Tag Archive for: Middleham Park Racing

Shouldvebeenaring given Sprint Cup target

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Last year’s runner-up Shouldvebeenaring is in line for a second tilt at the Betfred Sprint Cup following another fine effort in defeat at York last week.

Making his first appearance since landing a Group Three prize at Deauville in early July, Richard Hannon’s admirable grey placed third in the City of York Stakes behind shock winner Breege at Group Two level on the Knavesmire.

With a career at stud calling after this season, owners Middleham Park Racing are keen to enhance his stallion value with a Group One victory and the Sprint Cup at Haydock on Saturday week – in which he was narrowly denied by Regional last season – is viewed as a suitable next port of call.

“He’s all over a Group performer and can compete at Group Two and Group One level no problem. Our job now is to secure that Group One and/or Group Two victory before he goes off to stud,” said Middleham Park’s Tim Palin.

“The other day (at York), it was just unfortunate that the rails were dolled out and that extra 32 yards after seven furlongs just eked into his stamina a wee bit – he is a six- come seven-furlong horse.

“Oisin (Murphy) said he went to beat the favourite (Audience) and win the race. Maybe they got racing a bit far out and maybe that meant he was a bit weaker at the line, but it was another cracking run and it sets him up for what is traditionally a good time of the year for him.

“Richard Hannon’s words were ‘that will put him spot on’, because he’d had a little bit of time off, having scoped dirty and missed the Prix Maurice de Gheest and then we had to get him back to fitness.”

Palin added: “Haydock is where we’ll go. He does go a little bit better on quicker ground and the forecast is good at the minute, so hopefully we get a dry week to bring everything nicely on point.

“York will have blown away any cobwebs and Haydock is nearly us playing at home. He’s been there twice and been beaten by two horses only, one was Little Big Bear in the Sandy Lane and the other was Regional in the Sprint Cup last year.”

Shouldvebeenaring will race on beyond Haydock, with trips to France and America under consideration.

Sean Levy and Shouldvebeenaring at Newmarket
Sean Levy and Shouldvebeenaring at Newmarket (David Davies/PA)

“He was third in the Prix de la Foret last year, so that is under consideration, and he is also in the Park Stakes at the Leger meeting at Doncaster,” said Palin.

“Last year we nearly ran him in the Challenge at Newmarket, so that’s an option, and while it’s a bit of a long shot at the minute that we’d finish our career at the Breeders’ Cup, don’t rule it out.

“I don’t know what the terms are like and what the weather will be like. It would be a long way to go for a Breeders’ Cup Mile on soft ground as obviously that wouldn’t suit him, so we’ll see.”



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Shouldvebeenaring heading back to France after Deauville Group Three win

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Shouldvebeenaring will return to France for the Prix Maurice de Gheest after gaining a deserved first Group-race success at Deauville last time out.

Trained by Richard Hannon, the grey has come close on numerous occasions but had a habit of finding one or two too good.

However, in the Group Three Prix de Ris-Orangis last time out he beat James Tate’s promising Electric Storm to book a place at stud at the end of the year.

“He thoroughly deserved his day in the sun as he’d been knocking on the door in all the big races,” said Tim Palin of owners Middleham Park Racing.

“That was a Group Three win and his form entitled him to win.

“We toyed with taking him to Ireland this weekend but we’re going to wait for the Prix Maurice de Gheest and then back to Haydock for the Sprint Cup – they are his two Derbys if you can say that about a sprinter.

“He runs well at both tracks so it just makes sense. At Deauville he’s been fifth in a Prix Jean Prat and obviously won last time and at Haydock he’s been second to Little Big Bear in the Sandy Lane and just been touched off by Regional in the Sprint Cup.

“He likes top of the ground so we’ll need a sunny week so hopefully he gets that.

“He retires to the Irish National Stud at the end of the season so we’ll have a couple more cracks at the highest level.”



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Group One engagement next for Shouldvebeenaring

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Shouldvebeenaring has a Deauville return in the diary after his maiden Group race victory in the Prix de Ris-Orangis on Sunday.

The Havana Grey colt has done his owners proud so many times in pattern events, going down only narrowly in valuable contests such as the Sandy Lane, Sprint Cup, Prix de la Foret and the Duke of York Stakes.

The latter run came earlier this season, where was beaten by a nose in a finish so tight that the judge had to split the winner and the runner-up.

