Grade 1 Lucky 15: Four strong fancies on Day 1 of the Dublin Racing Festival

Leopardstown‘s Dublin Racing Festival kicks off on Saturday and the two-day event is a major highlight of the National Hunt calendar. There should be plenty of stars on display and Day 1’s card contains no fewer than four Grade 1 races. With this in mind, we’ve picked out our four strongest fancies in the top tier races and combined them into a Lucky 15 for you to consider. Why not check out our free tips page for daily content across British and Irish racing.

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1.20 Leopardstown

Loughglynn beat the very useful Firefox in a bumper last season and has made the perfect start to his hurdling career. Unbeaten in two starts over timber, he managed to win a Grade 2 at Limerick last time out, despite being keen in the early stages of the race. Willie Mullins’ gelding would have learnt plenty and clearly possesses bundles of stamina, which could give him the edge here.

1.50 Leopardstown

Storm Heart made a huge impression on his stable and hurdling debut at Punchestown back in December. He travelled like a dream throughout the race and went on to score by a wide margin. The third has since franked the form by winning its next start, which certainly bodes well. Paul Townend picked this one out of his five choices and it’s easy to see why.

2.25 Leopardstown

Facile Vega is the subject of an abnormally bullish update from his trainer, with regards to his recent work. It’s fair to say the Mullins team were blown away by how well he’s going at home and that could indicate that a return to top form is forthcoming. Marine Nationale should prove hard to beat but I’m not willing to go against Willie Mullins, especially at the Dublin Racing Festival.

3.35 Leopardstown

Fastorslow has beaten the great Galopin Des Champs twice now and that is no mean feat. You would imagine connections are less confident about taking him on at Cheltenham, where he’ll be fully revved. They could however have Fastorslow in peak condition for this race, in the hopes that he can catch his rival cold and claim another famous victory.

If you back any of our selections you can watch them live on the free Racing Post app or racingpost.com. Simply log in to one of your bookmaker accounts and click ‘Watch live’ on the racecards.

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