Brassil Unveils Numbersix Gameplan John Smith's Grand National winner Numbersixvalverde will set off back down the road to Aintree glory with an outing in a three-mile hurdle at Leopardstown over Christmas.Trainer Martin Brassil plans to give the 10-year-old three starts before heading back to Aintree in April ? with two runs over timber and a crack at the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup his favoured option.Brassil, speaking at a John Smith's and Aintree press visit to his Curragh yard, confirmed: 'I hope to start him back in a three-mile hurdle over Christmas.'Depending how he gets on I would plan to run him three times before Aintree - twice over hurdles and I might make him an entry in the Hennessy at Leopardstown in February.'We have always mixed hurdling and chasing with him, but I don't think he is good enough to go and win a Grade One against the likes of Kicking King.'Winner of the Irish Grand National in 2005, Numbersixvalverde inflicted a six-length defeat on the previous year's winner, Hedgehunter, in the Liverpool showpiece in the spring.Brassil is now hoping for another bold show next April.He added: 'He is a very sound horse to train and had a three-month summer break, which he spent at Kevin Manning's yard.'He definitely improved between his Irish National win and his English National win ? he became a much stronger horse.'I hope he can go back to Aintree with a really good memory of the place as he came back last year without a cut or a mark on him.'He is so clever and keeps himself out of trouble.'I would hope that there will be an ease in the ground in Aintree and I hope to get him back there in the same shape, but you always need a bit of luck, especially in that race.'However, Brassil acknowledges the huge task his charge faces in winning the marathon chase two years running.He said: 'Whatever he does now is a bonus as he has achieved so much for me.'I think it is more difficult to win back-to-back Grand Nationals these days.'In the 1970s, lower-class horses were winning it, but you now have Gold-Cup calibre horses at the top of the weights and Numbersix' is going to be rated close to them.'(C) PA Sport