Despite now earning just shy of £500,000 in prize money, victory had proved elusive for the grey as his last win came in the Listed King Charles II Stakes at Newmarket in early May 2023.

The wait for a sixth career success ended at Deauville on Sunday, where the four-year-old was contesting the Group Three Prix de Ris-Orangis for trainer Richard Hannon and owners Middleham Park Racing.

Partnered as usual by Sean Levey, Shouldvebeenaring was one of a five-strong British contingent and brought the prize home when prevailing by a short neck from James Tate’s Electric Storm.

Group One opportunities await the colt now, and he will return to Deauville to contest the Prix Maurice de Gheest before aiming to go one better in the Sprint Cup at Haydock.

“We were relived to get that first Group win because he’s been knocking on the door in Group Ones and Group Twos, he was devilishly unlucky at York in the Duke of York Stakes,” said Tim Palin of Middleham Park.

“It’s great to set that record straight and get a first Group win under his belt. It was a great ride from Sean, who was really tenacious through that final furlong when he was a bit blocked up.

“He had to come round and pass half a dozen in the final furlong and a half, it was a thoroughly deserved victory.

“He does seem to like Deauville, he’s been there twice now and he was fifth in the Prix Jean Prat, he probably lost a couple of places in the final furlong in the soft ground there.

“We’ve described him as having two Derbys this season – if you can use the word Derby to describe a sprint race – the Prix Maurice de Gheest, which is where he’ll go next, and then off to Haydock for the Sprint Cup.

“He seems to go well at both of those venues, so it’s back up to Group One company to try to get that icing on the cake.”

Shouldvebeenaring is already engaged to start a new career once his racing days end, with the Irish National Stud adding him their roster of stallions following the conclusion of the season.

“He will retire to the Irish National Stud at the end of the season, we’re looking forward to that chapter in his career already,” said Palin.

“There’s a little bit of unfinished business for us to be focusing on between now and then!”



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Middleham could roll Group One dice with The Strikin Viking

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Connections could be torn between “sensible shoes” or wanting to “reach for the stars” with The Strikin Viking following his gallant second in the Gain Railway Stakes.

The two-year-old built on his impressive debut at York, where he travelled strongly to make all and win by two and three-quarters lengths, to fail narrowly on his first Pattern appearance in Ireland on Sunday.

Kevin Ryan’s colt hit the front with a furlong to go in the Group Two race at the Curragh, but he was headed by Aidan O’Brien’s Henri Matisse in the closing stages to finish a half-length second in the five-runner contest.

Owners Middleham Park Racing are buoyed by the display of their charge after the son of Inns Of Court moved three and a quarter lengths clear of Norfolk Stakes third Arizona Blaze.

That has opened plenty of opportunities for The Strikin Viking, although director of Middleham Park Racing Tim Palin has ruled out the previously touted Group Two Prix Robert Papin at Chantilly later this month.

Instead, it will be a call on whether to remain at this level in the Qatar Richmond Stakes at Goodwood or Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Gimcrack Stakes at York, or to step up to Group One company with a return to the Curragh for the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes or a trip to France for the Prix Morny at Deauville next month.

“He’s back home already, he ate up and trotted up just fine. We can start making some plans,” Palin said.

“Delighted. You probably would have taken that before the race. He’s pulled three and a quarter lengths clear of the Norfolk third so the collateral form is there.

“At the minute, I think Timeform has just given it a 108, whether that gets slightly adjusted because of the time I don’t know, up or down. A mighty performance in defeat and the winner is already favourite for the 2000 Guineas I’m led to believe.

“He’s in the Papin, the chronology might not work brilliantly. He had 15 days between York and then, he will probably only have another 14 days between the Railway and that.

“There was an element of it was one or the other, so just at the minute we might just park him up for a little while, a mini-break.

The Strikin Viking wins on debut for Kevin Ryan at York
A return to York or the Curragh could be an option for The Strikin Viking (Nigel French/PA)

“Races like the Richmond and the Gimcrack would be on the agenda, and for all that he’s not in the Phoenix Stakes, we might just monitor what’s being aimed at that because if Timeform stick with their 108, that performance is only bettered by the winner and Bedtime Story.

“If at the minute he’s the third-best rated two-year-old out there, why wouldn’t you consider the Phoenix Stakes or the Morny?

