Reigning champion jockey Dane Dawkins inched closer to rivals in the race to retain his title, as he rode a dazzling three-timer, including Perfect Brew, who dismantled the field to cop the Alsafra Trophy over a mile (1,600m) at Caymanas Park on Saturday. 

Perfect Brew, conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer Richard Azan, justified favouritism, romping the three-year-old and upward Overnight Allowance race by six lengths in a time of 1:38.0. The splits were 23.4, 45.4 and 1:11.1.

The four-year-old bay gelding, who finished nine lengths behind the reigning Horse of the Year Atomica over seven furlongs (1,400m) on May 23, showed that he was better off from that run, as Dawkins rode a patient race, while Ameth Robles played catch me if you can aboard former Horse of the Year Further and Beyond.

Returning from an almost one-year break, Further and Beyond, now trained by Donovan Hutchinson, rushed to an early three length lead, which rapidly increased on the backstretch, as the rest of the field settled well off the blistering pace.

By the time Robles and Further and Beyond left the five-furlong mark and flashed past the half-mile, they were well over six lengths in front with Stomp The Rhythm (Anthony Thomas) and Marquesas (Tevin Foster), the closest pursuers at the point.

However, Dawkins made his move aboard Perfect Brew at the three-furlong point and after hitting top stride in the home stretch, they swept by a now-tiring Further and Beyond, whose lack of race fitness was well advertised, and a fighting Stomp The Rhythm, in the latter stages to win. Marquesas completed the frame.

While it was the first win of the season for Perfect Brew, it was Dawkins's 35th of the season, as he moved within 10 of leader Reyan Lewis and two shy of second-place Tevin Foster.

Dawkins earlier won aboard Jaguar in the fifth race giving newly licensed trainer Ricardo Mathie a first win from his first start. He later piloted Big Guy In The Sky to victory in the ninth race for trainer Gary Subratie.

Meanwhile, Barrington Bernard and Courtney Williams, who are also freshly licensed trainers, also won their first races. Bernard won the first race with Anngelos (Roger Hewitt), while Williams won the seventh race with Zion (Phillip Parchment).

While Jamaica's Netball culture and current ranking pits the Sunshine Girls as overwhelming favourites to win gold at the upcoming Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games, Nicole Aiken-Pinnock is mindful that it still requires efficient execution to get the job done.

As such, Aiken-Pinnock, who will guide the 12-member number-four ranked Jamaican team to the 24th staging of the June 23 to July 8 Games in El Salvador, is taking steps to guard against complacency and ensuring that players take nothing for granted.

"On paper, we are expected to win, but at the same time, we know the games aren't played on paper so we will not only have to turn up, but more importantly, execute accordingly. So, we just have to take it one game at a time," Aiken-Pinnock said.

"We have to turn up and be ready for every game. We have to respect our opponents and make sure we give of our best regardless of who we play against because they will not be handing any win to us. I am sure we will have to work hard for our wins, so we have to just work hard and believe in our structure and execute," she added.

Aiken-Pinnock revealed that their preparations have so far been on course to achieve their intended goal, with only some fine-tuning required over the next week.

"Preparations have been going well, I can tell you that there is a lot of intensity and focus at the sessions. The drive and effort of the ladies is commendable, and we just have to keep working at the small things and try to be as consistent as possible," she said.

Aiken-Pinnock, a former defender, who represented Jamaica at numerous major tournaments, knows the importance of a fielding a solid team with some depth, which is why she welcomes the addition of the experienced Adean Thomas and Rebekah Robinson to accompany rising stars Crystal Plummer, Abigale Sutherland, and defender Kimone Shaw, who are all a part of the squad to the World Cup later this year.

With this being the first time in CAC Games history that netball will be a part of the multi-sports event, Aiken-Pinnock said it represents an opportunity for the young players, in particular, to show their class and, by extension, gauge their readiness for the showpiece in South Africa.

"We do have a few ladies who will be participating in their first major tournament for Jamaica away from home, so we just have to ensure that stay mentally prepared and ready for what is to come at the Games," Aiken-Pinnock noted.

These games will definitely assist our young players going into the World Cup, especially Crystal, to prepare her for what is to come at the big dance," she ended.

