Murphy favouring mares' option

Colm Murphy is leaning towards taking the easier option with Voler La Vedette as he prepares his star mare for an outing at Leopardstown next Tuesday.

The five-year-old is unbeaten in her last three starts over obstacles and was very impressive in blowing away Go Native by 13 lengths at Down Royal last month.

Following the defection of the injured Hurricane Fly, Voler La Vedette is as short as 3-1 for the Leopardstown Golf Centre December Festival Hurdle, but at this stage Murphy prefers the ITBA Fillies Scheme European Breeders Fund Mares Hurdle on the same card.

“She worked nicely today and we’re just going to keep our options open regarding which race she goes for on Tuesday,” said Murphy.

“The big one is still a possible with Hurricane Fly coming out and if one or two of the other principals don’t turn up, we’ll definitely look at it.

“At the moment, we are favouring the mares’ race but there has been no definite decision.”