Tag Archive for: Jonathan Portman

Portman hoping to make Rum point at the Curragh

Jonathan Portman said it was not too difficult a decision to supplement Rumstar into the Barberstown Castle Sapphire Stakes at the Curragh on Saturday.

The five-year-old has already enjoyed a successful season, winning the Palace House at the Newmarket Guineas meeting and the Coral Charge at Sandown.

With Portman keen to stick to five furlongs and not enamoured by taking him to Goodwood, he felt there was little to lose by adding him to the Group Two for €12,000.

“It wasn’t that difficult a decision in the end,” said Portman.

“We felt we’d been banging our head against the wall a bit in good company so we’d made a conscious decision not to spend Mr Ward’s (owner) money on entries – but then he goes and runs such a good race like he did at Sandown to give us a bit more faith.

“Whether it is the right thing is another matter entirely. Otherwise there’s just nowhere else to run him, as we’re very keen to keep him at five furlongs.

“He displayed a good turn of foot at Newmarket and again at Sandown. He didn’t disgrace himself at Haydock or Ascot, either.

“He’s come out of Sandown very well, I know it’s only a few weeks, but it’s all about what other options there were and they were very limited. Only the result itself will tell us if we’re being wise or not.”

There was 20 millimetres of overnight rain at the Curragh which will have been very welcome no doubt and that should not worry Rumstar.

“He won at Ascot on soft last October, but it wasn’t as soft as people say it was. He got away with it there. He’d be fine unless it got silly soft,” said Portman.

Rumstar leads Sandown Charge for Portman

Rumstar finished with a flourish to get back on the winning trail in the Coral Charge at Sandown.

Having finished last season with a Listed success in Ascot’s Rous Stakes, Jonathan Portman’s sprinter picked up where he left off when landing the Group Three Palace House at Newmarket in May.

The five-year-old subsequently struggled in the Temple Stakes at Haydock and the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot, but dropping back to Group Three class, the 11-2 shot picked up well inside the last of five furlongs to get up and beat the front-running She’s Quality by three-quarters of a length.

Portman felt Rumstar had valid reasons for his last two runs, saying: “Like with every sprint race, everything needs to go just right on the day and at Haydock it didn’t.

“I don’t think he likes Haydock and I certainly don’t! At Royal Ascot I just think he got into top gear a bit too soon, he was a bit wide and it just didn’t work for him.

“We made a conscious decision today to hang on to him a bit and come through them, which is very risky at Sandown because if you don’t get that run you can hit a bit of traffic.

“Rob (Hornby, winning jockey) found that gap, he did it to perfection. He knows the horse well and he loves the horse.

“We didn’t enter him at Goodwood, we thought five furlongs there might not suit him.”