“We’ve got two Group Two options there if you pop on some sensible shoes with the Richmond and the Gimcrack, but if we wanted to reach for the stars then the possibilities of either the Phoenix Stakes or the Morny, which are within seven days of each other.

“The two-year-old cohort is going to be split in two directions at that time and arguably more if you are talking Gimcracks and such like.”



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Railway Stakes mission for The Strikin Viking this weekend

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Connections are hoping The Strikin Viking can be as prolific as the Premier League footballer he was named after when he aims to build on an impressive debut in the Gain Railway Stakes at the Curragh.

The two-year-old is named after Manchester City striker Erling Haaland and his owners, Middleham Park Racing, admitted they saved the moniker for a “nice horse”.

Bought for 65,000 guineas, he was sent to trainer Kevin Ryan and found his feet at home before debuting in the Reg Griffin Appreciation ebfstallions.com Maiden Stakes at York earlier this month.

The Strikin Viking wins at York in June
The Strikin Viking is named after Manchester City striker Erling Haaland (Nigel French/PA)

The son of Inns Of Court travelled strongly to make all and win by two and three-quarters lengths ahead of Tiger Mask, which immediately brought him into the conversation of Group-level contests.

The Strikin Viking is out to follow in the footsteps of Kool Kompany, who carried the sky blue and yellow silks of Middleham to victory in the 2014 running of the Curragh Group Two.

On Tuesday, he was supplemented into the Sunday’s race, where he could face four Aidan O’Brien runners among a total of nine rivals, and director of Middleham Park Racing Tim Palin believes he has “earned his stripes” for a step up to Pattern company.

“We went to York, we were hopeful he would be showing what he had been doing at home on the track, and he did that in spades,” Palin said.

“The performance had a bit of a ‘wow’ factor about it. He did it on the clock and he did it visually as well, I think the commentator on the day used the word ‘pulverised’.

“Straight away Kevin was mentioning races like the Gimcrack so he’s of the opinion that he’s a Group horse. He’s gone and done it on the track in a fast time with big numbers so he’s worthy of consideration at least for Group races.

“He wasn’t initially in the Railway Stakes, just because of the chronology of the sales. The entries go in fairly early for that race and he was still a horse that was settling in from the breeze-ups, and we don’t like to put in fancy entries until they’ve earned their stripes on the track.

“He’s earned his stripes. The race looks a particularly warm renewal and there’s lots of Aidan O’Brien horses in there. There’s lots of fancy silks and we are just privileged to be dining at the same table as these people.

“It wasn’t an easy decision whether to spend €12,000 on the supplement, but collectively we earned more than that in prize-money and €10,000 Irish incentive at York so we are rolling back in some of our earnings.

“He warrants a place in there, (not sure) whether he can cut the mustard against horses like that. But usually the horses that do on the numbers on debut are capable of a step up in class.

“We thought we would go down the step-up-in-class route rather than the novice under a penalty. The ground will be quicker at the Curragh than it was at York so there will be differences there, but we thought a faint heart never wins a fair maiden.

“We’ve rolled the dice with a number of horses in the past. If you have a horse like this, this is what we try to bring to the general public where you can pit your wits against Aidan O’Brien, against Amo Racing and line up against their silks, and on the odd occasion you will come away disappointed and the odd occasion you will come away with glory.”

Palin opened up on possible destinations for The Strikin Viking this summer, with France and a return to the Knavesmire set to be likely appointments.

“As a northerner I would love to win the Gimcrack. It would be fantastic to reconvene at the Gimcrack dinner and celebrate the victory,” he said.

“He’s in the Prix Robert Papin at Chantilly in July, obviously a race like the Gimcrack would be the dream, if he went back to the Knavesmire and at least run in that, let alone pull it off, if he could finish in the fame there that would be some achievement.

“It will be a big learning curve for him, for us, and we might come away disappointed, we might come away bathed in glory. We will see, that’s why we do this.”



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The Strikin Viking straight onto the scoresheet on York debut

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The Strikin Viking lived up to his name with a stunning start to his racecourse career at York.

Named in honour of Manchester City hotshot Erling Haaland by owners Middleham Park Racing, the Kevin Ryan-trained youngster broke sharply in the Reg Griffin Appreciation ebfstallions.com Maiden Stakes over six furlongs on the Knavesmire.

