Star mare Brighterdaysahead set to stay over hurdles as Champion Hurdle runner-up Irish Point is ruled out for the season

Brighterdaysahead will stay over hurdles for another season as connections have decided to aim her at the Mares' Hurdle at the 2025 Cheltenham Festival rather than send her chasing at the age of five, while Gordon Elliott has also revealed that Champion Hurdle runner-up Irish Point will miss the entire season with a setback.

Speaking during the summer, Gigginstown racing manager Eddie O'Leary said Brighterdaysahead would be going straight over fences this term, but there has been a rethink in the camp and she will instead remain over hurdles with her reappearance set to come in the Grade 3 Bottlegreen Hurdle on Friday week, a race won 12 months ago by Irish Point.

Elliott told the Racing Post: "We were originally going to go over fences with Brighterdaysahead, but we've had a few discussions over the last few weeks and the fact that she is only five means we have decided to stay over hurdles this season.

"We think she's a very talented mare and she's still very young. There will be plenty of time to go chasing with her."

He added: "She will start off in the Grade 3 hurdle at Down Royal and her ultimate aim will be the Mares' Hurdle at Cheltenham in March. She looks terrific and she's strengthened up a lot over the summer. Jack [Kennedy] sat on her the other day and he was over the moon with her."

State Man (Paul Townend) leads Irish Point (Jack Kennedy) over the final flight in the Champion HurdleCredit: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)

Irish Point, one of Elliott's heavy-hitters for the winter, won't be seen this season as he recovers from a setback.

Last season's Champion Hurdle runner-up is high up in a whole host of markets for the 2025 Cheltenham Festival and is shortest for the Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle, where he is floating between 7-1 and 12-1, but he won't be running there or anywhere else this season.

Elliott said: "Unfortunately, Irish Point has met with a setback and it will mean he misses the whole season. It's obviously a shame as he was one we were really looking forward to. We had so many different options for him and he's already won a few Grade 1s so we thought he might be able to add a few more this season, but it's just one of those things.

"It's definitely not career-threatening or anything like that and he's still a young horse with his best days ahead of him. I've no doubt he will be back next season and we'll look forward to getting him back on a racecourse then."

Irish Point has an official rating of 160 and gave State Man a scare on two occasions last season. Having beaten subsequent Ebor heroine Magical Zoe in a Grade 3 at Down Royal on his reappearance last term, he took the step up to three miles in his stride when winning the Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown by 11 lengths.

Gordon Elliott: suffered a blow with Irish Point being ruled out for the seasonCredit: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)

Then, when Constitution Hill was sidelined, connections decided to have a crack at the Champion Hurdle where he went down fighting to State Man, only beaten a length and a quarter. There were two lengths between them when they met again in the Punchestown Champion Hurdle in May. He was last seen finishing in mid-division in the French Champion Hurdle.

Robcour's Brian Acheson and Elliott still have the favourite for the Stayers' Hurdle next March in the shape of last season's impressive winner Teahupoo, who is no bigger than 5-2 to retain his title.

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