Full Squad:

Shooters – Shadine Bartley, Simone Gordon, Amanda Pinkney, and Rebekah Robinson

Centre court – Crystal Plummer, Abigale Sutherland, Adean Thomas, and Quannia Walker

Defenders – Theresa Beckford, Paula-Ann Burton, Abbeygail Linton, and Kimone Shaw

 

The Cricket West Indies (CWI) Women’s Selection Panel today announced the preliminary squad of players who will participate in a training camp in preparation for the upcoming six-match Series against Ireland Women.

The training camp will be held at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground in St. Lucia from 14 to 21 June, where the players will have training and fitness sessions as well as strategic preparations for the three-match CG United One Day International (ODI) Series. The CG United ODI Series will be played from 26 June to 1 July and is the West Indies Women’s third series in the ICC Women’s Championship, where the top five teams in the ten-team league qualify automatically for the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup.

The preliminary squad includes a mix of experienced players and promising young talents. Cherry-Ann Fraser returns to add depth and experience to the team’s bowling attack after missing the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup due to injury. Left-handed allrounder Qiana Joseph, who last played international cricket in 2021, also returns to the training camp squad. She was among the leading players in the recent Women’s CG United Super50 Cup and the T20 Blaze played in St Kitts.

Several West Indies Rising Stars Under-19 players have been included in the preliminary squad. Zaida James, Jannillea Glasgow, Djenaba Joseph, Shunelle Sawh, and Under-19s captain Ashmini Munisar have all earned their place in the squad. Their inclusion reflects CWI’s commitment to developing younger talent and expanding the Women’s talent pool by providing opportunities for younger players to showcase their skills at the international level.

CWI’s Lead Selector for Women’s cricket Ann Browne-John said: “The series against Ireland is an important one for the West Indies Women as the team seeks to build points to qualify directly for the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup. It also serves as a perfect opportunity to continue to expose younger players to international cricket. This was a policy that the CWI embarked upon which resulted in Under 19 players being selected to the team for the England Series in December and the ICC T20 World Cup in February.”

Browne-John added: “This is now being taken one step further and there are five players who participated in the ICC Women’s Under 19 T20 World Cup in January, now in the squad preparing for the series against Ireland. This means that there are some senior players who are not able to get a place in the squad at this time. The Selection Panel however believes that this squad has a good mix of youth and experience as we continue to build the West Indies team of the future.”

The Women’s Selection Panel will announce the official West Indies Women’s squad ahead of the three-match CG United ODI Series, with the T20I squad announced later.

WI WOMEN TRAINING SQUAD

  • Hayley Matthews – Captain
  • Shemaine Campbelle - Vice Captain
  • Aaliyah Alleyne
  • Shamilia Connell
  • Chinelle Henry
  • Afy Fletcher
  • Cherry Ann Fraser
  • Shabika Gajnabi
  • Jannillea Glasgow
  • Chinelle Henry
  • Zaida James
  • Djenaba Joseph
  • Qiana Joseph
  • Mandy Mangru
  • Ashmini Munisar
  • Karishma Ramharack
  • Shunelle Sawh
  • Stafanie Taylor
  • Rashada Williams

 

 

Full match schedule:

All matches at Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, Gros Islet, St. Lucia

Monday 26 June: 1st CG United ODI – 10am (9am Jamaica Time)

Wednesday 28 June: 2nd CG United ODI – 10am (9am Jamaica Time)

Saturday 1 July: 3rd CG United ODI – 3pm (2pm Jamaica Time)

Tuesday 4 July: 1st T20I – 5pm (4pm Jamaica Time) 

Thursday 6 July: 2nd T20I – 5pm (4pm Jamaica Time)

Saturday 8 July: 3rd T20I – 5pm (4pm Jamaica Time)

 

 

Concacaf Women’s Player of the Year, Khadija Shaw, and Florida State’s Jody Brown are among 24 women who were called up for a JFF camp, the federation announced on Saturday.

Shaw is coming off the best season of her career, so far, for Manchester City in which she scored 31 goals in 30 games in all competitions.

Brown has been instrumental in guiding the Seminoles to a 17-3-3 record so far this season.

The players will go into camp from June 11th to June 20th.

The full roster of players and staff is as follows:

Sydney Schneider, Rebecca Spencer, Liya Brooks, Allyson Swaby, Chantelle Swaby, Satara Murray, Konya Plummer, Deneisha Blackwood, Tiernny Wiltshire, Tiffany Cameron, Vyan Sampson, Peyton McNamara, Drew Spence, Atlanta Primus, Khadija Shaw, Jody Brown, Solai Washington, Kameron Simmonds, Kalyssa Van-Zanten, Trudi Carter, Rachel Jones, Paige Bailey-Gayle, Mikayla Dayes, Giselle Washington.

