Mullins eyes National return

Willie Mullins admitted "history and statistics" are against Hedgehunter after outlining a campaign that will culminate in a repeat bid at the John Smith's Grand National.

The impressive winner of this year's race will have to defy a huge weight if he is to be the first horse since Red Rum to win the Aintree feature in consecutive years.

However, the nine-year-old is reported to be in good order and ready to run, with Mullins looking to mix action over hurdles and fences for his charge over the coming months.

The trainer is set to start Hedgehunter in a handicap hurdle within the next few weeks before running him in the Lexus Chase at Leopardstown over Christmas.

After that his main Irish aim will be the Hennessy Chase at Leopardstown, before a possible outing in the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

"After what he did in the National last year, he is definitely entitled to be running in the best races," Mullins said.

"He has had a good summer after we let him down. Statistics and history are not in our favour but I was delighted with the way he came back to Aintree a year after he had a nasty fall and that gives me hope that he can come back again.

"He ran too free when he ran in the race in 2004 but we learnt a lot about how to ride him then.

David Casey, Ruby (Walsh) and I got together and decided what we should do and what we shouldn't do and it couldn't have worked out better."

Winning the National is still sinking in for Mullins, who hosted a John Smith's press conference at his stables yesterday.

"It is probably the first race I ever saw televised and I wanted to win the Grand National from the moment I first saw it," he added.

Mullins has also confirmed the talented duo Sadlers Wings and Mister Hight are in training with the long-term goal of competing at the Cheltenham Festival.

Mullins is hopeful the former will emerge into a Champion Hurdle contender after he finished sixth behind Fundamentalist in the Royal and SunAlliance Novices' Hurdle last year.

Sadlers Wings, who has won four of his six races over timber, has not been seen since finishing fourth in a Grade Two race in Auteuil in May 2004.

However, Mullins said: "I'm hoping he might make up into a Champion Hurdle candidate this season."