Un De Sceaux delivers for Mullins after Doctor Phoenix falls when challenging

Things would take a turn in the day's feature event but when Un De Sceaux capitalised on Doctor Phoenix's dramatic exit two-out to sluice up in the inaugural running of the Devenish Chase, Willie Mullins's day could hardly have been going any better.

Un De Sceaux's 18-length demolition under Paul Townend in the €80,000 contest completed a hat-trick in the card's three Grade 2s for the reigning champion trainer. For the second race in succession, the Closutton team denied a Gordon Elliott-trained horse victory.

To rub salt in the wound for Elliott on this occasion, Doctor Phoenix looked poised to test Un De Sceaux's renowned resilience when he crashed out under Davy Russell. He had come there to lay down a challenge and neither rider had pressed any serious buttons.

Doctor Phoenix (seen here winning earlier in the season): loomed up alongside Un De Sceaux before fallingCredit: Caroline Norris

You couldn't say which way it would have gone, although when it was suggested to Mullins that the writing was on the wall for his flamboyant front-running force of nature, he didn't miss a beat.

"Paul thought it was all over anyway – he thought he had it won," he replied with his tongue firmly in his cheek.

More seriously, he added: "Paul said he wasn't beaten when the other horse fell. He hadn't gone for him. He was just letting him coast and waiting for the challenge, so we were happy at the time."

Un De Sceaux was carried out on his shield behind Balko Des Flos when bidding for successive Ryanair Chase victories at Cheltenham just 18 days earlier. Regardless of whether or not he would have prevailed here, he had already done enough to once again advertise his impermeable constitution.

With Doctor Phoenix out of the equation, he was left to complete the job in his own time from A Toi Phil and Ballycasey. Mullins will be glad of that, as the immensely popular ten-year-old – whose owners, the O'Connells from County Cork, always bring a splash of colour to proceedings – now has Punchestown on his agenda.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar joins the O'Connell family after Un De Sceaux's successCredit: Patrick McCann

"We'll enjoy today first, but he'll probably go to Punchestown," Mullins confirmed, before paying tribute to a horse that has now won 21 of his 28 starts.

"He's made of iron. He pulls out full of energy every day, the way he races and the way he trains at home, he does that every day. He's just as hard as nails."

Formerly known as the Webster Cup Chase when held at Navan, this was the first time that the 2m4f contest has been run at Fairyhouse following a switch with the Normans Grove Chase. That two-mile event, won by Great Field last month, now carries the Webster Cup moniker.

"Our friends in Navan agreed to the swap," explained the Fairyhouse manager Peter Roe. "I've always wanted a Grade 1 at Easter and that's the long-term plan for this race, hopefully by 2020.

"I felt the best one to look at would be a 2m4f chase, as there isn't a Grade 1 for those horses at Punchestown. It'd be great to have a Grade 1 before the Irish Grand National. They do it at Aintree and it works brilliantly."

Paddy Power left Un De Sceaux at 6-1 for the BoyleSports Champion Chase at Punchestown, in which he was outpointed by Fox Norton last year.

Intriguingly, the only horses ahead of him in the betting are Great Field, Min and Douvan. They might all reside in the same stable but it would be some dust-up if they all turn up.

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