Crystal Walters (Team Manager), Lorne Donaldson (Head Coach), Laurie Thomas (Asst. Coach) Xavier Gilbert (Asst. Coach), Alyssa Whitehead (GK Coach), Sanford Carabin (Performance Analyst), Will Hitzelberger (Performance Staff), Dr. Gillian Lawrence (Team Doctor), Saundria Codling (Physiotherapist), Devin Lawson (Masseur), Omar "Twin" Folkes (Equipment Manager).

 

Oisin Murphy made a rare visit to Beverley worthwhile when taking the bet365 Handicap aboard Mick Appleby’s United Front.

The jockey had a full book of rides on the Westwood and after finishing second in the first two contests, he partnered the 5-2 joint favourite in his third bid for victory.

This time he was successful as the six-year-old found a nice spot on the rail in the handicap and burst through a gap between the race leaders in the final half-furlong to prevail by a length.

“He was in the right race, Mick Appleby’s horses are in good form,” said Murphy.

“He was very straightforward and it’s nice to ride a winner here, I had two seconds to begin with so I needed to start winning!”

Another triumph then followed as Andrew Balding’s Sovereign Spirit took the Price Promise At bet365 Handicap at 7-1.

The gelding made the running as the pace was a steady one and held on resolutely to claim a short-head victory in a photo finish.

“He’s quite a tough horse because the race wasn’t as smooth as I wanted it to be,” Murphy said.

“He had a look at the stables and I was off course and wasting time as I drifted out, then down the back I thought the only way I could get him to really relax was by letting go of his head.

“He pricked his ears when I eventually got to the front and up the straight he found plenty for pressure.”

Murphy was then narrowly denied a third success on the card when Michael Dods’ Berry Edge (16-5 favourite) was defeated in the Best Odds Guaranteed At bet365 Handicap by Dandy’s Angel (12-1).

Kevin Stott helped George Boughey’s Abbadia get off the mark in the bet365 Very British Raceday Restricted Maiden Stakes.

The Mastercraftsman filly had come closest to winning when second over course and distance in a handicap in April, and the bay again showed her liking for the Yorkshire track after starting at 100-30.

She made almost all of the running and crossed the line a length and a half ahead of his nearest rival.

“It’s the first time I’ve ridden her, I got to the front pretty easily and had the race pretty easy, really,” Stott said.

“I just had to pick it up inside the two (furlong pole) and she’s hit the line good. George said she’s been working really well and that she’d have a good chance.

“You have to have a horse that travels around here and she really did that.”

Novakai remains firmly on course for a tilt at Classic glory in France after seeing her form receive a significant boost at Epsom last weekend.

Runner-up in the May Hill at Doncaster and the Fillies’ Mile at Newmarket, the Lope De Vega filly made her three-year-old debut in the Musidora Stakes at York.

Karl Burke’s filly again had to make do with second place, but that now looks a fine effort after the surprise winner, Soul Sister, followed up in the Betfred Oaks at Epsom under Frankie Dettori.

Immediately after her run at York, Burke nominated the French Oaks as the likely objective and he is looking forward to seeing her line up at Chantilly on Sunday week.

“She’s on target for Prix de Diane, she looks in great shape,” said the Spigot Lodge handler.

“She’s not a particularly strong work horse at home, but she does look in good form and we’re very happy with her.

“The Musidora form obviously got a nice boost and she’ll step up on that York form as well.”

Novakai will bid to provide Burke with a second French Oaks success following the victory of his star filly Laurens in 2018.

Whether she will renew rivalry with Soul Sister remains to be seen, but she is likely to meet her stablemate Running Lion, who was withdrawn before the start of the Oaks at Epsom.

Jumby showed his love of seven furlongs once again in claiming the Sky Bet John of Gaunt Stakes at Haydock on Saturday.

Eve Johnson Houghton’s son of New Bay won the Group Two Hungerford Stakes over the distance last summer and avoiding a penalty for that success here, the 9-4 favourite made full use of that advantage to get the better of Australian raider The Astrologist in the closing stages.

