'The Champion Hurdle is our objective' - Knight Salute on the Cheltenham trail

Knight Salute's ultimate aim for the season will be the Champion Hurdle but his trainer Milton Harris is happy to bide his time depending on how Saturday's rematch with Pied Piper at Cheltenham plays out.

The pair dead-heated in a Grade 1 at Aintree in April but Harris's runner was awarded the race in the stewards' room outright after being hampered at the final flight.

An appeal from the owners of Pied Piper against the controversial demotion in the 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle was dismissed by a disciplinary panel in May, and now the pair are set to reignite their rivalry in the Masterson Holdings Hurdle (2.40) this weekend.

Knight Salute won the first of three Grade 2s last season over Saturday's course and distance and has only been beaten in the Triumph Hurdle in seven starts since switching from the Flat.

Harris is hopeful his four-year-old can produce a season similar to Katchit, who won the Triumph Hurdle before winning the Champion Hurdle in his first season out of juvenile company.

"This race is very important as it'll tell us our route through the season," said Harris. "Every so often a Katchit of the world comes through that can mix it with the big boys and older horses. The Champion Hurdle is our ultimate objective but we'll use common sense.

"Generally, younger horses struggle but we're hopeful, you need a year where your horse improves and the level of the Champion Hurdle horses aren't as strong as they could be.

"It's arguable if you took out Honeysuckle and Constitution Hill, maybe there isn't much depth to it."

Just seven five-year-olds have triumphed in the Champion Hurdle since 1960 with Espoir D'Allen and Katchit the only horses to achieve the feat this century.

Knight Salute is a shortest price of 33-1 with William Hill for the Champion Hurdle, although Harris is flexible with the plans for his stable star depending on the outcome of Saturday's reappearance run.

Knight Salute: returns to Cheltenham where he won a Grade 2 juvenile hurdle last seasonCredit: Edward Whitaker

"He's only four and we might consider the likes of the Elite Hurdle and France if things don't pan out," he said.

"The idea of Saturday is to see where we are going forward. If we get ourselves into the mid 150s we're still ten pounds short of where we need to be on Champion Hurdle day, but we have time on our side.

"It's not going to be easy on Saturday. We've got to give a penalty away to Pied Piper, but I'm really happy with him and everything is right for a big run."

Knight Salute became the trainer's first top-level success despite not being the flashiest of work horses in the Wiltshire handler's string.

Harris said: "Knight Salute's an unassuming individual so his work has always been satisfactory without being spectacular – but he's working better this year than last.

"He's physically stronger this year and is a much better horse, but he needs to be. We had a little sinus issue with him but that's been dealt with and seems in a really good place – he's fit enough to do himself justice."

Speaking in his Racing Post stable tour, Gordon Elliott said of Pied Piper: "He'll go to Cheltenham for the four-year-old hurdle this week and then might come back to Down Royal a fortnight later to run in the WKD Hurdle.

"He's a strong traveller and a slick jumper. He ran some race at Royal Ascot in the Ascot Stakes but was just too keen. There's a big race on the Flat in him."

Milton Harris: pleased that the Cheltenham Festival is to remain at four daysCredit: Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images)

'I was delighted with the news'

The hottest news of the week has been the Jockey Club's decision to keep the Cheltenham Festival at four days and Harris was the latest to come out in support of the decision.

The likes of Elliott, Willie Mullins and Ruby Walsh have voiced strong opinions on the news and Harris was cut-throat in his assessment.

"I was delighted with the news. I think we're diluting the sport needlessly," he said. "You look at it now with the mares' novices' hurdle, should that be there? I'm not so sure.

"You've also got the Fred Winter, which I love as a race, but you shouldn't be able to win at the festival with a 120-rated horse – it doesn't seem quite right.

"It's supposed to be the theatre of champions and from a personal and professional level, I'm very pleased we haven't."

Harris produced a career-best tally of 56 winners last season and is already more than halfway to equalling that total this season after victory for Presenting Yeats at Exeter on Tuesday.

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