Shark Hanlon is dreaming of huge prizes in the spring with his stable star Hewick.
Hewick was one of the sport’s most popular success stories last year, winning the bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown and the Galway Plate before exiting at the final fence when looking poised to land the Kerry National.
He then headed out to Far Hills in New Jersey to win the American Grand National.
The Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup in March has long been booked in as the target for his seasonal return – but Hanlon also explained of equal importance will be a bid for the Randox Grand National at Aintree.
“Without a doubt he’ll go for the National, that’s my plan,” Hanlon said.
“I’m going to give him no run before the Gold Cup and the Gold Cup will put him right for the National.
“I’m not saying he’s not going to be trained for the Gold Cup, but he’s a summer horse and he had a busy enough year last year and he wants good ground.
“He’ll go straight for the Gold Cup and the National then.”
Hewick is likely to find himself near the top of the weights at Aintree, but Hanlon notes that his weight-carrying Kerry National run was scuppered by a fall rather than by the horse folding under the 11st 12lbs burden he was allocated.
He said: “I don’t think weight bothers the horse, you go back to the Kerry National and everyone said he had no chance because he was giving a stone, a stone and a half to everything.
“He was unlucky, he fell and if it wasn’t for that he would have won. I’m not worried about weight.”
Hanlon is similarly unconcerned by the step up in trip that the National represents as he feels the horse will only improve when tasked with running over a longer distance.
“The best run he had last year was the bet365 and that’s three and a half miles,” he said.
“The further he goes, the better, he’s a great cruising speed and he doesn’t stop.”
Hewick has done little other than improve throughout his career so far, but Hanlon – who will also run recent acquisition Cape Gentleman in the National – believes there is more to come and that the gelding returned from America in better condition than ever.
“We left him in America for 17 or 18 days because the weather over there was beautiful, he was out in the field every day and back in at night,” he said.
“When he came home to me he was 40 kilos heavier than he was going over there, he’s definitely come back the strongest he’s ever been.
“I couldn’t be happier, he’s been ridden out the last 10 days at home and I think he’s after improving.
“If he improves seven or eight pounds, he’s entitled to be in the Gold Cup and he’s entitled to be in the Grand National – that’s the way I’m looking at it.”
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