Cameras at the ready as Gold Cup hero Al Boum Photo returns at Tramore

2.20 Tramore
Savills New Year's Day Chase | Grade 3 | 2m5½f, 5yo+ | RTV

If you want a photo of the reigning Magners Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, you better get to Tramore on New Year's Day.

Al Boum Photo, the horse who ended Willie Mullins' long wait for Gold Cup glory, will bid to chart a familiar path towards defending his Festival crown with back-to-back victories in Tramore's big race, which has been elevated to Grade 3 status.

A Grade 1-winning novice chaser, Al Boum Photo sauntered to victory here 12 months ago, his only start before that momentous Gold Cup win under Paul Townend, and Mullins has identified the soft ground at Tramore as one of the main reasons for coming back to the County Waterford track.

Mullins said: "We're looking forward to getting him out. Ground is all important for him and we're keen to go down for soft ground at Tramore."

The champion trainer, who is also a director at Tramore, has not been afraid to run some of his best horses at the track in recent years.

Along with the Gold Cup winner, classy sorts Penhill, Airlie Beach, Laurina and more recently Dolcita have won races at Tramore for Mullins, who will also be represented by Voix Du Reve and Acapella Bourgeois in Wednesday's feature.

Mullins added: "Hopefully it will be a good day for everyone down at Tramore. When the ground was too good everywhere else last season, Tramore provided soft ground for us."

For the manager of the track, Owen Byrne, Al Boum Photo's return to Tramore represents a great boon for the local community. Byrne is expecting Al Boum Photo to help attract a crowd in excess of 6,000.

He said: "Little did we know what we were getting last season and we're just thrilled to get him back. The race has been upgraded to a Grade 3 and it's just brilliant that we're getting a quality field."

He continued: "Shattered Love is also a high-class mare in her own right and is a Cheltenham Festival winner, so the ingredients are there for a great race.

"The ground is soft and we've fresh ground on both the hurdle and chase track. Willie has been hugely supportive of us, and more and more trainers have been willing to send nice horses down to Tramore in recent times.

"We had 6,000 here on New Year's Day 2019, which was double the previous year's attendance, and we're hoping to have a minimum of 6,000 here again. We're expecting massive numbers based on the number of phonecalls we've been getting."

Love out to shatter Mullins' trio

Al Boum Photo led home a 1-2-3 for Mullins in this race 12 months ago and, numerically speaking, the trainer is well placed to repeat the feat with three of the four runners hailing from Closutton. However, in the Gordon Elliott-trained Shattered Love, Mullins' trio won't have it all their own way.

The mudloving Shattered Love, winner of the 2018 JLT Novices' Chase, should not be discounted according to Eddie O'Leary, racing manager for owners Gigginstown House Stud.

Shattered Love: the brilliant JLT Novices' Chase winner from 2018 has race fitness on her sideCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

O'Leary said: "In a Grade 1 she'd get 7lb off Al Boum Photo, but she gets 18lb off him here so she has to have a chance. That brings them closer together. She's a nice mare and she's race-fit. Hopefully the ground is soft enough down there. We'll give it a go."

Mullins' trio is completed by Voix Du Reve and Acapella Bourgeois, and he added: "They'll have their work cut out on the conditions of the race. It's the first run back over fences for Acapella Bourgeois but the ground and trip will suit him.

"Voix Du Reve had a nice run in the John Durkan and this race will bring him on for some spring targets."

Tramore's feature contest at 2.20 is sandwiched between races at Musselburgh (2.15) and Exeter (2.25), both of which are also Racing TV tracks, and the broadcaster is offering a dedicated Irish channel again, available on the RTV Extra digital platforms.

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