Leopardstown and Newbury under the microscope for Dysart Enos

Dysart Enos could bid to get her season back on track at next month’s Dublin Racing Festival.

Unbeaten in her first six starts, Fergal O’Brien’s mare made a promising return from 10 months off the track when third behind Burdett Road in the Greatwood Hurdle at Cheltenham in November.

On the strength of that form, the seven-year-old was favourite for the Ladbrokes Handicap Hurdle at Ascot before Christmas, but disappointed for the first time in her career, trailing home a well-beaten seventh under Jonathan Burke.

While an entry in the Irish Champion Hurdle looks ambitious, Dysart Enos does have an alternative Leopardstown option. The valuable Newbury Handicap Hurdle the following week is also under consideration.

O’Brien said: “We obviously put her in the Irish Champion Hurdle and she’ll also be entered in the mares’ handicap hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival, which is probably a more realistic target.

“There’s also the race at Newbury the following week, so we’ll just have to have a look and see where the best ground is and see how she is and try to get her confidence back.”

Reflecting on her below-par effort at Ascot, O’Brien added: “The only thing we could sort of think of was that she probably had a harder race than we thought at Cheltenham. She put everything into that and maybe we went back to Ascot a bit quick, after being off for so long before the Greatwood as well.

“I know there was four weeks between the two races, but maybe she just wanted a bit longer.

“Her run in the Greatwood looks a very good run now, so we’ll just have to put a line through it and move on and go again the next day.”