Eva’s Oskar running out of time to make Welsh National

Molly Hunter
December 26, 2022 3:37 pm

Tim Vaughan’s charge picked up a cut in victory at Cheltenham this month.

Eva’s Oskar is now to be aimed at the Grand National as a minor knock has made his planned Coral Welsh National bid look unlikely.

The grey has posted two admirable performances at Cheltenham this season, finishing second to Kim Bailey’s Does He Know in the Jewson Handicap Chase at the November meeting before landing the Dahlbury Handicap Chase by half a length earlier this month.

The Coral-sponsored Welsh National, run at Chepstow on the December 27, was mentioned as a next step for the gelding after his Prestbury Park success, with the track only an hour from Vaughan’s base in Glamorgan.

Eva’s Oskar was found to have incurred a minor injury after his most recent outing, however, and a trip to Chepstow over the festive period now seems unlikely.

“He’s fit and well and everything’s good with him, he just had three staples in a little cut after Cheltenham so we’ve nursed him a little bit since,” said Vaughan.

Exeter Races – November 22nd — Eva’s Oskar after a victory of Exeter (David Davies/PA)

“We are still considering the Welsh National but it’s getting more unlikely that he’ll run there.”

The Grand National itself is another race that was mentioned in the immediate aftermath of Eva Oskar’s Cheltenham success and is now the ultimate target, with Vaughan likely to work backwards from Aintree in April in order to find a next run for the horse.

“Now he’s got to a mark of 144 we’d like to have a tilt at the Grand National, I think we’ll work his races back from that now,” he said.

“He might have one more race and go straight to the National fresh.

“The Classic Chase and the Eider would be two obvious targets, I’ve got got it in my head that the Eider would be the one for him.

Eva's Oskar after winning the Dahlbury Handicap Chase — Eva’s Oskar after winning the Dahlbury Handicap Chase (David Davies/PA)

“I don’t know the exact plan now but we’ve got the Classic Chase, the Eider, the Midlands Grand National and the Grand National – those sort of races.

“We’ll aim for the Grand National and work backwards from there, that’s what we’ve got in mind.”

Eva’s Oskar has been particularly effective on testing ground in past seasons but both Cheltenham runs this year came on good going, proving the horse can operate in all conditions and opening up even more options for spring.

“He loves soft ground and heavy ground, it’s not that he can’t go on good ground but it just slows everyone down for him, that’s the thing,” Vaughan said.

“He can handle the ground, it’s just a case of making his job a bit easier if the pace of the race is that touch slower.”