THE Coral Welsh Grand National or Lexus Chase are the targets for Harry Topper, who was pulled up in Saturday's Betfair Chase at Haydock on ground trainer Kim Bailey says was just not testing enough for his mud-loving stable star.
The 3m1f Grade 1 - won by Silviniaco Conti - was run on ground described as soft, but Harry Topper was pulled up when tailed off four from home by Jason Maguire.
"Harry jumped off handy and jumped the first circuit very well, but the writing was on the wall early enough as he was struggling to keep up with the pace and a mistake at the open ditch meant that he lost his position and was dropping back," Bailey wrote on his blog on Monday morning.
"He is fine and a bit stiff after his race, but it does make me realise that for him to be at his very best in those sort of fields, then he has to have the worst of ground - the softer and slower the better."
Harry Topper showed what he can do in his ideal conditions when slamming Al Ferof by 25 lengths in the Denman Chase at Newbury last season and Bailey, who trains the seven-year-old for Tony Solomons, added: "There will be other days, but monsoon conditions will be needed and the Welsh Grand National or Lexus chase will be our next target."
