Olly Murphy will not be making a hasty decision on the long-term plans for Coral Gold Cup favorite Resplendent Gray as the seven-year-old prepares for the feature in Newbury.
The son of Walk In The Park ended last season with victory in the bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown and defeated Handstands when he reappeared at Listed Colin Parker in Carlisle earlier this month.
With the Cheltenham Gold Cup and Grand National possible targets, Murphy wants to take it one day at a time, with Newbury next on the agenda on Saturday.
Murphy said: “He’s doing really well, his preparations have gone well. He’s had a pre-season run at Carlisle where he won, which was a bonus; he’s in really good form and we’re really looking forward to next Saturday.”
“Obviously the Gold Cup is his main target. Whether he will become a Grand National horse in April I’m not entirely sure, but I think the two weeks will tell us a lot more. He’s in really good form. I feel like he’s getting better and better and if he keeps improving, hopefully he’ll run really well.”
Strong Leader will look to defend his title in the Grade Two Coral Long Distance Hurdle and Murphy was impressed with his work in the Newbury gallop on Tuesday.
Murphy said: “I absolutely loved him. Sean (Bowen) said he felt great. He’s in really good shape and we’re looking forward to driving him.”
The eight-year-old won his season debut in the bet365 Hurdle at Wetherby and Murphy is confident he will make that run after narrowly beating Dan Skelton’s Take No Chances in West Yorkshire.
Murphy added: “Dan almost caught me on the hop. His mare had had a run and had a fitness edge on me. So I think we’ve had a run under our belt now, we’ll just tighten up. I think Newbury will suit him a little better than Wetherby too.”
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