Willie Mullins Dominates The 2027 Champion Chase Antepost Market – But Will The Winner Come From Closutton?

We may be some way out from the Festival, but the 2027 Champion Chase at Cheltenham on March 17th should be a cracking renewal, and the antepost market already points firmly toward Willie Mullins dominating the race again.

That really shouldn’t come as any surprise given that Mullins tends to dominate every market, but Il Etait Temps, the 2026 winner, is the clear headline act at around 3/1 to retain his crown.

But in a twist, Mullins also trains the second and third favourites in Kopek Des Bordes and Kargese.

So is the Queen Mother Champion Chase going to Closutton again? Or will there be a major upset?

Il Etait Temps Bids For Repeat Glory

There is something hugely appealing about a Champion Chase favourite that already knows how to win the race, and Il Etait Temps fits that bill perfectly.

He landed the 2026 race in impressive style for Willie Mullins, recovering from a big mistake at the final fence to beat Libberty Hunter and L’Eau Du Sud, and he now returns as the horse they all have to beat.

For racing fans who like to bet on horse racing, there’s no doubting that Il Etait Temps is one of the classiest two-milers in action today and his nine wins from 12 starts (with two additional places) prove that. With eight Grade 1 wins under his belt across both hurdles and chases, he is incredibly difficult to beat.

He had been strongly fancied in the run-up last year and repaid that faith with a decisive display, so the idea of him going back-to-back in 2027 is easy to understand.

That doesn’t mean he is infallible though, as evidenced by the fact that his two biggest potential rivals for the 2027 Champion Chase are his stablemates.

Mullins Holds All The Aces

The first three in the betting all come from Closutton, which says plenty about the depth of Willie Mullins’ hand for the race.

Il Etait Temps heads the market at around 3/1, Kopek Des Bordes sits near 4/1, with Kargese next up at about 9/1, making this a very strong early position for the champion trainer.

Kopek Des Bordes is the biggest threat on paper simply because the market clearly rates him highly, with some firms going as short as 3/1 and others at 4/1.

Realistically, it looks like bookmakers are simply hedging their bets because Kopek is not really a bona fide chaser; in fact, he has only run in three of them, winning once, and that was a beginners chase in Navan.

He fell in his most recent outing at Punchestown, which suggests Mullins has a lot of work to do before Cheltenham if he is to seriously compete.

Kargese is a little bigger in the betting markets but still well respected at 9/1, which tells you the layers are taking the Mullins team seriously from the off.

The bay mare is already a two-time Cheltenham winner, having landed the County Handicap Hurdle in 2025 and the Arkle Chase in 2026.

Depending on the targets, Mullins could very easily send Kargese to the Mares Hurdle or the Mares Chase, where she may have a better chance of winning. Only time will tell.

Mullins Looking For A Fifth Win

Willie Mullins has already won the Queen Mother Champion Chase four times, and he is now hunting a fifth success in the race.

That is an excellent record in itself, but it becomes even more striking when set against the all-time trainer benchmark: six wins, jointly held by Tom Dreaper, Nicky Henderson and Paul Nicholls.

That gives Mullins a clear target and a very realistic one. With Il Etait Temps already a proven winner, and with Kopek Des Bordes and Kargese also high in the market, he looks well placed to keep pushing closer to that trainer record.

The race has long rewarded the best two-mile chasers, but the 2027 edition could easily become a Willie Mullins statement if his trio all progress as expected.

It Won’t All Be Plain Sailing

It’s very easy to look at the antepost markets and just assume that the Mullins dominance will continue into 2027. And, it may very well work out that way, but it won’t all be plain sailing, and there are plenty of other trainers who are not quite ready to wave the white flag.

We have the likes of Lulamba from Nicky Henderson, the 2025 Champion Chase winner, Marine Nationale, from Barry Connell, and this year’s third place finisher, L'Eau Du Sud from Dan Skelton.

Because no entries have yet been made and those will not arrive until around January 2027, the current market is still more about reputation, profile and projected target than final declarations.

In the interim, there are other runners who could step up and prove themselves over the next few months and spring a surprise next March.

Until then, Mullins fills three of the top four places in the betting, and that is a powerful early sign that he holds the strongest hand in the division.

For now, Il Etait Temps is the obvious banker in the discussion, yet the bigger story is that Mullins appears to have multiple arrows aimed at the same target.