Faugheen heads a list of six horses for the BHP Insurance Irish Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown on Sunday, where Hurricane Fly will be welcomed back for the unveiling of a bronze statue in his honour.
Willie Mullins has left four horses in for the €100,000 race, while Petit Mouchoir is set to challenge strongly for Henry de Bromhead.
Faugheen hasn’t been in action since his 15-length success in this race last year, while Mullins could also be represented by Ivan Grozny, who has not been seen since winning the Grade 2 Istabraq Hurdle at Tipperary in early October.
Nichols Canyon chased home Petit Mouchoir in the Grade 1 Ryanair Hurdle at Leopardstown over Christmas and he is another possible runner - along with Footpad who finished fourth in that race.
The possible field is completed by the Joseph O'Brien-trained Ivanovich Gorbatov, last year’s winner of the JCB Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham.
Also on Sunday, Hurricane Fly will return for the unveiling of a statue in his honour and parade for fans before the Champion Hurdle at approximately 3.15pm.
Owners - the Boyd and Creighton families - have commissioned internationally-renowned artist Siobhan Bulfin to create a bronze statue of Hurricane Fly, who holds the world record of 22 Grade 1 races.
He won the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham twice; no fewer than eight Grade 1 races at Punchestown and another two at Fairyhouse.
However, he always saved his best performances for Leopardstown where he was unbeaten in ten starts at Grade 1 level.
He won the Istabraq Hurdle in 2012 and the same race again in 2013 and 2014 when it became the Ryanair Hurdle.
One of Hurricane Fly’s finest achievements was winning five successive BHP Irish Champion Hurdles from 2011 to 2015.
