Inothewayurthinkin and I Am Maximus will renew rivalries with some familiar top-level names in a fascinating renewal of the John Durkan Memorial Punchestown Chase on Sunday, 23 November 2025.
This Grade 1 over 2m3½f doubles as a key early-season yardstick for the staying chase division and a tactical test in its own right, with 11 runners lining up and last year’s winner Fact To File heading the market.
For Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Inothewayurthinkin and 2024 Grand National victor I Am Maximus, it is a tough but compelling spot for their seasonal reappearance.
Race Shape
The John Durkan has long been a specialist’s race, favouring high-class chasers with the pace to travel at Grade 1 tempo and the stamina to see out an intermediate trip on often testing Punchestown ground.
This year’s edition looks particularly deep: Fact To File returns to defend his crown after a dominant spring capped by a wide-margin Ryanair Chase success, while Gaelic Warrior, Fastorslow, and a clutch of Mullins second strings add layers of intrigue.
With several runners likely to be sharper for recent spins or proven over the distance, the two staying stars from JP McManus’s powerful team must be ready to handle a searching early examination of their fitness and versatility.
John Durkan Memorial Chase Odds
| Horse | Odds |
|---|---|
| Fact To File | 11/8 |
| Gaelic Warrior | 15/8 |
| Fastorslow | 8/1 |
| Heart Wood | 11/1 |
| Inothewayurthinkin | 14/1 |
| Lecky Watson | 18/1 |
| Nick Rockett | 28/1 |
| Grangeclare West | 33/1 |
| I Am Maximus | 40/1 |
| James Du Berlais | 50/1 |
| Senecia | 150/1 |
Fact To File: the one to beat
Despite the headline clash between the Gold Cup and Grand National winners, betting firms make Fact To File a clear favourite, reflecting his status as arguably Ireland’s leading 2½‑mile chaser.
The Mullins-trained eight-year-old was stunning when gliding clear in the 2025 Ryanair Chase at Cheltenham, confirming that this intermediate trip is his ideal playground even as connections flirt with a future Gold Cup campaign.
He also won this race 12 months ago, travelling strongly and quickening away late, and lines up now with an official rating of 173 and the benefit of proven course, distance, and Grade 1 form against many of the same rivals.
Bookmakers have him around odds-on to shade odds-against, with Mark Walsh staying loyal after last year’s success, even with Inothewayurthinkin also in JP McManus colours.
With Walsh siding with Fact To File as anticipated, it underlines how closely the Mullins yard views him as their benchmark at this distance going into the new season.
Inothewayurthinkin: Gold Cup king returns
Inothewayurthinkin returns to action for the first time since his famous Cheltenham Gold Cup victory in March, when he powered past Galopin Des Champs after being supplemented late into the race.
Trained by Gavin Cromwell, the seven-year-old showed deep reserves of stamina and a telling turn of foot in the straight, winning by a clear margin and confirming himself as the new star of staying chases in JP McManus’s green and gold.
That success came over 3m2f on the undulating Cheltenham track, so this return to 2m3½f represents a step back in distance that may blunt his main weapon – relentless galloping stamina.
Connections are realistic about that, noting that the trip was “short of his best” when he ran here last season, finishing well beaten behind Fact To File in the same race.
However, the Gold Cup win has clearly moved him forward, both in terms of experience and confidence, and Cromwell has spoken of using the John Durkan as a classy starting point rather than an end in itself.
With Keith Donoghue booked on board, Inothewayurthinkin may be ridden to finish strongly late, using the race as a platform for longer-distance targets through the winter.
I Am Maximus: Grand National hero drops in trip
I Am Maximus, the 2024 Grand National winner, adds further depth to an already stacked line-up and represents another major JP McManus contender from the Willie Mullins operation.
His Aintree triumph, achieved as a well-backed 7‑1 favourite, showcased his stamina and bravery over the famous fences, as he surged clear from the elbow after a patient ride by Paul Townend.
The nine-year-old has long been seen as a thorough stayer, having also captured the Irish Grand National, and has tended to do his best work at three miles and beyond.
Dropping back to 2m3½f here, he faces a similar challenge to Inothewayurthinkin in terms of tempo and sharpness at the intermediate trip.
Mullins has used races like the John Durkan before as early-season tests and conditioning runs for his top stayers, and I Am Maximus’s presence feels more about blowing away cobwebs than proving him an out‑and‑out 2½‑mile specialist.
With Derek O’Connor booked and the horse likely to be ridden patiently, anything like a strong finishing effort in this company would be an encouraging sign ahead of another campaign aimed at the major staying chases.
Nick Rockett And Other Key Contenders
Fact To File is not the only Closutton runner with serious claims, with Gaelic Warrior bringing four Grade 1 wins and an official rating of 170 to the table.
He is more of a natural 2m–2½m horse than the staying pair and has the tactical speed to make this a proper test of pace, especially if Paul Townend decides to ride him aggressively.
Fastorslow, runner-up to Galopin Des Champs in the 2023 Gold Cup and last year’s beaten favourite in this race, also returns after an interrupted 2024–25 campaign; his ability to travel strongly and handle Punchestown is already proven, and he could be the one to capitalise if the big names need the outing.
Lecky Watson, Nick Rockett, Heart Wood, and the likes of Grangeclare West add further depth and potential pace angles, many of them also using this as a sighter for the season rather than a primary target.
That mix of confirmed Grade 1 performers and second-season chasers on the up ensures the race should be run at a solid tempo, with no hiding place for those short of peak fitness.
Head-to-head Storylines
The narrative pull is clear: the reigning Cheltenham Gold Cup winner and two recent Grand National heroes lining up in the same Grade 1, on their seasonal debuts, against the reigning Ryanair and defending John Durkan champion.
Inothewayurthinkin and I Am Maximus both carry the famous McManus silks, yet their paths to this point have diverged – one a newly crowned Gold Cup star for Gavin Cromwell, the other a seasoned staying chaser revitalised at Aintree for Willie Mullins.
Their clash here may not be over an ideal distance, but it will still give valuable clues as to how both have come out of their landmark wins and how they stack up against the established 2½‑mile brigade.
Whatever the result, Sunday’s John Durkan should set the tone for the top end of the Irish chasing scene this winter and sharpen the talking points on the road back to Cheltenham and Aintree.
BETFRED
