Rogue Angel could attempt to provide his trainer Mouse Morris with a remarkable Grand National hat-trick at Ayr on Saturday.
The Gigginstown Stud -owned star is one of a strong Irish team still in contention to line up for the Coral Scottish Grand National, a team that also includes Willie Mullins’s Measureofmydreams and Cause Of Causes from Gordon Elliott’s stable.
Those two are prominent at the top of the ante-post betting for the weekend highlight but Rogue Angel will be the centre of attention following his Irish National success on Easter Monday and the victory of his stable companion, Rule The World, in Saturday’s Aintree Grand National.
Prestigious race
Initial bookmaker reaction was to make Rogue Angel a 16-1 shot to complete another National fairytale for Morris. Tony Martin’s Heathfield is a similar price for Scotland’s most prestigious race. Other Irish hopefuls after the five-day declarations are Heathfield’s stable companion, Gallant Oscar, and the 2015 Irish National hero, Thunder And Roses.
Mullins has left three horses in Saturday’s main support event at Ayr, the Scottish Champion Hurdle, including the Aintree winner, Ivan Grozny. The New One is likely to top the weights in the lucrative handicap.
A mouth-watering clash between Don Cossack, Cue Card and Vautour could be the centrepiece to the Punchestown festival after all three were left in the €200,000 Bibby Financial Services Gold Cup.
The trio are among a star-studded list of entries for the €2.6 million festival which brings Ireland’s National Hunt season to a close.
Vautour was a shock faller at Aintree on Friday but may make just the second start of his career at three miles. He was beaten by a short head by Cue Card in the King George at Kempton over Christmas.
“There’s a very good chance Vautour will run in the Gold Cup. He’s as fit as a flea and as long as he’s sparkling at home, he’ll take his chance,” said Mullins.
Don Cossack landed last month’s Cheltenham Gold Cup where Cue Card fell at the third last. The British-trained star won the King George when Don Cossack crashed out at the second last fence.
"Hopefully they both jump a clear round. Don Cossack's fallen once. We've fallen once and hopefully they'll both jump clear and we'll see who finishes in front," said Cue Card's trainer Colin Tizzard.
“The plan always was to go to Punchestown and I don’t see any reason to change that. He fell at Cheltenham and mentally didn’t have a hard race. He also didn’t have a hard race at Aintree and he’s come out of it all fine.”
Tizzard will also run his other star, Thistlecrack, in the Ladbrokes Stayers Hurdle.
Opening day feature
Don Cossack missed out on Aintree but is on course to defend his Punchestown title.
"He'll have one more good bit of work and then it's all systems go," said trainer Gordon Elliott. "It would obviously be great to win it again but he owes us nothing after winning the Gold Cup."
The two-mile champion Sprinter Sacre is entered to repeat his 2013 success in the Boylesports Champion Chase, the opening day feature of the five-day festival.
Potential opposition to the Nicky Henderson-trained star could include Un De Sceaux and that one’s stable companion, Vroum Vroum Mag.
“There’s two options for Un De Sceaux, either the Champion Chase at Punchestown or the Celebration Chase at Sandown,” Mullins said.
“We may go to England, rather than come here, but we’ll have to consider which way Sprinter Sacre is going as well.”
Mullins has dominated the Punchestown festival in recent years and his outstanding mare, Annie Power, is set to be the headline act for the €200,000 Betdaq Champion Hurdle on day four.
