Champ back at Punchestown
Dessie Hughes is looking forward to seeing dual Smurfit Champion Hurdle winner Hardy Eustace return to the track in the Happy New Year Hurdle at Punchestown tomorrow.
And the County Kildare handler is unconcerned that only two others – Tawrific Laois and veteran chaser Native Upmanship – will take on his eight-year-old.
“He is in great form and I am really looking forward to getting him back out. The two and a half (miles) will be fine for him,” said Hughes.
“The race has cut up a bit but he has to start off somewhere. The small field does not bother me at all as he can make the running and I just want to get a race into him before the AIG (at Leopardstown on January 29).
“He will go to the AIG and then back to Gowran before going to Cheltenham.”
Hardy Eustace has not run since beating Harchibald, Brave Inca at Cheltenham last March and Hughes was quite happy to have bypassed a rematch at Leopardstown yesterday.
“I didn’t want to be running him against them yesterday – I’ll take them on in Leopardstown at the end of next month,” he said.
“He is a horse who is better as the months go on so there is no hurry with him.”
Seamus Fahey’s Tawrific Laois makes a quick reappearance after finishing fourth at Limerick on Tuesday, while 12-year-old Native Upmanship will be having his first start over hurdles since 1999.
He landed a Grade One novice event on that occasion and has gone on to be a potent force over the larger obstacles, winning on 13 occasions including six times at Grade One level.