Dropping back in both trip and grade having beaten on horse home in the Lockinge Stakes last time, Jumby was positioned towards the rear by jockey Charlie Bishop as The Astrologist was out of the gates and quickly into stride in the hands of Ryan Moore.

However, the long Haydock straight provided Bishop with all the time he needed to set about catching the strapping Australian speedster and with Karl Burke’s El Caballo suffering interference at a crucial moment, Jumby was given plenty of daylight to make his challenge, cruising to a cosy one-and-a-half-length success in the closing stages.

Johnson Houghton said: “Seven furlongs is the right trip, but seven furlongs is also the hardest trip to find and he also doesn’t want soft ground, so we have to just pick our way through.

“He’s a brilliant horse who is very good in Group Threes, he’s won a Group Two and there’s no reason why he couldn’t win another one.

“He’d have to carry a lot of weight in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot (over six furlongs), but when you see the size of him I don’t think weight bothers him very much, so we’ll see.

“We’ll take him home, scratch our heads and have a think about it, but today is a great day and he did it like we expected him to. It was like a bit of work for him and he did it with a smile on his face.”

Johnson Houghton felt Jumby simply did not stay a mile at Newbury, but is not ruling out a crack at that distance in the Breeders’ Cup later this year.

She added: “We tried to go to the Lockinge and the times guys tell me he did the fastest six furlongs between the one to the seven, but he didn’t get the mile.

“Maybe if we really smuggled him into it he might get it, but we’ll obviously look at the Lennox at Goodwood over seven, the Hungerford at Newbury which he won last year, the Foret in France and we might have to travel further with him.

“We could have a little look at the Breeders’ Cup Mile, why not? I think he might get a mile round a bend and if they pay us to go why not give it a crack?”

The Astrologist, who is trained by Leon and Troy Corstens, posted an improved effort on his British bow, when he finished seventh in the Duke of York Stakes and is on course for Royal Ascot.

Assistant trainer Dom Sutton said: “It was definitely a step in the right direction. Ryan said he thought he was on the winner three furlongs out. He was probably just found wanting in the last 50 yards stepping up to seven furlongs on his second start (in Britain).

“It will put him cherry ripe for Ascot, so he should be at peak fitness. We’ll freshen him up going into Ascot.”

Bombay Bazaar continued a good afternoon at Beverley for Richard Fahey when taking the bet365 Two Year Old Trophy Conditions Stakes.

The Kodiac colt was a winner on the Westwood last time out when landing a course-and-distance event by four and a quarter lengths.

Prior to that he was third in a good quality contest on his debut when ridden by Oisin Orr, the same jockey who took the ride for the Two Year Old Trophy.

Sent off a 4-1 chance, the bay was ridden patiently and found his path blocked ahead of the two-furlong pole, but upon finding a gap he was able to accelerate away from his rivals to win by three quarters of a length.

The success followed Midnight Affair’s victory in the Hilary Needler earlier on the card, with both horses now bound for Royal Ascot having earned their place in these Beverley trials.

“They’re two great two-year-old races that I’d always like to win, but to win them both on the same afternoon is fantastic,” said Fahey.

“That was quite impressive there, he came home well. It didn’t look a bad race, looking at the individuals, so it was a good, solid performance.

“He is definitely getting better, he is a homebred and he just missed out on going to the sales – he has improved drastically.

“I would think the owner (Hussain Alabbas Lootah) would be very keen to go to the Windsor Castle. I will speak to him but I know they are keen to go. There’s no reason for him not to go, so we’ll see.”

Tom Marquand delivered Sea Silk Road to perfection to give William Haggas a fitting success in the Sky Bet Lester Piggott Stakes at Haydock.

Haggas and Marquand combined to win the contest – which is registered as the Pinnacle Stakes – with Sea La Rosa 12 months ago, but this year’s victory had added meaning with the Group Three contest renamed in honour of Piggott, who was not only a weighing room legend, but also Haggas’ father-in-law.

Although the race lost a little spice when John and Thady Gosden’s Mimikyu was declared a non-runner prior to the runners heading to post, there was nevertheless a small but select cast at the Lancashire track and it was German raider Nachtrose who led them along in the early stages from Roger Varian’s Modaara as the quintet raced in single file.

