Brega aims to bounce back Pat Downey is hopeful he has The King Of Brega back to form ahead of his intended reappearance in the Racing Again Sat 27th Sept. Handicap Hurdle at Navan on Saturday. The Court Cave gelding boasts some patchy form, winning twice before being pulled up on his two latest outings, puzzling Downey in the process. The lightly-raced seven-year-old looked like a horse on a serious upward curve with a couple of victories last autumn and winter, at Thurles and Down Royal. After a break, The King Of Brega was expected to pick up the winning thread again in a valuable heat at Fairyhouse in the spring, despite the handicapper taking a dim view of his earlier successes. However, Downey's charge pulled up then and it got no better for him at Listowel in June when he again failed to complete. Downey said: "I don't know what happened to him on his two last runs. We thought first it was oilseed rape because that's on the land beside us and we thought the pollen might have affected him. "We're just praying now that he's right - he seems to be working well - but he seemed to be working well that time too. "We freshened him up and we've done as much as we can. If he's right, I think he'll win and that's the bottom line. "He likes nice ground but I don't want firm. "He's in fair order but I ran Three Bells this week and I thought he'd win (finished eighth) but he scoped dirty after at the races. He was clean then the next morning. I just can't put my finger on it but they're not 100 per cent." Whatever happens at Navan, Downey is already looking to the future and added: "I'm really excited about him going chasing. Even if he wins on Saturday he'll still go chasing. "If he finishes and he runs a good race I'll be really happy. When Robbie (Colgan) got off him after the wins he said he was a machine. "Everyone that ever rode him has thought he was a machine. I know from his work how good he can be. I just couldn't be sure that he's 100 per cent now but even at 90 that should be nearly good enough to win this type of race."
