War 'beaten by better horse' - O'Leary

Racing:  Connections of War Of Attrition are taking it one step after time after his fine effort in defeat at Down Royal yesterday…

Racing: Connections of War Of Attrition are taking it one step after time after his fine effort in defeat at Down Royal yesterday.

Last season's Cheltenham Gold Cup hero, trained by Mouse Morris, went down by a neck to Beef Or Salmon in an epic battle for the James Nicholson Wine Merchant Champion Chase.

And despite coming out second best, owner Michael O'Leary says there is no disgrace in losing to Michael Hourigan's pride and joy.

"No, I wasn't disappointed yesterday. It was a tremendous race and he was just beaten by a better horse on the day. Beef Or Salmon's won nine Grade Ones," said O'Leary.

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"He's getting fitter but he doesn't particularly like that tacky ground.

"I think he's lot stronger now as a seven-year-old in every respect. He got a lot closer to Beef Or Salmon yesterday than when he was beaten in the Lexus last year.

"Where he goes next is entirely down to Mouse. We don't have a plan to go to Cheltenham because, frankly, Gold Cup winners have a bad record of going back there.

"I think we'll take one race at a time. Hopefully, he's come out of the race okay and Mouse will decide where he goes next.

"We'll look for the next race and hope he stays well in himself. You look to what happened to Kicking King last year so there's no point making plans for Cheltenham because it's difficult to get back there.

"When a horse is this good, you want to keep him happy, fit and well. There's no point in making a plan beyond what the next race may be," O'Leary said.