Hourigan has no beefs

Gold Cup Michael Hourigan interview: Michael Hourigan will walk into the Gold Cup parade ring today with a spring in his step to match that of Beef Or Salmon's. He knows that after this time last year both are lucky to be doing so.

It's now well chronicled that just over half an hour after Beef Or Salmon crashed out of his first Gold Cup at the third fence, Hourigan's veteran star Dorans Pride broke a leg in the Foxhunters.

The sight of the Co Limerick trainer's daughter Kay sobbing as the old horse was put out of his misery was a stark reminder of the heavy toll this game can take.

"A bad hour at the office," is how he describes it now, the shrewd, grinning eyes refusing to let on how deep the hurt went and how the memory continues to niggle. But not enough to stop him looking ahead.

Best Mate might be chasing history, a year ago there were plenty who figured he would end up chasing the young Irish star. None more so than Hourigan. He expected to win then and while the certainty is not as strong this time, the hope is still lurking not too far from the surface.

"It's lovely to be going back again and we're back with a fighting chance," he declares. "I'm not going to put my head on the line and say he will definitely win but the other horse is trying to equal history and that's a very hard thing to do."

They've clashed since in the Ericsson Chase when the English star was imperious on Beef Or Salmon's patch and Hourigan went home to nurse his horse's lung infection and a subsequent muscle problem.

That performance, that illness, and the fact that Beef Or Salmon hasn't appeared since, means he is something of the forgotten horse today, dismissed because of his interrupted preparation. Hourigan will have none of it.

"I could go against that and say his preparation has been ideal. I've had no hiccups since Christmas, none at all. The only options were the Hennessy and the Pilar but the physios were against running him so I didn't. I'm very happy the way he is now," he argues.

The argument is backed up by the belief that Beef Or Salmon's jumping is back on track. A suspicion has grown all season that last year's fall had taken its toll physically. Hourigan agrees.

"The first time he ran this season I put his jumping down to rustiness which in hindsight was bollocks. The horse was hurting and I didn't know. The second and third times, he won but didn't jump well and in the Ericsson he didn't jump a fence but ultimately ended up running a cracker. But we found the problem and he has been doing all the right things since," he says.

All of which means another clash with Best Mate, a task that doesn't fill the Beef Or Salmon camp with any great dread.

"Every horse is beatable. Even Arkle got beat and Best Mate has been beaten already this season," Hourigan reasons. "Nobody can go into any race thinking they're certainties. Tom Costello once told me this game tames lions and that's why it's a great game.

"What I want from my horse is for him to get into a position to challenge. If he does everything right, and does challenge, and he gets beat, then I'll accept it. If he gets stuffed in those circumstances then that will just be what he is and we will know," he argues.

One doesn't need to be a genius, however, to figure out that Hourigan for one believes something a lot better than that could be on the horizon.

After his terrible experiences in 2003, only the miserly would begrudge him.