Mark Oulaghan’s premier jumpers are likely to be islands apart this winter.
The Awapuni trainer will head south with his Manawatu Steeplechase winner Upper Cut while Brushman will stay closer to home in his hunt for a third feature win at Trentham.
Injury ruled Brushman out of last year’s event, but he showed he was back on target with a game effort for fifth at Trentham earlier this month under 72kg.
“It was a good run, he covered a bit of extra ground and did well with that weight,” Oulaghan said.“He doesn’t need too much (racing) and he’ll go straight to the Wellington Steeplechase again. He’s just battled at Riccarton before so he’ll probably go up for the Pakuranga Hunt Cup and the Great Northern instead.”
Upper Cut has also had contrasting fortunes at Christchurch, but he remains the stable’s major hope for the Racecourse Hotel & Motor Lodge Grand National Steeplechase on August 8.“He won down there three years ago and then he got a crook tendon and he had 12 months off,” Oulaghan said
“We brought him back and the saddle slipped in the Koral last year and he was pulled up when he really needed the run badly so we missed the National. He then fell in the Great Northern so we didn’t have much luck.”Upper Cut’s fortunes have turned this time around and he has come through Saturday’s Manawatu Steeplechase win in good order.
“It was his first steeplechase start for a while and it was in the back of my mind that he might not be conditioned enough in that ground, but he did a great job,” Oulaghan said.
