HORSE RACING: The Melbourne Cup winner Media Puzzle was flown to Dubai yesterday and the Cheltenham festival fancy Mutakarrim went with him.
Trainer Dermot Weld has also sent One More Round to the Gulf state, but insisted that the three- horse raid does not rule Mutakarrim out of a tilt at the Supreme Novices Hurdle in March.
"I have a race in mind for him in Dubai in two or three weeks time and then we will decide. I am not ruling him in or out of anything at the moment," Weld said.
Mutakarrim is already a winner over hurdles at Cheltenham and is as low as 20 to 1 with Cashmans for the opening race of the festival. A Listed winner on the flat, Mutakarrim finished fourth to Hardy Eustace in the Royal Bond Hurdle at Fairyhouse on his last start.
Media Puzzle is being targeted at the Sheema Classic in March's World Cup meeting, while One More Round has the Godolphin Mile as an aim if he proves he acts on the sand.
In the shorter term, however, Weld has a decision to make regarding his high-class hurdler Stage Affair and it looks like Sunday's AIG third could run next over fences.
"There is nothing definite, but he is more likely to go jumping fences and you could see him in a novice chase pretty soon," he said.
Stage Affair is quoted as short as 25 to 1 in betting for both the Smurfit Champion Hurdle and the Arkle Trophy.
At Thurles today, Native Upmanship goes for a second successive victory in the Grade Two Kinloch Brae Chase, and for many the most interest will centre on whether he starts shorter than last year's 4 to 7.
Just four oppose Arthur Moore's top-class horse who is returned to his ideal trip after a fifth in the King George at Kempton a month ago. Native Upmanship has almost a stone in hand of Moscow Express on official ratings and is unopposable.
Another Thurles hotpot will be last week's Thyestes heroine Be My Belle, who should have an easy and lucrative follow up in the €50,000 Mares novices chase.
The two-and-three-quarter mile novice hurdle looks a competitive event with the Deloitte and Touche entry Mullacash a possible favourite against some decent opposition.
Mullacash had a short head in hand of Liscannor Lad over Christmas and the latter dead-heated subsequently with Emmet at Fairyhouse. Emmet was one of the first to successfully emerge from the bug at Edward O'Grady's yard and could come on significantly for that race.
Enda Bolger has trained three of the last four winners of the hunters chase and Draw Again can do just that if he rules out the sort of error that saw him lose his rider at the ninth behind Sheltering at Punchestown.
Loss Of Faith caught a good horse on his last start when runner-up to McGruders Cross at Fairyhouse and the O'Brien runner can go one better in the bumper ahead of Our HandymanDamien Oliver celebrates on Media Puzzle after winning the Melbourne Cup. The Dermot Weld-trained horse went to Dubai yesterday and is being targeted at the Sheema Classic in March's World Cup meeting.