Always bowling along powerfully from there under Tom Eaves, the further he went, the better he looked, with the 8-1 chance ultimately striding right away from the field to score by an emphatic two and three-quarter lengths over Tiger Mask.

The victory came as no surprise to his trainer, who said: “He’s been very good from the day we’ve had him.

“I told Tim (Palin, syndicate manager) a while ago that I thought he was a very good horse and I think that’s why they put the name to him, as the boys are very passionate about Manchester City.

“I didn’t hide the fact how much I liked him to the syndicate today. They have to go and do it on a racecourse, but I think he’s a very smart horse.

“He’s done what he had to do today and I’ll speak to Tim next week. You might see him back here in August (for the Gimcrack Stakes), but we’ll be doing something beforehand.”

Manchester City v BSC Young Boys – UEFA Champions League – Group G – Etihad Stadium
Manchester City’s Erling Haaland celebrates scoring in the Champions League (Richard Sellers/PA).

Tom Palin, who like his father is an avid Manchester City supporter, added: “He shoots, he scores, I guess!

“There’s a lot been made about our Manchester City names and we tend to save them for horses that we think have got a bit of ability. I didn’t realise he possessed quite that much, but we’ve never had a bad word from Kevin about him, he’s done nothing but please the team at home.

“When you come to the Knavesmire on debut, there’s a lot of things that can go wrong, you normally bump into nice horses here and they invariably work out well these maidens.

“Tom said it was tough to fault anything he did in the race. He came out of the stalls great, took him there on the bridle and was a total professional. You’d hope there’s more to come.”

The Strikin Viking dominated his rivals
The Strikin Viking dominated his rivals (Nigel French/PA)

Considering future plans, Palin said: “We’ve not sat down and talked about where we’re going to go, obviously Royal Ascot is next week, so that’s going to come far too soon for him.

“But there’s plenty of other options – the July meeting (at Newmarket) and things like that, but we’ll have a discussion with Kevin and see where we go.

“There’s a few Man City supporters in the syndicate, so it’s great it’s worked out so well.

“Winning today is a great start, we’ve probably got promoted from League Two now and can start thinking about League One!”



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Middleham Park aiming to put a ring on Ascot success

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Connections believe popular colt Shouldvebeenaring has “unfinished business” in Pattern races as they target Royal Ascot glory in the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes.

The four-year-old has been knocking on the door for Group-class triumphs ever since making the step up from Listed company after his victory in the King Charles II Stakes at Newmarket in May 2023.

His near-misses include a second in the Sandy Lane Stakes on his next run, before returning to Haydock last September to be beaten by a neck in the Sprint Cup behind Regional.

A third in the Group One Prix de la Foret over seven furlongs at ParisLongchamp followed in October, while more recently the Richard Hannon-trained colt was a nose behind Mill Stream at York on his penultimate start.

Shouldvebeenaring
Shouldvebeenaring, right, has had several near-misses in Group company over the last 13 months (Tim Goode/PA)

That run gives his owners plenty of optimism regarding another strong performance at the Royal meeting, where Shouldvebeenaring aims to improve on his seventh-place finish in last year’s renewal of the Commonwealth Cup.

“You can imagine that slightly patient tactics at Ascot could work,” said Tom Palin, of Middleham Park Racing.

“He didn’t disgrace himself by any stretch of the imagination in the Commonwealth Cup last year, I just think we were drawn on the wrong side, so there is a bit of unfinished business at Ascot.

“But really his season revolves around the six-and-a-half-furlong French Group One (Prix Maurice de Gheest at Deauville in August) and going back to Haydock for that Sprint Cup, where we really do have unfinished business in that Group One against Regional.

“Those are probably his two Derbys for the year, but absolutely the Jubilee will be his next run and we’re looking forward to seeing how that pans out.

“If we have a bit of pace on our side, hopefully we can come and pick them up late on – and normally it’s not a bad thing to do at Ascot.”

Globetrotting Brave Emperor returns to British soil for the first time since finishing down the field in the Hampton Court Stakes at Royal Ascot last year.

Successes in France, Germany, Italy and Qatar have earned the Archie Watson-trained four-year-old an entry in the Queen Anne Stakes this time around.

Malc, trained by Richard Fahey, will renew his rivalry with Elite Status in the Commonwealth Cup at the same venue where he beat him by half a length when second in the Norfolk Stakes 12 months ago.

