A look ahead to Down Royal tomorrow Colin Bowe has decided to keep improving mare Little King Robin closer to home for the WKD Hurdle at Down Royal on Friday. The six-year-old held an engagement on Saturday at Wetherby, where she could have raced against her own sex, but Bowe has decided to find out just how good his stable star is by pitching her in against some of last season's leading juveniles. With the likes of Triumph Hurdle winner Tiger Roll and Guitar Pete, successful at the highest level at Leopardstown and Aintree, Bowe is certainly not taking the easy option. "The ground at Down Royal is still yielding so we thought we'd let her take her chance," said the County Wexford handler, whose inmate has won her last four starts over hurdles. "She's improving away and we should find out where we are at. "If she was taking them on in a handicap she wouldn't be that much better off at the weights. "She'll also like the ground and likes the track, having won there before. "It's not impossible for a mare to win it so we'll give it a go and see where we stand with the rest of the season in mind." Gordon Elliott's Tiger Roll reversed Leopardstown form with Guitar Pete at the Cheltenham Festival and returned to Prestbury Park earlier this month when giving weight and a beating to Calipto. Jockey Bryan Cooper knows both horses very well, having made his comeback from injury on Guitar Pete and having recently ridden Tiger Roll to victory. Cooper will be on latter in the Grade Two over two miles, won last year by subsequent Champion Hurdle hero Jezki. "Tiger Roll did it well at Cheltenham as he was giving a lot of weight away," said Cooper. "The ground was slower than he'd want, too, and we always thought he'd improve on whatever he did, so you'd have to be pleased with what he did. "Guitar Pete always runs a good race. We thought he was probably fitter than he was for a comeback but he never runs a bad race. "He probably has a bit to find with Tiger Roll, but I'd also have a lot of respect for Willie Mullins' two, Arctic Fire and Wicklow Brave. "With a run under our belts, though, I'd hope we'd take all the beating." The consistent Orgilgo Bay and King Of The Picts make up the seven-strong field.
