Lexus option for Weird Al

(Healy Racing Photos)

The nine-year-old looked set to be tailed off heading down the back straight on his reappearance in the Betfair Chase at Haydock, but consented to pick up the bridle in the last half-mile and fairly flew home to finish fourth, beaten just seven lengths.

McCain is now mulling over a trip to Ireland for his charge, with Cheltenham in the new year an alternative, but the Grand National at Aintree is his main objective.

"He ran another one of those frustrating races (at Haydock). He stayed on really well late on, but Jason (Maguire) said he was never really going on the ground the whole way through," McCain told Betfair.

"You came away with the impression he's better than what he's doing and that's typical him.

"Options are a bit thin on the ground. There's Ireland and then Cheltenham in the new year, so we'll go to one of those, I think, with a view to going back to Aintree."