The Cheltenham Gold Cup is always the centrepiece of the Festival, but in 2026 it comes with a very clear subplot: just how many of Willie Mullins’ horses will end up in the final line‑up.
With 33 entries in total and nine of them trained at Closutton, the champion trainer has once again put a serious stamp on jump racing’s Blue Riband.
The race itself is scheduled for Friday 13 March over 3m2½f on the New Course, that familiar stamina test where any weakness in jumping, fitness or temperament is ruthlessly exposed.
Despite the sizeable entry, recent history suggests we’ll see a much smaller field on the day – only nine turned up in 2025, partly because so many were wary of trying to stop Galopin Des Champs from landing a historic hat‑trick.
That didn’t quite go to plan for Mullins last year, with Gavin Cromwell’s Inothewayurthinkin swooping late to win and briefly halt the Closutton steamroller.
The result, though, may actually encourage more trainers to roll the dice in 2026, but even in a reduced field, it’s hard to escape the conclusion that Mullins holds a big chunk of the deck.
Leader Of The Mullins Squad
At the head of the Mullins battalion – and near the top of the market – stands Galopin Des Champs, the horse who has defined the staying‑chase division in recent seasons.
A dual Gold Cup winner and runner‑up in 2025, his record at Cheltenham alone justifies his continued prominence in the betting.
He stays strongly, travels with pace, and usually jumps with the sort of rhythm others struggle to match.
Yes, he was beaten by Inothewayurthinkin last March, but he still ran a mighty race in second, and his subsequent efforts in Ireland suggest the engine is very much intact.
For ante‑post punters, he’s the obvious Mullins flagship: proven at the track, proven in the race, and still holding his own at the top level.
The slight twist this year is that he’s not the only Closutton runner with a plausible Gold Cup profile, which makes working out the yard’s pecking order more interesting.
The Rest Of The Closutton Army
Beyond Galopin, Mullins has stacked the race with a range of types who could, in different circumstances, be aimed at other Grade 1s but now find themselves at least entered for the big one.
Gaelic Warrior brings a blend of class and versatility, having shown high‑level form at shorter trips but giving the impression he could stretch out further as he matures. He also holds an entry for the Ryanair Chase.
Nick Rockett, winner of the 2025 Grand National, and Spindleberry are the more unexposed staying chasers for this kind of race, with profiles that suggest their ceiling is not yet defined.
They’re the kind you could easily see shorten rapidly if they post a dominant performance in a late prep, suddenly turning from “interesting outsider” into “proper Gold Cup dark horse.”
Then there are the slightly more left‑field options: Impaire Et Passe, better known over shorter trips; I Am Maximus and Lecky Watson, with staying form and Festival experience that give connections options; and Grangeclare West, a horse who has long hinted there might be a big day in him if everything falls right.
Whether all of them actually hold their ground is another matter, but simply having them in the mix gives Mullins an extraordinary amount of flexibility.
Given that at least three will also get Grand National entries, you have to wonder if Mullins is willing to put all his eggs in the Gold Cup basket.
Gold Cup Entries 2026
Willie Mullins may dominate the entry list, but he doesn’t completely own the story.
Inothewayurthinkin, last year’s winner, remains a major threat and has already proved he can beat Galopin fair and square at Cheltenham.
He sits right near the front of the market again, and his presence alone stops this from becoming a Closutton benefit race on paper.
You then have the likes of The Jukebox Man and Jango Baie, rising stars from British yards who bring strong staying chase form into the equation and will be aiming to keep the prize on this side of the Irish Sea.
Established Grade 1 performers such as Grey Dawning, L’Homme Presse, Gerri Colombe and Fastorslow add further depth, even if their connections will be under no illusions about the size of the task in taking on not just Galopin, but the wider Mullins squad.
For all that, the shape of the race will likely be dictated by how many of those nine Closutton entries actually make it to the final declarations.
If Mullins runs three or four, we get a race where the champion yard has a strong hand but leaves room for others.
If he ends up fielding a larger team, the non‑Mullins runners will be trying to land a blow on a trainer who could easily supply half the field.
Gold Cup 2026 – One Trainer, Many Chances
Framed through the lens of Willie Mullins’ nine entries, the 2026 Cheltenham Gold Cup feels like a race where one man has given himself more chances than anyone else to lift the trophy.
Galopin Des Champs is the obvious spearhead, but the depth behind him – from Gaelic Warrior and Nick Rockett to the more speculative types – means Closutton has multiple ways into the race tactically and form‑wise.
That doesn’t guarantee a Mullins victory, as 2025 neatly proved, but it does mean anyone looking elsewhere in the betting has to ask not just “can my horse win?” but “can my horse beat the best of nine from one of the most powerful yards in the game?”
It’s a slightly different angle on the usual Gold Cup puzzle, and one that should make the build‑up even more fascinating.
If nothing else, those nine entries underline just how seriously Mullins still takes this race.
For all the Festival winners he racks up across the week, the Gold Cup remains the one that defines a season – and in 2026, he’s clearly determined to give himself every possible chance of taking it back.
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