Al Boum Photo calms Mullins' nerves as Gold Cup hero strikes on Tramore return

They came to see a star at Tramore on New Year’s Day and Al Boum Photo did not disappoint.

The reigning Gold Cup winner did not have a lot to beat on paper, but the style in which he landed back-to-back victories in the Savills Chase meant everyone went home happy, including his trainer.

“I was more nervous there than when I was watching the Gold Cup,” Willie Mullins said after Al Boum Photo and Paul Townend pulled six lengths clear of stablemate Acapella Bourgeois.

He added: “He jumped well and Paul was positive on him – he got a good blow into him. I was very happy, I couldn't be happier by how the day worked out.”

It could be deemed a reflection of how open the Gold Cup market is but some bookmakers decided to cut Al Boum Photo into a clear market leader with Betfair cutting his odds from 6-1 to 9-2 after the race.

Regarding the big race, Mullins is tempted to adopt an if it is not broken, do not try and fix it policy, and revealed Al Boum Photo would more than likely head straight to Cheltenham after taking Tramore’s feature race of the year – just as he did last year.

Mullins said: “We're probably going to go straight to Cheltenham. When a plan works we might leave it at that. We'll see what happens but I'm leaning towards going straight to Cheltenham. I'll have a word with connections – Mr and Mrs Donnelly – and see what they want to do.”

Al Boum Photo and Paul Townend return to the winner's enclosure at TramoreCredit: Healy Racing

There was a genuine feel-good factor about the Gold Cup winner coming back to where it all began for him last season and, asked about the occasion, Mullins, who is also a director at the track, said: “It was a bumper crowd here and I'm sure the weather was a huge help but having a horse like Al Boum Photo was no deterrent.”

Mullins, who has run the likes of Laurina, Airlie Beach and Penhill at Tramore in recent years, added: “It's been a while since I was at Tramore on New Year's Day myself. We're very pleased by how the whole day worked out.”

Townend echoed the thoughts of Mullins and, had he been holding a scorecard afterwards, it would have been a big fat ten out of ten from the champion jockey.

He said: “It’s brilliant to have him back and he couldn’t have done it any better – it’s a bit of pressure off anyway. I wanted to keep it as simple as I could and I was able to jump and get any position I wanted. He was giving away a fair chunk of weight, but I suppose he was entitled to do what he did.”

Townend added: “He was good – he’s not always as clever as that – but I got into a good rhythm on him early and hopefully he can go on to bigger and better things again this year. It worked last year, and hopefully it will work this year. He has a Gold Cup won and doesn’t owe anyone anything.”

Of the reception he received, Townend added: “In this country, they support good horses and they’ll come and see them wherever they are.”

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