Top chaser Beef Or Salmon is "60-40" to make his initial start of the jumping season over hurdles at Fairyhouse on Saturday with the James Nicholson Chase at Down Royal next month being lined up as his first Grade One engagement of the winter campaign.
Trainer Michael Hourigan reported that his prolific star worked and schooled well at Tipperary racecourse yesterday although a final call on whether or not he runs at the weekend has yet to be made.
Beef Or Salmon is entered for a two-mile conditions hurdle at Fairyhouse and Hourigan said: "It's 60-40 in favour of running but it's not certain. He worked and jumped well this morning at Tipperary and I suppose we will have to start somewhere."
The thee-time Lexus Chase winner has the option of Haydock's Betfair Chase for a first run of the season over fences but Hourigan indicated yesterday he is favouring the Nicholson Chase at Down Royal for Beef Or Salmon. "He seems to be in good form and we will look at either Down Royal or the Betfair. It will be one or the other," he said.
On the flat front, Aidan O'Brien confirmed yesterday that the Beresford winner, Eagle Mountain, will lead his attempt at a fifth success in the Racing Post Trophy at Newbury on Saturday.
"It's possible we could run a couple of others as well," said O'Brien who also hopes to aim Eagle Mountain at the Group Three St Simon Stakes on the same card.
Jockey plans have not been finalised for the Ballydoyle runners and on the riding front it has emerged that Kieren Fallon will not be available to O'Brien for the rest of the flat season at home after flying to Australia yesterday to prepare for Yeats's bid in the Melbourne Cup next month.
Another star jumper who will return to action this weekend is the former dual-Champion Hurdler Hardy Eustace who is set to run at the Curragh on Sunday. Trainer Dessie Hughes has decided to allow his stable star take a chance in a mile-and-six-furlong handicap at headquarters as Hardy Eustace takes the first step in a campaign that is planned to wind up in a fourth attempt at the Champion Hurdle.
Hardy Eustace, who ran third to Brave Inca at Cheltenham last March, is then likely to make his first jumping start of the winter in Navan's Lismullen Hurdle next month. "We will play it by ear about a race after the Lismullen but the Champion Hurdle is still the target," Hughes said.
Meanwhile, Iktitaf is already as low as 10 to 1 for the Champion Hurdle and should have little difficulty copper-fastening his position among the main challengers to Brave Inca's crown by winning at Punchestown today.
Noel Meade could hardly have dared hope for a more ideal opportunity than the four-runner Listed race in order to give Iktitaf a first start out of novice class.
Not surprisingly for a horse that won twice at Grade One level last season, and whose Punchestown Festival victory in April, put him at the very head of the novice rankings, Iktitaf is miles clear on the figures and should have little more than a pipe-opener considering he proved his fitness with a narrow success in the Cesarewitch just ten days ago.
"We've been happy enough with him since then and he looks a smart prospect," Meade said yesterday. Any anxiety the champion trainer might feel today could come from another top performer, the unbeaten Leading Run whose festival defeat of Hairy Molly in April was the best bit of bumper form all season.
Leading Run is already favourite for the SunAlliance despite not having jumped a hurdle in public and the obstacles might be more of a problem than runners in the maiden hurdle.
