2024 John Durkan Memorial Chase Preview: Successful Defence for Brassil Star?

The top-class jumping action continues into Sunday this weekend, with a cracking card on offer from the County Kildare track of Punchestown. Hot on the heels of the Morgiana Hurdle on Saturday afternoon, the Grade 1 focus turns to the chasers for the 2024 edition of the John Durkan Memorial Chase. 

Named in honour of the amateur jockey and assistant trainer who tragically lost his battle with leukaemia in 1998, the race takes place over the 2m4f trip and regularly attracts a stellar field.

The trip may be significantly shorter than the Cheltenham Gold Cup, but the past ten years have witnessed the prize fall to Gold Cup kings Don Cossack, Sizing John, and Galopin Des Champs.

With the final field confirmed, we are in for a stellar renewal of this great race, with the following nine stars limbering up for a shot at the €150,000 in total prize money.

Blue Lord – 25/1 with BetVictor

Trainer: Willie Mullins

The first of five Willie Mullins runners in the field, Blue Lord joined the yard from France in 2020. Despite finishing in the top 3 in three Grade 1 hurdles, this Simon Munir & Isaac Souede-owned runner ended his career over timber with only a maiden success. He has fared significantly better over fences to register four wins at the highest level, including at this track in the Barberstown Castle Novice Chase. However, the most recent of those wins came in 2022, and he hasn’t been seen since finishing fourth in the 2023 edition of this. Talented but risky.

Fact To File – 5/2 with BetVictor

Trainer: Willie Mullins

This JP McManus-owned seven-year-old is as short as 7/2 for the Cheltenham Gold Cup but has yet to race outside novice company. His relative inexperience may be a slight negative in this company, but his novice efforts hinted that he may be out of the very top drawer. At home on soft ground and answering the 3m question in the Brown Advisory Novices Chase, his presence adds significantly to the event. One small doubt is that he looked in need of the run on his first outing last season and returns from a 256-day break here.

Fastorslow – 9/4 with BetVictor

Trainer: Martin Brassil

Number three on the list is the defending champion. Now eight years old, Martin Brassil’s Fastorslow has scored three times in Grade 1 company, with all three of those wins coming at this track. With his rider dropping his whip after the last in 2023, he was value for more than the ½l winning margin that day and has mastered dual Gold Cup king Galopin Des Champs three times at this track. 

Galopin Des Champs – 10/3 with BetVictor

Trainer: Willie Mullins

Speaking of the two-time Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, Galopin Des Champs makes his seasonal return in this event for the third year in a row. No doubt that this trip is short of his best, but that didn’t prevent him from cruising 13l clear in the 2022 edition. He couldn’t repeat the feat in 2023 but gained his revenge on Fastorslow in the Irish Gold Cup before storming up the Cheltenham Hill in the big one. At Cheltenham, he would start as the clear favourite here. At Punchestown, he may have his work cut out.

Grangeclare West – 16/1 with BetVictor

Trainer: Willie Mullins

This Cheveley Park Stud runner boasts the distinction of being the only runner in the field who has yet to taste defeat over fences. He has admittedly made only two chase starts, but the second was an excellent effort as he slammed the talented Corbetts Cross by 6l in the Grade 1 Neville Hotels Novice Chase. Whilst there’s no doubting his talent, he missed all of 2024 through injury and this looks a tough assignment for his comeback outing.

Inothewayurthinkin – 16/1 with BetVictor

Trainer: Gavin Cromwell

The second of three JP McManus-owned runners is another who may have half an eye on the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Having made light of top weight in the Kim Muir Challenge Cup at Cheltenham, he broke his Grade 1 duck in the Mildmay Novices’ Chase at Aintree on his final start of 2023/24. That effort augurs well for this test but he only came alive in Spring last season and is zero from two at this track.

Journey With Me – 40/1 with BetVictor

Trainer: Henry De Bromhead

Two Graded wins at around this trip on soft or worse ground suggest conditions should suit this Robcour runner. However, he has yet to show he can cut it in waters this deep. Zero from three in Grade 1s and zero from four at this track, he looks up against it.

Minella Cocooner – 50/1 with BetVictor

Trainer: Willie Mullins

This eight-year-old son of Flemensfirth rounds out the Mullins quintet and appears likely to start as the rank outsider of the field. Unlike Journey With Me, he has scored in Grade 1 company, when landing a Novice Hurdle event at Leopardstown in 2022. He’s yet to hit those heights over fences but picked up a famous win in the bet365 Gold Cup Handicap last season to help his trainer to the British Trainers Championship. That success came over 3m4½f and this dour stayer may find things happening too quickly over this trip. 

Spillane’s Tower – 7/1 with BetVictor

Trainer: James Joseph Mangan

Hailing from the County Cork yard of James Joseph Mangan, this six-year-old is proving popular in the build-up to the race. Raced exclusively in his homeland to date, he may not be as familiar to UK fans as others in the field but he has built up an impressive CV. Rounding off 2023/24 with a Grade 1 success in the Champion Novice Chase over 3m1f at this track, he may have further improvement to come as the youngest runner in the field.

The Verdict

Whilst it is always dangerous to rule out a runner from the yard of Willie Mullins, we will look past the claims of Blue Lord (past his prime), Minella Cocooner (trip too short), and Grangeclare West (returning from injury). Fact Or File and Galopin Des Champs are more difficult to discount, but the fact that both improved for their first run last term leaves a nagging doubt.

Similar comments apply to Inothewayurthinkin, who improved as the season wore on in 2023/24, whilst Journey With Me will need to take his form to a whole new level.
All of which leaves Fastorslow and Spillane’s Tower as our two for the shortlist. Whilst we understand the support for the James Joseph Mangan runner, Fastorslow's proven ability over this trip in Grade 1 company sways us towards the defending champ.

Recommended Bet: Fastorslow @ 9/4 with BetVictor

Paul Harrison

Falling in love with racing at a young age, Paul’s passion for sports and betting took him to Salford University, where he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Business Economics with Gambling Studies. Having spent ten years in the employment of a leading bookmaker, Paul opted to go it alone and pursue his dream job as a freelance writer.