Marquand had the eventual winner anchored in rear sitting on the tail of Ryan Moore and the evens favourite Time Lock and although Moore was soon nudging away as the runners swung the turn for home, Marquand was yet to panic aboard the eventual winner as he began to hunt down those at the head of affairs.

Modaara laid down a challenge two furlongs from home, but the eye was always drawn to Sea Silk Road who would prove to be Nachtrose’s biggest danger in the closing stages and having hit top gear with a furlong to run, the Somerville Lodge inmate was well in control as she swooped past the raider late on to score by three-quarters of a length at 9-2.

Ever since his exploits at the 2018 ICC Under-19 World Cup, Alick Athanaze was expected to transition well to the senior international level.

In a tournament that included the likes of Shubman Gill, Prithvi Shaw and Harry Brook, Athanaze finished as the leading run-scorer with 418 runs in six matches, including two centuries and two fifties.

Five years later, the 24-year-old was finally given a chance to perform for the West Indies on the biggest stage and he grabbed that chance with both hands.

The left-hander opened the batting as the West Indies pursued 185 for victory in the third ODI against the UAE and played excellently, making a 45-ball 65 to top score.

“It was a really good experience. I haven’t batted much in the night so it was a first for me, actually,” Athanaze said in a post-match interview.

Athanaze also made history at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. He brought up his half-century off just 26 balls, equaling India’s Krunal Pandya for the fastest ODI fifty by a debutant ever.

“Normally, that’s how I play in the powerplay. I always look to get the team off to a good start,” he said.

“I was a bit nervous but I think they went away when I got my first runs,” Athanaze added.

Athanaze also gave credit to the mentorship he has received from West Indies legend and current performance consultant, Brian Lara.

“For me, it has been really good. Basically, what we spoke about was judging lengths and trying to get ahead of the bowler; try to think about what is to come and pre-meditate balls. It worked really nicely. I got myself into some good positions. It was good to bat out there tonight,” said Athanaze.

Hopefully, this is the start of an excellent career in international cricket for the Dominican.

 

 

 

 

Arkansas’s Jaydon Hibbert has allayed any fears that he suffered an injury during his fourth-round attempt at the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships on Friday.

Hibbert pulled up limping during his run up and appeared to have suffered an injury after he was seen limping during his walk back. However, the World Under-20 record holder said the limping was due to cramping.

“It was a good competition and I’m really grateful. Anything could have happened. Could’ve gotten injured but I came out healthy,” Hibbert said on social media on Friday.

“Ready for the rest of the season but we have to rest first,” he added.

Earlier on Friday, Hibbert jumped 17.56m to secure the triple jump title at the championships, adding to his stellar season which also saw him take the SEC Indoor and Outdoor crowns as well as the NCAA Indoor title.

At those SEC Outdoors, Hibbert produced a World Under-20 record 17.87m, the furthest jump in the world this year.

 

Raatea may have earned himself a place on Julie Camacho’s small but select squad for Royal Ascot with victory in the Sky Bet Reverence Handicap at Haydock.

The six-year-old carries the colours of Martin Hughes, a part-owner of the yard’s stable star Shaquille, who is a major contender for Group One honours in Ascot’s Commonwealth Cup.

Raatea is not of that standard, but is undoubtedly a talented sprinter in his own right and following a fifth-placed finish on his reappearance at Newmarket, he stepped up on Merseyside to land odds of 13-2 in the hands of James Doyle.

Camacho’s husband and assistant, Steve Brown, said: “In fairness to Jason Hart, who rode him at Newmarket where he finished fifth in a really competitive race, he said he thought he’d really benefit from cheek pieces and you could see the difference today with how he travelled.

“James said he’d have kicked himself had he got beat as he actually got there too soon and the horse thought he’d done enough.

“There’s no doubt he’s a horse with plenty of ability and he’s done well for us, but we’ve always had it at the back of our minds that he could have done a touch better.

“We’ll have a chat with Martin and see what he’d like to do, but the ability is there to be taking part in good races. He has his own ideas, but when he’s good, he’s good.

“He’s in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot. He’s obviously got a penalty now, whether that’s enough to get in I don’t know, but I’m sure Martin would be delighted if he could run.

“In fairness, the stiff six at Ascot is his gig as he’s a six-and-a-half-furlong horse really.”

The Charlie Fellowes-trained Cumulonimbus (6-1) led from pillar to post in the Better Betting With Sky Bet Handicap under a well-judged ride from Harry Davies.

