Willie Mullins’ battalion of star-studded thoroughbreds is never-ending. The depth of quality at Closutton is unrivalled by any National Hunt yard in the land, and we’re unlikely to see such power again.
Il Etait Temps makes his seasonal debut in the Clonmel Oil Chase at 3.10pm today, and his rise to the top has been somewhat unexpected. Although a Grade 1 winner as a novice hurdler, he failed to land a blow at either Cheltenham or Punchestown.
Again, despite four wins as a novice chaser, including three Grade 1s, he still wasn’t near the top of the Closutton chasing pecking order. Injury then sidelined him for most of the 2024-25 season, but he reappeared at the back end of the campaign to produce a scintillating performance in the Celebration Chase, ending Jonbon’s unbeaten record away from Cheltenham.
Since then, he’s won four of his five starts, with a heavy fall at Ascot the sole defeat. He belatedly broke his Cheltenham curse when a 10-length winner of the Champion Chase, and he produced a dominant display in the Punchestown Champion Chase, producing the joint-highest RPR in the race.
Rated 174 and still only an eight-year-old, could Il Etait Temps become one of Willie Mullins’ greatest two-mile chasers – and who does he have to knock off that perch?
Douvan
Douvan is widely regarded as the best two-mile chaser Closutton has ever produced. Rated 182 by Timeform (with an official rating of 174), the Walk In The Park gelding won 10 of his 13 chases, including nine on the spin.
His novice season remains untouched, with five Grade 1s on the bounce, including two at Leopardstown and one at each of the big three spring festivals.
He could only beat what was put in front of him, but the slight caveat with Douvan is that he rarely beat what you could call a ‘proper’ two-mile chaser. He had the measure of Sizing John on five occasions, but Sizing John achieved his highest official rating of 168 when landing the Cheltenham and Punchestown Gold Cups over three miles.
Energumene
Energumene was one of Mullins’ finest out-and-out two-mile chasers, winning 12 of his 20 starts over fences. He won two Grade 1s as a novice, and a year later he produced a career-best RPR of 177 when a length behind Shishkin in a thrilling renewal of the Clarence House.
That was a huge performance on just his second start in open company, and he landed another Grade 1 when taking the Champion Chase, albeit with his two main rivals failing to give their running. Regardless, he took the notable 176-rated scalp of Chacun Pour Soi next time out, though his rival was perhaps a tad past his peak and no longer worth that rating.
After winning at Cheltenham and Punchestown for a second season in a row, he was never quite the same following an injury that kept him off the track for 593 days.
Chacun Pour Soi
Chacun Pour Soi was similar to Energumene in that both peaked at an official rating of 176 and an RPR of 179, although his Timeform rating of 179 was slightly lower than Energumene’s 180 (Clarence House).
The Ricci-owned Policy Maker gelding was a Grade 1 winner as a novice, taking the notable scalp of Defi Du Seuil, who would beat Un De Sceaux twice and Politologue a year later. He then bumped into A Plus Tard on his open-company debut, before taking another notable scalp in connections’ 171-rated Min in the Grade 1 Dublin Chase.
He won four of his five starts the following season, with the sole defeat coming at Cheltenham, a course where he finished 0-3 in his career. His peak RPR of 179 came when defeating Allaho in the Punchestown Champion Chase, but he failed to go on from that.
Where does Il Etait Temps fit in?
All three are brilliant in their own right, but Il Etait Temps isn’t a million miles off. He still has 6lb to find with Douvan on Timeform ratings, but he’s only 2lb below Energumene and Chacun Pour Soi, and level with them on official ratings and peak RPRs (1lb higher than Douvan).
He’s expected to make a winning reappearance today, but can he enhance his reputation this season? He is already clear of his stablemates on ratings, which could make it difficult for him to climb much higher on the official scale.
He beat Majborough twice last season, and Majborough was raised to 174 after his devastating display at Leopardstown. However, RPRs of 159 and 140 since then, after numerous jumping errors, suggest Majborough has something to find this season, and his future may lie up in trip.
The others from last season’s Champion Chase appear to be nearing the end of the road too. Marine Nationale has been a good benchmark for Il Etait Temps – he is, after all, a Supreme winner and a dual Champion Chase winner – and he ran a career-best last time out against Il Etait Temps, so a rematch this season could be fascinating.
Kopek Des Bordes could yet improve beyond his rating if he cuts out the errors. In all likelihood, Il Etait Temps will need some impressive performances to be rated a few pounds clear of his Closutton counterparts, but as an eight-year-old who may not yet be at the peak of his powers, that certainly isn’t out of the question.