Winters mulls over Fitz's options Powers Gold Cup hero Rebel Fitz is set to be given a short break before being prepared for a potential tilt at the Galway Plate. The nine-year-old claimed the Galway Hurdle at National Hunt racing's showpiece summer Festival two years ago, a feat trainer Mick Winters repeated with admirable mare Missunited last August. Rebel Fitz has largely been campaigned over fences for the last 12 months and secured his sixth victory from eight starts over the larger obstacles in Sunday's Grade One feature, making the most of Ballycasey's fall two fences from the finish. Winters said: "He has come out of the race very well. He was remarkably fresh afterwards. I suppose because the other horse fell in front of him, he ended up not getting too hard a race. "We'll give him a break for a couple of weeks now and bring him back in either the Grimes Hurdle at Tipperary (in July) or a hurdle race at Cork around the same time. "We could then go on to Galway and then give him a proper break after that." Rebel Fitz will step up to a two and three-quarter miles if he does line up in the Galway Plate and Winters feels his charge could even benefit from a step up to three miles in due course. "We were delighted with the way he jumped the other day and he has settled a lot. It has taken a while, but he is starting to give himself a chance," said the trainer. "The way he jumped the last the other day you'd have to say three miles on a flat track should be fine for him and I think he might be a bit better right-handed." Winters' comments raises the intriguing possibility Rebel Fitz could line up in the King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day. When asked about a potential tilt at the Festive highlight, he said: "I don't like to plan too far ahead and I want to let the horse the talking, but that could be something we'll look at nearer the time. "After he has a break after Galway, we could think about bringing him to England for something. "I think now he's getting a bit older and a bit more settled, he'll probably take the travelling a bit better. "He's run 26 times, but he's not a horse who does a lot at home and I think there's plenty of mileage in him yet."
