Willie Mullins racked up a third win in a row on the last day of the Cheltenham Festival 2022 with 18/1 outsider The Nice Guy taking the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle.
It was a one-two for Mullins as his Minella Cocooner came home second on a dominant day for the Closutton handler.
The race was marred by Gordon Elliott's Ginto breaking down when well placed and also the fancied Hillcrest pulling up after never travelling.
Sean O'Keefe won the battle of the Mullins riders as the 18/1 shot the Nice Guy out fought stablemate Minella Cocooner under Paul Townend who went off at 9/2.
9/4 favourite Hillcrest never travelled in shades of Shishkin and was pulled up by jockey Richard Patrick.
That left Mullins to take the spoils yet again with a pick of winners that eventually went to The Nice Guy in an agreeable result for the bookies at least.
Mullins said: "Minella Cocooner must have a huge engine to make those mistakes and still be there at the finish.
"What a ride from Sean, he rode Galopin Des Champs last year here for me, he's an up-and-coming rider, he's very cool.
"I think he's someone who is going to come through the ranks, it's always nice to have those, but Paul will be around for a while yet.
"Things can't have gone to plan for the winner as the plan was to be in the first six or eight, but he obviously wasn't quick enough to do that and he just dropped him in and crept his way around. That's the good thing about fellows like that, they have the ability to change tactics. I like that sort of confidence.
"The horse shows nothing at home. I almost told Malcolm to sell him, but he said to give him a run and he won. He was going to go chasing but it was too late in the season so we ran him again and he won his second bumper, we then gave him a run in his hurdle and here we are today, he keeps improving all the time."
Of Hillcrest, trainer Henry Daly said: "Racing doesn't change in being full of ups and downs and we have hit one of the downs.
"We've come to Cheltenham as favourite for the Albert Bartlett and run no sort of race at all.
"At this stage there are no excuses, he just ran no sort of race."
His rider Richard Patrick said: "I have never had to make him do anything in the past, but I was having to make him do everything today.
"The ground was very tacky, he was never travelling or going through it. He wouldn't let himself down. It wasn't happening for him, but there will be another day.
"I pulled him up and he's all OK. I feel sorry for connections of Gordon Elliott's horse (Ginto)."