Alyanaabi has swift Haydock double in his sights

Leader Live

6 days ago

The Owen Burrows-trained four-year-old caught the eye as a juvenile with a second-placed run behind City Of Troy in the Dewhurst, after which he stepped up in trip throughout his three-year-old season to make up the minor placings in the 2000 Guineas, the St James's Palace and the Steventon Stakes.
Gelded over the winter, he dropped to seven furlongs for a course-and-distance success in a Listed event here first time out this season and now tries Group Three company in the hands of Jim Crowley.
'Hopefully they won't get too much rain as I think he's better on top of the ground, but then he did finish second to City Of Troy in a Dewhurst on soft ground,' Burrows said.
'I don't think I would not run him because of the ground, but I don't think you will see the best of him on soft ground.
'Jim seems to be adamant this trip suits him. I can see us a bit further down the line trying him over a stiff six furlongs and Jim thinks these sort of races off a really fast pace would suit him.
'It looks a decent race with Kinross, Spycatcher and Audience in there as well so he will have to be on his game, but we've been pleased with him since he won at the track and there's nothing for him at Royal Ascot, so it makes sense to roll the dice and see how we get on.'
Kinross won the race in 2021 and was narrowly beaten into third the following year, with the popular eight-year-old now returning to kick off a seventh season in training for Ralph Beckett.
Jamie McCalmont, racing manager to owner Marc Chan, said: 'He's come to hand a bit quicker than the last couple of years, but he's now an eight-year-old we take every race as a bonus – let's hope he still has the same vigour and talent that he has shown in the last five years.
'Seven furlongs is probably his best trip and he has won this race and also finished third in the past.
'It's a really solid race and arguably better than the times he has run in it before – Audience is a Group One winner so it's not an egg-and-spoon race.
'It's exciting and amazing he's back, he's a warrior.'
Cheveley Park Stud's Audience was an unexpected winner of the Lockinge last season and also took the Lennox Stakes at Goodwood when stepping back to seven furlongs.
Two runs over a sprint trip of six furlongs proved educational as the gelding did not fire in either the British Champions Sprint or the Al Quoz Sprint, but now returning to his favoured seven, the bay looks to smooth a path back to the Lennox.
'We learned that he doesn't quite have the pace for six furlongs, which we kind of knew but it was worth taking the trip having had the invitation,' said Chris Richardson, managing director of owners Cheveley Park.
'He's back over his trip and hopefully we can get his season started with a view to going to the Lennox again.'
Elsewhere in the race is Karl Burke's Spycatcher, who steps back up to seven furlongs have been campaigned exclusively over six last term, and Harry Charlton's Frankel half-brother Kikkuli.