A mid-March trip to Uttoxeter could be on the cards for My Immortal following his surprise success in the 1xbet.ie Grand National Trial at Punchestown, the first leg of a double on the card for trainer Barry Connell.
My Immortal had been disappointing on his two previous starts this season, finishing down the field on his Galway reappearance before pulling up at Leopardstown over the Christmas period.
The 10-year-old was a 40-1 shot for this €60,000 prize and having been up with the pace from the start, he found plenty for amateur jockey Finny Maguire to score by five lengths from Uncle Pat.
Connell said: "We ran him in Galway in October and it's usually bottomless there, but I ran three horses and they all came back jarred.
"I ran him back in Leopardstown and the ground was grand for horses that want good ground but he just didn't like it, minded himself and pulled himself up.
"The way that he's been working at home I was expecting a big run from him today. All we needed was the ground - he'd stay any trip.
"I might enter him for the Midlands Grand National National (at Uttoxeter, 14 March). He's going to get 10lb for winning today, so that would make him 135 and he'd probably get in off bottom weight.
"I might stick him in the Leinster National as well, that closes next week, and he could be one for the Welsh National next year."
My Immortal was running without headgear for the first time since the autumn of 2024, and his trainer added: "He wasn't wearing the cheek pieces at home and we actually put a visor on him last year, but you may as well be putting a cornflake packet on his head!"
Connell made it two from two on the afternoon in the EVAD Technology Group Maiden Hurdle, with former Willie Mullins inmate Ksar Fatal making a successful hurdling debut on his first start for the yard.
The 11-8 shot was strongly pressed by the Mullins-trained 10-11 favourite Dani Donadoni in the straight, but Ksar Fatal had more to give on the run-in and passed the post with two and a quarter lengths in hand.
"He won well. He's just a green horse, it's his first time over hurdles," Connell added.
"He hasn't run for nine months. He was working with the slow horse that won the National Trial - I don't know what that tells you!
"He's an exciting horse, he'll have two more runs over hurdles this year and then we'll go jumping a fence.
"I think what we're looking at is the Grade Two in Fairyhouse in seven weeks' time. If everything went well there he could come back to Punchestown for the two-and-a-half mile Grade One."
John McConnell will consider all the spring festivals for Heads Up after seeing him get back on the winning trail.
Runner-up in the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham last March, the six-year-old made a successful start over obstacles at Listowel in September and was second to star British novice No Drama This End back in Cheltenham the following month.
He disappointed on Festivals Trials day at Prestbury Park in late January, but with a hood applied he showed his true colours in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Sheila Bourke Novice Hurdle under Danny Mullins, claiming Listed honours by three-quarters of a length from odds-on favourite Lazare De Star
"Obviously everything went wrong the last day. The delay didn't help, but the way he behaved delay or no delay he would have blown his chance," said McConnell of the 5-2 chance.
"The frustrating thing is that he's a very placid horse at home and is not keen or anything. All his schooling has been in behind, but if you get into a row with him you'll lose.
"Where we go, I don't know. There will be big decisions to be talked about, but they are nice decisions.
"He's in both the Supreme and the Turners Novices' Hurdle at Cheltenham. He's probably a two and a half miler, but with his exuberance we decided to come back to two miles and he obviously settled a lot better.
"Cheltenham is an atmospheric place and for whatever reason he just didn't handle it. We had the hood on today and it obviously helped.
"It's a worry because we're going to be going to either Cheltenham, Aintree, Punchestown or Fairyhouse and they all have atmospheres.
"Hopefully he'll mature and with the hood on him it might be a big help."
Another horse who could be in action at Cheltenham in March is the Emmet Mullins-trained Soldier In Milan after he obliged as a 13-8 joint-favourite in the 1xbet.ie Beginners Chase.
Mullins said: "It was a nice performance. He's still a bit green and babyish, I suppose he hasn't had too much racing under his belt.
"Hopefully it's onwards and upwards. He has an entry in the Brown Advisory and I think I've entered him in the two novice handicaps at Cheltenham as well, so we've plenty of options. We'll mull over Cheltenham strongly."
Pure Steel (5-6 favourite) was a 12-length winner of the Concept Colours Noel Byrne Memorial Rated Novice Chase for trainer Jimmy Mangan, owner JP McManus and jockey Mark Walsh.
Mangan said: "I think he's a nice horse. He'll win a lot of races and he jumps well.
"I don't know where we'll go next, but hopefully Fairyhouse for the WillowWarm Gold Cup or back here for the festival."
There was talk of a tilt at the Champion Bumper for the Willie Mullins-trained Heldam before he lined up in the Join Racing TV Now (Pro/Am) Flat Race, but he could only finish a lacklustre third behind Gordon Elliott's decisive winner Soul Asylum (9-4).
"He's a nice horse, a big galloper. He's a next year horse really," said Elliott.
"You might see him in Fairyhouse or somewhere like that for a bumper.
"He wouldn't be a horse that would be travelling to Cheltenham, he's a big baby."
