Brave second in Ormonde Willie Mullins is looking forward to a return trip to Royal Ascot with Wicklow Brave after his excellent second to Dartmouth on his comeback in the Boodles Diamond Ormonde Stakes at Chester. The versatile seven-year-old, successful in the 2015 County Hurdle, was only fourth when a warm favourite for the Queen Alexandra Stakes last year but showed he has enough speed for middle-distances when finishing fast on the Roodee, despite William Buick dropping his whip in the closing stages. Mullins said: "The horse ran a cracker. I'm hoping he'll improve for that run and hoping he will improve throughout the season. "I imagine we'd look at the Hardwicke at Royal Ascot. That would be our top target." The Queen's Dartmouth made all of the running in the hands of Ryan Moore to hold off Wicklow Brave by a neck. Moore said of the 11-10 favourite: "He's done well. We were really pleased with him and he enjoyed himself." John Warren, the Queen's bloodstock and racing advisor, said: "He's a lovely horse. "Sir Michael (Stoute) has typically trained him beautifully and now he has turned into a very useful older horse. "He's an improver and a late-maturing horse and will give Her Majesty a lot of fun this year. "Physically, he's starting to come to himself and now is probably the time to dip his toe into a slightly bigger pool. "Her Majesty having a runner at the Royal meeting is always a thrill and we hope to get him there in one piece."
