The Galway Races kick off today with thousands of punters set to descend on the west for the seven-day festival.
This year marks the 150th edition of the famous meeting at Ballybrit racecourse to the northeast of the city.
It's one of the busiest weeks of the year for the bookies, with millions set to be gambled as top trainers such as Willie Mullins, Dermot Weld and Gordon Elliott battle it out for the big prizes.
But maestro Mullins is the one betting firms are fearing most, with the legendary Carlow handler as short as 2/7 to be crowned top trainer.
Nicola McGeady from Ladbrokes said: “The Galway Races is the highlight of the summer and with that, comes a betting bonanza that could spark record-breaking figures.
"This year the two men we fear the most is the powerful duo of Willie Mullins and Paul Townend. They come to the West with a strong squad along with the potential to break the bookies.”
A Paddy Power spokesperson added: “We’ve got the dioralyte packed and we’re ready to head for the wild west for a marathon week of action at Galway. It’s a festival that favours stayers, both on the track and of it, and you can be sure the usual suspects like Willie Mullins and Dermot Weld will provide their usual flurry of festival winners."
The firm also report there has been significant support for Gordon Elliott's Borice in the Galway Plate, who has already been backed from 12/1 into 13/2.
Ticket sales are ahead of where they were last year when 132,691 punters passed through the gates over the course of the week.
Plenty of famous faces are due to attend the races, with President Michael D Higgins set to present the Galway Plate to winning connections on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, model Rosanna Davison will be on hand to judge the best dressed competition on Ladies Day on Thursday.
The 35-year-old recently announced her and partner Wes Quirke are expecting their first child together via a surrogate.
And two GAA legends will be in attendance on Tuesday to take part in the ‘Paddy Power Zorbing Derby’ in aid of the Injured Jockeys Fund.
Defending champion Ollie Canning will take on Aidan O'Mahony and Off The Ball's Ger Gilroy, John Duggan and Eoin Sheehan.
The first race goes to post at 5.20pm this evening, with the feature contest on day one - the Connacht Hotel Handicap - taking place at 7.40pm.
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