Big Race Preview: Willie Mullins' Grangeclare West leads the betting for the Grade 1 Novice Hurdle in Naas

Willie Mullins’ Grangeclare West is the favourite for the big race in Naas today, the Grade 1 Novice Hurdle and the opening Grade 1 race in the Irish racing calendar for 2023.

Naas is of course the venue for the first major exhibit of elite horse racing this year and has historically been a real pointer towards the Cheltenham Festival with Bob Olinger (2021) and Envoi Allen (2020) both scoring on the Kildare course before following it up with victory in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle later in the year at Cheltenham.

Elite racing brings elite combinations as Wille Mullins and Paul Townend are the men involved with today’s favourite. The favourite, at the time of writing sits at 6/4, was bought by Cheveley Park Stud for £430,000 in December of 2021 after winning on his point-to-point bow at Lingstown. Victory in the 2:20 at Naas will no doubt be seen as the next and ideal step in this horse’s progression towards Cheltenham.

The nearest contender according to the bookies is Gordon Elliot’s Irish Point. Jack Kennedy has been entrusted with the reins for the big race in Naas with the bookmakers, at the time of writing, putting the five-year-old at 11/4.

As to expected, the favourite isn’t the only Willie Mullins interest in the race as he trains third favourite and 5/1 shot Champ Kiely with his nephew Danny Mullins on board the seven-year-old.