The four-year-old made every yard of the running when scoring at Newmarket last month and repeated the tactics on Merseyside, dominating from the front and keeping enough up his sleeve to repel the challenge of the long-absent Live Your Dream by half a length.

“The ground is rattling out there today, it was actually a concern for me but it was no problem for him,” said Davies.

“I managed to get a very easy lead on the front end. I hacked round really until we got to the four-furlong marker and I just sprinted away.

“He’s very gutsy and he’s improving, so it’s great.”

Midnight Affair is Royal Ascot bound after a neat performance in the Hilary Needler Trophy Fillies’ Conditions Stakes at Beverley.

The Richard Fahey-trained bay was denied a clear passage on her debut at Newmarket in May, but still ran with promise and was highly fancied on the Westwood as a result.

Starting as the 5-6 favourite under Danny Tudhope, she made light work of the five-furlong event and was not stretched in crossing the line a length and a quarter ahead of Andrew Balding’s Flora Of Bermuda.

Royal Ascot is next on the agenda, with owner Steve Parkin of Clipper Logistics aiming for the Queen Mary Stakes to retain the trophy Dramatised landed for him 12 months ago.

He said: “Richard has been saying he likes her a lot and she’s done that really well there. He says that he can’t get her off the bridle at home and she gets all the others off the bridle.

“She must be quite good and it’s lovely to see her do that on the track.

“We’ll go for a crack at the Queen Mary now as it’s a race we haven’t done too badly in!

“I won that with Dramatised last year and we hope she can develop into another really nice filly like her.”

Fahey echoed his words, adding: “We do like an her an awful lot at home, she always works really well.

“We feel she’s still learning. The better ones don’t always come off the bridle, but she’s learning and that was a good performance. She’s very uncomplicated, we’re very happy with her.

“Steve’s very keen to go for the Queen Mary and that’s where we’ll aim with her. He won it last year, it’s his race now!”

Paddy Power make Midnight Affair an 8-1 chance from 11s for the Queen Mary.

A tilt at Group One glory in the Nunthorpe at York is on the agenda for Regional following a clear-cut victory in the Sky Bet Achilles Stakes at Haydock.

Placed on multiple occasions last season, including a runner-up finish in a valuable race in Qatar before finishing third in the Stewards’ Cup at Goodwood, Ed Bethell’s speedster made a successful start to his five-year-old campaign in handicap company at York last month.

He faced a rise in class in this five-furlong Listed event, but proved more than up to the task in the hands of Callum Rodriguez.

The 5-1 shot blazed a trail down the centre of the track and while Frankie Dettori did his best to get 3-1 favourite Equilateral on terms against the stands’ rail, Regional was ultimately well on top as he passed the post with a length and a quarter in hand.

“He’s a really fun horse and fast ground and flat tracks are his thing, so we’ll just try to keep him at that now,” said Bethell.

“We took him to Qatar last winter and finished second and he never really came back the same horse after that. I appreciate he came second at Doncaster and third in the Stewards’ Cup, but he wasn’t the same horse he is this year.

“We gave him a winter out and he’s just thrived. He’s enjoying his racing and Callum is riding out of his skin for me.”

With Regional not entered at Royal Ascot later this month, the North Yorkshire handler plans to give his stable star another run elsewhere before sending him back to York in August.

The trainer’s father James saddled Moss Gill to finish third in the Nunthorpe three years ago and Bethell junior is keen for Regional to head down the same path.

He added: “I’d imagine we’ll look at the Nunthorpe, that looks like a logical target. What we do in the meantime is between me and the guys (owners). We’ll sit down and have a chat, but I’m just delighted for everyone at home.

“They’re very different types of horses. Moss Gill had the most economical stride I’ve ever seen in our yard, whereas this fellow doesn’t have an economical stride at all, he’s just quick!

“It’s very exciting for everyone to be involved in a horse like this. He’s not entered at Ascot. He was in the Wokingham, but is probably too quick for that so I took him out.

“I could tell the owners they could supplement (for the King’s Stand), but it’s probably quite a lot of money, it’s a deep race this year and I think the Nunthorpe is more his race.

“In the interim I might go to York for the City Walls with a penalty and I might enter him in the King George sprint at Goodwood, those are two options.

“What I want to do is make sure there is a good gap between his next race and the Nunthorpe, that’s the imperative thing.”

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