for France's second-most valuable chase, the Grade 1 Prix La Haye Jousselin (2.50).

Patrick Mullins is in Paris this weekend to oversee the challenge and said: "We've had a lot of luck here over hurdles but it's difficult to have one that can adapt to the French chases.

"His owners are very sporting because it's not cheap to come over, but when he ran so well in the Grand Steeple, we said why not gear his season around it.

"To have a winner in one of the main chases here would be very special."

Danny Mullins was the one to pick his way through the field from an unpromising position on Franco De Port in May and, although he was on duty at Auteuil on the stable's Stratum on Saturday, with dual Stayers' Hurdle hero Flooring Porter returning to action on Sunday at Navan, it will be France's reigning champion James Reveley who takes the ride.

James Reveley takes the ride on Franco De Port in the Prix La Haye JousselinCredit: Scoop Dyga / France Galop

Franco De Port ran a fine comeback when finishing fourth to stablemate Easy Game in the PWC Champion Chase over two and a half miles at Gowran Park last month.

"Getting him a prep run was important and he came back in a little bit earlier than the rest of our winter horses in order to have him ready for this," said Patrick Mullins.

"We're happy with him but the main thing is to get more experience of Auteuil. If he can win, fantastic, but we're building our season around the Grand Steeple."

Franco De Port attempts to become the first foreign-trained winner of the Haye Jousselin since Ian Williams won with Batman Senora in 2003.

The Mullins team may be used to challenging for major prizes at Cheltenham and Punchestown with numerical superiority but the boot is on the other foot here, with France's champion trainer Francois Nicolle responsible for five of the nine runners.

Last month Figuero won the Prix Heros XII – in which Grand National winner Noble Yeats was pulled up early on – at the head of a 1-2-3-4 for Nicolle, while Niko Has can be expected to improve for the extended 3m3f after just losing out to Franco De Port for third in the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris.

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