Brave Inca will attempt to make it third time lucky in Sunday's Ballymore Properties Hatton's Grace Hurdle despite trainer Colm Murphy's fears that the champion hurdler may not be at his best around the Fairyhouse track.
A total of just six horses were left in the two and a half mile Grade One contest, which will be the centrepiece of Sunday's winter festival action, and as expected the two former Aintree Hurdle winners Asian Maze and Al Eile, who has been supplemented at a cost of €10,000, look the most potent threats to Brave Inca.
Asian Maze finished clear of Brave Inca when runner-up in the Morgiana at Punchestown and has been installed a general evens favourite for the weekend. But Colm Murphy is approaching the Hatton's Grace with Leopardstown's Christmas Festival Hurdle also very much in mind.
"Obviously the primary objective will be to win on Sunday but like the Morgiana, I'm a little worried about his fitness on soft ground. It's like last year when it was a case of getting a race into him before Christmas and I think this race will leave him pretty right for that," the Co Wexford trainer said yesterday.
Brave Inca was third to Solerina in last year's Hatton's Grace, and was also runner-up to the same horse in 2004. Although he won twice at the course in 2003, Murphy remains uncertain if the horse is overly fond of Fairyhouse.
"I'm not sure if it suits him. He won a handicap there by only a neck. I don't know whether it's Fairyhouse, or the ground there, but he never seems to act around the place. But we've no choice but to run him there," he said.
Riding plans have yet to be finally decided but with Sunday's jump racing in Britain being relatively moderate fixtures at Warwick and Kelso, Murphy is hopeful that Tony McCoy will be free to resume his partnership with Brave Inca.
Barry Geraghty took over in the Morgiana when the British champion jockey was claimed to ride at Aintree by his boss, JP McManus. "I would love to have Tony back on as he knows the horse so well," said Murphy.
Another Murphy, this time Timmy, is expected to team up with Al Eile whose best performance to date was when winning at an extended two and a half miles at Liverpool two years ago.
"He didn't scope right after his run at Navan in the Lismullen but he's fine again now. It's 99 per cent certain Timmy Murphy will ride. We will make a decision about whether or not he goes novice chasing after Sunday," said Al Eile's trainer John Queally.
Another supplementary entry for Sunday is the JP McManus-owned King Johns Castle who has been added to the 13-strong entry for the Drinmore Novices Chase.
The wide-margin Navan winner joins the Grade Two scorer Blueberry Boy from Paul Stafford's north Co Dublin yard as well as the Edward O'Grady-trained O'Muircheartaigh who is a 25 to 1 shot in some markets for both the Arkle and the SunAlliance Chase.
O'Grady's high-class novice, Clopf, is disputing favouritism for the Supreme Novices Hurdle at Cheltenham and is one of 11 entries for Sunday's third Grade One contest, the Bar-One Racing Royal Bond Hurdle.
He has been installed as low as 8 to 11 for Sunday by Paddy Power while Cashmans rate the hurdling debutant Perce Rock as the main danger.
The ground at Fairyhouse is currently soft and the track manager Niall Mackey said: "There's some rain forecast for Thursday but it's supposed to be dry after that so we're hopeful it will stay soft."
Missing from the Hatton's Grace line-up will be the former dual-Champion Hurdler Hardy Eustace who instead looks like being kept in reserve for Saturday week's Boylesports International (formerly the Bula) at Cheltenham.
His trainer Dessie Hughes said yesterday: "I'll take him to the Boylesports if the ground is good, and by that I mean normal winter soft ground. If they're running on fresh ground, he will definitely run."
Hughes added: "He travelled well through the Ascot race and that was more like him. He is in tip-top condition. He should be at his best this year. They usually are when they are not raced young and he didn't race until he was five. Ten years old is not too old to win a Champion Hurdle."
•Horse Racing Ireland have decided to reschedule last weekend's lost Gowran card to Friday, December 15th.
BETTING:(Paddy Power on Hatton's Grace): Evs Asian Maze, 2 Brave Inca, 6 Al Eile, 7 Rosaker, 25 Wild Passion, 33 Brogella. (Cashmans on Drinmore): 7-2 O'Muricheartaigh, 5 Blueberry Boy, King Johns Castle and Mac Three, 6 Mossbank, 8 Vic Venturi and Schindlers Hunt, 10 Bar. (Bar-One Racing on Royal Bond): 8-11 Clopf, 7 Hide The Evidence and Perce Rock, 10 Bobs Pride and Cleni Boy, 12 Askthemaster and Blazing Sky, 16 Bar.