Middleham Park are also enthused by two-year-old Glorious Kitty, who came fourth on debut in the Marygate at York for Mick and David Easterby last month, as she makes her second career start in Berkshire.

Palin said of Brave Emperor: “He is thoroughly deserving of a stab at these sorts of races.

“He’s earned his right to have a go the hard way by doing Listed races, Group Threes and Group Twos in far-flung places, so there’s not a more deserving horse to roll the dice in one of these English Group Ones.

“And as you saw in the Lockinge, it is a wide-open division, and who knows, he might be able to get loose rolling away at the front end in the same way Audience did and he might just stay there, we know he’s a tough horse to go past.”

On Malc, Palin added: “He was second in the Norfolk last year, so he’s got previous at Ascot.

“He’s had his little ailments at the end of his two-year-old career, but I felt the way the race panned out in the Carnarvon at Newbury, again we were just drawn this side and we were the best of anything drawn that side by quite a long way.

“I know Elite Status looked mighty impressive that day and he was always held in high regard, but we did beat him at Ascot last year and I feel that if you change the draw, at least put us over that side, we would have definitely given Elite Status something to think about.

“The way that Ascot pans out for the likes of Malc, just a little more patient tactics, I expect him to be quite a live 66-1 each-way shot.”

Speaking about Glorious Kitty, he said: “She will either go for the Queen Mary or the Albany. She ran fourth in the Marygate on debut, so she’s a hugely exciting horse with Mick and Dave Easterby.”



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Chantilly return mapped out for Got To Love A Grey

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Karl Burke’s Got To Love A Grey has another Chantilly start pencilled in after a taking victory in the Listed Prix Ronde de Nuit.

The three-year-old, who is by Dark Angel, was twice a winner as a juvenile and picked up early black type when landing the Listed Marygate Fillies’ Stakes at York last May.

She was then a creditable fifth in the Queen Mary at Royal Ascot, but met with a setback after that run and therefore it was her last start of 2023.

At Chantilly on Monday she returned to action after a 271-day absence from the track, defeating previous Group and Listed winners in heavy ground to prevail by a length and a half.

Got To Love A Grey (left) winning the Marygate
Got To Love A Grey (left) winning the Marygate (Mike Egerton/PA)

That performance was over a five-and-a-half-furlong trip and the filly is now booked in for a course-and-distance return as the Group Three Sigy is intended to be her next outing.

“It was a great training performance as she was off since the Queen Mary, she had a minor injury that was nothing serious and just needed time,” said Mike Prince of owners Middleham Park Racing.

“We always had that race in mind to get her back ready, it’s good Listed form for a filly and she didn’t carry a penalty for her Marygate win, so it seemed an ideal starting point.

“She was gutsy, it was pretty heavy ground but she’d won on soft at Nottingham so that didn’t seem to stop her.

“The plan was that if she won or ran well then we’d go back for the Sigy, I know Karl’s got quite a few for the race – he’s pretty well stocked for sprint fillies!”

Beyond the Prix Sigy, connections are likely to embark on a fact-finding mission as to the filly’s ideal trip as her pedigree would suggest she will be effective over longer distances.

“It will be an interesting one, I think she’s versatile ground wise so what we need to find out is what her optimum trip is,” Prince explained.

“She shaped on Monday like she’d certainly get six furlongs and her pedigree suggests that she might actually get seven and potentially a mile.

“You’d say at this point she probably shows too much speed for a mile, but after the Sigy we’ll probably step her up to six and explore black type races – it’ll be Group races now as she’ll be carrying Listed penalties.

“We could try her over further later in the season but if she goes well over six, then it could be a case of ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’.

“In the Sigy she’ll be up a notch in terms of her opposition and that’ll tell us what route we should go. If she were to win it would be Group Twos and Group Ones, but we’ll take it from there. There should be lots of fun times ahead.”



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Globetrotter Brave Emperor all set for Qatar run

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Middleham Park Racing’s well-travelled Brave Emperor will try to break new ground as he bids for further Group success in Qatar on Saturday.

The gelding is one of racing’s most prolific globetrotters and has brought home significant prize money from Italy, Germany, France and Sweden in the last year alone – as well as winning on home turf.

He won the Listed Prix de la Californie at Cagnes-Sur-Mer last term before travelling around Europe to pick up three Group Three events and the Group Two Premio Vittorio Di Capua at San Siro in November.

