RACING NEWS:HENRY DE BROMHEAD is confident that Sizing Europe retains all the ability he showed last season and believes his horse can join an exclusive club in this Sunday's Toshiba Irish Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown.
Sizing Europe burst into the limelight with a brilliant, eight-length defeat of Hardy Eustace in last year’s race, when it was known as the AIG.
A back injury ruined his chance of a Champion Hurdle follow up at Cheltenham, and although De Bromhead was happy with Sizing Europe’s comeback at Punchestown in November, he didn’t bother to disguise his disappointment with a lack-lustre fifth to Sublimity over Christmas.
However, the opportunity to get Sizing Europe’s season back on track comes this weekend at the scene of his finest moment to date, and De Bromhead is leaving nothing to chance.
“I think he is the same horse – but obviously I would be fairly objective about that,” the Co Waterford-based trainer said yesterday.
“I know we haven’t had a great start to the season, but I’m hoping it will end well. Things have been conspiring against us up to now, but we hope that might change.”
Part of the problem at Leopardstown last month, he believes, was a lack of pace in the December Festival Hurdle. Sizing Europe appeared to be travelling best of all into the straight but faded quickly.
“He will make sure there is a decent gallop early on,” said De Bromhead, who intends to run his 97-rated maiden Oscillating Oscar in Sunday’s big race.
“I know Sizing Europe needs a strong pace and I think that definitely was a factor the last day. Whether it was that much of a factor, I don’t know. I would have loved to have seen him upsides Brave Inca at the finish, so whether pace makes that much difference I don’t know,” said de Bromhead.
Sizing Europe is a 6 to 1 third-favourite behind Sublimity and Jered for Sunday’s big race, but if he wins it again he will become just the fifth horse to win back-to-back Irish Champion Hurdles.
Istabraq won four in a row (1998-2001), while Fortune And Fame (1994-95), Daring Run (1981-82) and Allergo (1960-61) won the race twice.
Prominent King also scored twice, in 1976 and 1978.
Brave Inca, an Irish Champion Hurdle winner in 2006, will be back for another crack at the race on Sunday, possibly along with his old rival Hardy Eustace, who won in 2007.
However, it is Sublimity who is a general 5 to 2 favourite in ante-post betting for a race in which ground conditions will dictate plans for the likes of Harchibald.
The vital, five-day forfeit stage takes place tomorrow. Twenty entries remain in it.
Sunday’s other Grade One feature is the Arkle Cup, in which champion trainer Willie Mullins has six of the 15 entries still in.
They include the highly-rated Jayo and Cooldine.
The Christmas Grade One winner Follow The Plan is a likely starter, as is the Grade One-runner-up Forpadydeplasterer.
Mullins also has four entries in Thursday’s €100,000 Ellen Construction Thyestes Chase at Gowran, including the JP McManus-owned stayer Arbor Supreme.
The former winner Homer Wells is another Mullins hopeful, as are Emma Jane and Ballytrim.
