Raz De Maree© Photo Healy Racing
Dessie Hughes will not run Raz De Maree in the Coral Welsh National if there is a significant rise in the weights.
The seven-year-old had looked an ideal type for the Chepstow marathon on December 27th having won the Munster and Cork Nationals already this season.
Hughes was tempted to go for the Welsh National after he was given 10st 8lb, but the Curragh trainer warns that Raz de Maree will bypass that race if he has to carry 11st or more.
"We were thinking of the Welsh National for him but we don't want the weights to go up too much for him," said Hughes.
"I've seen in the paper that Tidal Bay might go for the Lexus and down the Gold Cup route now. I was hoping he'd run because it would keep us at a reasonable weight.
"If he doesn't run and the next one doesn't run, then the weights will go up quite a bit.
"It would definitely have to be under 11st for him to run. He's a small horse and he is rated 7lb more in England than over here.
"He got 9lb for winning in Cork and they gave him another 7lb on top of that. It's very unfair."