Now Archie Watson’s charge will return to action at the same level in the Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Cup at the Amir Sword meeting in Qatar this weekend.

The bay is currently settling in ahead of his first run in the Middle East and will compete for a total prize fund of nearly £400,000, with the winning connections taking home over £225,000.

“He’s the second top-rated for the race, he definitely deserves his chance and it’s fantastic prize money,” said Tim Palin of Middleham Park.

“It’s going to be the experience of a lifetime for the half a dozen owners going over.

“It’s going to be once in a lifetime, for all they’ve tasted success in Milan and Sweden, twice in Germany and in France as well.

“He’s a real globetrotting horse, he’s the perfect horse. He’s a Group Two winner and three times a Group Three winner.

“He was originally purchased as a yearling by Robson Aguiar and we bought him privately as a two-year-old just before the breeze-ups.

“He’s been an absolute revelation for us and everybody has experienced a fantastic journey with him. Hopefully he’ll continue to acquit himself well on Saturday.”



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Marie’s Rock set to target second Mares’ Hurdle triumph

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Connections of Marie’s Rock appear to have abandoned ambitions of conquering the staying hurdling division in favour of another crack at the Mares’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.

Her previous attempts at three miles have proved fruitless, but the team behind Nicky Henderson’s nine-year-old have always felt they needed further evidence over a staying distance before completely giving up on the Stayers’ Hurdle dream.

A run in the Cleeve Hurdle later in the month was mooted as the potential acid test of her staying credentials, but following a seven-length defeat by a resurgent Bob Olinger when trying to defend her Relkeel Hurdle crown, attentions will be turned to another run over two and a half miles at the Festival in March and an attempt to win the mares’ only Grade One for a second time.

Marie's Rock (right) could not match Bob Olinger at Cheltenham
Marie’s Rock (right) could not match Bob Olinger at Cheltenham (Nigel French/PA)

“I think she ran a Marie’s Rock race. They went a good enough gallop. James (Bowen) was very happy with how she settled and she jumped very well,” said Middleham Park’s National Hunt racing manager Tom Palin.

“I think we were just beaten by a resurgent Bob Olinger and you can do nothing but tip your cap and go ‘well played’.

“We were discussing about going three miles again, but I would say at this point we are going to go for the Mares’ Hurdle. That would be the hot take, if you were.

“I think this tells us we should be looking back to what we know and to go and try to win the Mares’ Hurdle again. Hopefully, we get a truer-run race in it this year.”

Marie’s Rock won at the Cheltenham Festival in 2022
Marie’s Rock won at the Cheltenham Festival in 2022 (David Davies/PA)

Although surrendering her Relkeel crown to Henry de Bromhead’s on-song raider, the Middleham Park Racing team were pleased with Marie’s Rock’s efforts at Prestbury Park and will now return their star mare to her own sex for her Festival tune-up, which is likely to be Warwick’s Listed Hurdle on February 10.

“That performance she put in was the real Marie’s Rock and I think that performance is good enough to be competitive in a Mares’ Hurdle at the Festival,” continued Palin.

“I don’t think we will go to Ascot (for the Warfield) or the Cleeve Hurdle.

“I think we will go to Warwick for the Listed race she won before the Mares’ Hurdle at the Festival. That is in mid-February. That is about six weeks away now, then it is a month to the Festival and that appears the route we will go.”



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Relkeel target for Marie’s Rock on New Year’s Day

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Marie’s Rock is being readied for a defence of her Relkeel Hurdle crown on New Year’s Day after connections decided against a tilt at Saturday’s Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot.

Nicky Henderson’s dual Grade One winner proved much too strong for Dashel Drasher in the Relkeel at Cheltenham last season, prompting the Middleham Park Racing team to seriously consider stepping up to three miles in the Stayers’ Hurdle at the Festival in March.

Ultimately, though, she was kept against her own sex in a bid to secure back-to-back victories in the Mares’ Hurdle, but failed to fire as retiring superstar Honeysuckle stole the show.

Nicky Henderson with Marie's Rock
Nicky Henderson with Marie’s Rock (David Davies/PA)

Having subsequently run with credit over the extended distance at Aintree in the spring, optimism was high when she tackled three miles again in last month’s Long Distance Hurdle at Newbury, but Marie’s Rock could finish only fourth behind her old rival Dashel Drasher, prompting a change of direction.

