Usual suspects set to battle it out again at Punchestown

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Hardy Eustace, Macs Joy and Harchibald have been in competition on numerous occasions before, each of them winning in their turn.

The trio of usual suspects line up again in the two-mile Grade 1 contest at 4.05, with Irish bookmakers Cashmans making Macs Joy the 7-4 favourite to come out on top this time.

Harchibald's trainer Noel Meade also runs Iktitaf and Sweet Wake, and the former might well have gone close to challenging Sublimity in Cheltenham's Champion Hurdle had he not fallen at the third-last flight when travelling strongly, only a length off the lead.

Sweet Wake finished seventh in the Vincent O'Brien County Hurdle at Cheltenham and has since been beaten at Fairyhouse, while Harchibald was forced to miss last month's Festival through injury but finished second to Brave Inca in this race two years ago.

"Iktitaf is in great form," said Meade. "He got a little bruise on a hind leg when he fell but he's over it and there has been no hold up with him.

"We'll be hoping that the ground stays good for him. He seems to be a lot better on better ground.

"There was a lot of racing to do when he fell at Cheltenham, but at the same time there was no reason to believe he wasn't going to be concerned in the finish.

"As he gets older, it gets harder to keep Harchibald in one piece, but he seems fine again at the moment."

Hardy Eustace finished only fourth in his bid to win a third Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham and may struggle to deal with Macs Joy, another who has been on the sidelines through injury, but who ran a cracker on the Flat earlier this month.

"If he runs as well as he did in the race last year then he'll take the beating," said trainer Jessie Harrington.