Fitz looking forward to Light in Champion

Mick Fitzgerald is hoping for a big show from Landing Light in the Smurfit Champion Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival next month.

The jockey revealed that the Nicky Henderson-trained seven-year-old 'worked nicely' today.

'Landing Light is in great shape, he looks fantastic. I saw him out at work this morning and he worked nicely.

'The boss is very, very happy with him,' Fitzgerald told the Racing Channel this afternoon.

'Landing Light`s form is there. He beat Bilboa at Kempton and she won nicely at Sandown. He`s a horse who is certainly a real candidate for the Champion Hurdle.'

Landing Light has raced just the twice this season, winning both the Pertemps Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle and the Pertemps Christmas Hurdle at Kempton to be third favourite at 4-1 to lift the Cheltenham crown.

He ended the last campaign with victory in the Coral Eurobet Championship Hurdle (the replacement Champion Hurdle) at Sandown where he defeated his stablemate Geos by three lengths.

Geos is also in the Champion and Fitzgerald believes it is best to ignore his latest run when he finished a well-beaten sixth to Ned Kelly in the AIG Europe Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown.

He said: 'Geos was disappointing in Ireland but he got a bit bogged down in that ground.

'To be honest because he had a slight problem after his run in the Peterborough Chase it was almost like the first run of the season for him and that really bad ground at Leopardstown just found him out.'

But Istabraq, chasing a record fourth successive win in the Champion Hurdle, is still the one to beat according to Fitzgerald.

'Istabraq is a horse we all have to beat. If he turns up in good form on the day we`ve still got to go some to beat him,' said the Irish rider.

And Fitzgerald would not rule out the Martin Pipe-trained Valiramix.

'Valiramix is another horse who has very strong claims in the Champion Hurdle. I felt that if he had run in the Tote Gold Trophy the other day he wouldon form alone be a step ahead of Copeland.

'The way Copeland won suggests he would have given him something to think about especially on very soft ground.'

The Tote bet: 7-4 Istabraq, 11-4 Valiramix, 4-1 Landing Light, 5-1 Ned Kelly, 11-1 Bilboa, 14-1 Brother Joe, 25-1 Ansar, Rodock, 28-1 Azertyuiop, 33-1 Grimes, Hors La Loi III, Liss A Paoraigh, Magnus, Marble Arch, Westender, Youlneverwalkalone, 40-1 bar.