“She was a bit too free and fresh at Newbury to get an accurate reading on whether she stayed the three miles and we’ve decided to go back to what we know for her next start,” said Middleham Park’s National Hunt racing manager Tom Palin.

“I was probably a bit too bullish for my own good before Newbury, but horses to have a tendency to make you look silly at times! She was certainly the liveliest I’ve seen her in recent memory in the parade ring beforehand and Nico (de Boinville) felt the damage was done before the tapes even went up.

“We’ll go back to two and a half on soft ground at Cheltenham, which we know she loves, burn some more freshness off her and get her really fit before going back up to three miles, either in the Cleeve Hurdle back at Cheltenham on Trials day or there’s a Grade Two mares’ race at Ascot on January 20.”

Bob Olinger could face Marie's Rock at Cheltenham
Bob Olinger could face Marie’s Rock at Cheltenham (Tim Goode/PA)

Palin is fully aware the Relkeel Hurdle will be no penalty kick for Marie’s Rock, with Henry de Bromhead’s resurgent Irish star Bob Olinger among her potential rivals.

He added: “It’s not a bad race the Relkeel, by the way – it’s not a case of we’re dodging the Long Walk and ‘only’ going for the Relkeel. It was a very competitive race last year and it looks like it’s going to be at least as strong this time around.

“Unless it’s very obvious in the Relkeel that she doesn’t want any further, we’re keen to give her another go over three miles afterwards as that will tell us whether we aim for the Mares’ Hurdle again at the Festival or have another look at the Stayers’ Hurdle.

“She is a mare at the end of the day, so let’s see if we can get some more wins into her, starting off in a race where we know everything should be right for her.”



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Jury still out regarding Marie’s Rock stamina

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Freshness has been cited as the reason for the below-par display from Marie’s Rock at Newbury, with owners Middleham Park Racing no closer to knowing if their star mare truly stays three miles.

The Nicky Henderson-trained eight-year-old was a Cheltenham Festival heroine for her syndicate members in 2022 before following up at the Punchestown Festival the following month.

She added to her haul of victories when successfully reappearing in the Relkeel Hurdle on New Year’s Day but failed to defend her Mares’ Hurdle crown when seventh behind Honeysuckle.

Having decided against a move up to three miles at the Festival, connections finally made the step up in distance at Aintree a month later, where she finished second to a thriving Sire Du Berlais.

Given another chance to prove herself over a staying trip, Marie’s Rock was sent off the 6-5 favourite to get her new campaign off to a winning start in Newbury’s Long Distance Hurdle.

However, over-exuberance both pre-race and in the early exchanges put paid to her chances and left connections willing to put a line through her disappointing fourth-placed finish under Nico de Boinville.

Marie’s Rock in action at Punchestown
Marie’s Rock in action at Punchestown (Niall Carson/PA)

“I suspected we knew our fate when she was leaving the parade ring really, and she was as wound up as I’ve seen her in recent memory,” explained Tom Palin, racing manager for Middleham Park’s National Hunt string.

“She is Marie’s Rock, she does get sweaty and she does get buzzy, but she was very, very on it and Nico said she was on it at the start, just always on her nerves.

“She came there looking like she was going to be deadly and nothing was found and that was because she spent her energy at the start really, the damage was done before the tapes went up.

“There’s a fine line with horses like her and she’s so brilliant and so quick, but you just need to harness it and I think she was just too fresh and too free to do herself any form of justice.”

The defeat has left the Middleham Park team scratching their heads regarding Marie’s Rock’s next move, still lacking clarity over their eight-time winner’s staying potential.

Although eased in the Long Walk Hurdle market, connections are refusing to completely give up on three-mile ambitions, despite a crack at back-to-back Relkeel Hurdle victories followed by the Mares’ Hurdle back down in trip creeping onto the radar.

“We’ll regroup and go again and see whether we go again over three miles next time or drop back to two-and-a-half for the Relkeel,” added Palin.

“She’s the defending champion in that and is very good over two-and-a-half-miles at Cheltenham. That could be just the ticket, or we could stick to three miles in the Long Walk.

“We’ll have a bit of a discussion as a syndicate and with the trainer and see just where she is in the next 10 days or so.

“She was too free to accurately judge if she is going to be a three miler or not, but what I would say is that at this stage, the Mares'(Hurdle) is a bit more open to consideration than it was going into Friday.

“My comments (previously) have been it’s very much just the three-mile route, but when the facts change, your opinions are allowed to change as well and I’m not as all-in – nor is Nicky or the team – on the three-mile division being her sole campaign this year. We’ll know more as the season goes on.”

Trainer Nicky Henderson and Marie’s Rock at Seven Barrows
Trainer Nicky Henderson and Marie’s Rock at Seven Barrows (David Davies/PA)

If abandoning the Long Walk in favour of the Relkeel, one possible route available to the Marie’s Rock team is a temporary drop in distance that allows the mare the chance to defend her crown, before a third attempt at three miles over the Stayers’ Hurdle track and trip in the Cleeve Hurdle on Festival Trials Day.

“You could go Relkeel and then onto the Cleeve at the end of the month and go back up to three miles that way,” continued Palin.

“Then she will be hard fit because she’s had two runs, burnt off any freshness and there would be no excuses.

“You would have a pretty good sighter and handle on whether she is right to line up in a Grade One staying race from there on in.”



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Middleham Park big guns to clash in Long Distance Hurdle

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Middleham Park hurdlers Red Risk and Marie’s Rock are likely to cross paths in the Long Distance Hurdle at Newbury next month.

Both horses run in the silks of the ownership group, and Marie’s Rock has won at the highest level for connections, taking both the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and the Mares Champion Hurdle at Punchestown last year.

The Nicky Henderson-trained mare was second to Sire Du Berlais in the Liverpool Hurdle on her final start last season and will reappear for the new campaign over the staying trip.

There she will encounter Paul Nicholls’ Red Risk, an eight-year-old who has been moving out of handicap company in recent starts and made a promising start to the season when second in the Grade Two bet365 Hurdle at Wetherby’s Charlie Hall meeting.

Tom Palin of Middleham Park said of the two horses: “I think they’re going to do battle, they’ll be taking each other on at Newbury in the three-mile Grade Two there (December 1).

Marie’s Rock ridden by jockey Nico de Boinville
Marie’s Rock ridden by jockey Nico de Boinville (Niall Carson/PA)

“That’s been Marie’s Rock’s target for a while, that was the logical starting point for her.

“Red Risk ran a cracker at Wetherby, I thought we were going to go past the other horse but he really toughed it out as well. We were delighted with the run.

“He does go very well fresh, we’ll run at Newbury but the one question we have is whether it’s a bit too soon after Wetherby.

“Then we’d just look at giving him a bit of a freshen up going into something ahead of the spring, maybe a Cleeve Hurdle or something akin to that.

“They’ll probably end up taking each other on at Newbury in that Grade Two and it will be fascinating to see who comes out on top.”

Red Risk and jockey Harry Cobden
Red Risk and jockey Harry Cobden (John Walton/PA)

Marie’s Rock will proceed from Wetherby in the direction of the top staying contests, with the big festivals at Cheltenham and Aintree pencilled in for the spring.

“She’s obviously got that useful weight allowance and I think she has a pull as it is on official ratings but that performance (by Red Risk) the other day was a very, very good performance,” Palin said.

“We’ve just got Red Risk figured out and Marie’s Rock is in great form. Her campaign kind of plans itself; Newbury, Ascot, Cheltenham for the Cleeve, Cheltenham for the Stayers’ and Aintree again.”



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Middleham Park making more travel plans for Brave Emperor

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Brave Emperor could eventually travel even further afield in search of more Group-class glory after his conclusive victory in the Premio Vittorio Di Capua at San Siro.

The Archie Watson-trained gelding is incredibly well-travelled and has had a remarkable season, winning six times in four different countries.

He has scored three times at Group Three level, taking the Dr Busch-Memorial at Krefeld, the Prix Daphnis at Deauville and the Grosser Preis der Landeshauptstadt Dusseldorf.

He then stepped up to Group Two level in Italy at San Siro on Sunday and again did Middleham Park Racing proud when striding to a four-length win under usual pilot Luke Morris.

“You wouldn’t quite believe the season he’s had. We’ve kept on pitching him in and giving him another inch of rein and he’s just kept on giving and kept on winning,” said Tom Palin of the ownership group.

“Any task Archie seemed to throw at him, he’s just been able to respond, he is an absolute dude of a horse. We’ve sent him to Sweden, France, Germany, Italy, he doesn’t know how to run a bad race. He’s a credit to everyone around him – and more importantly to himself.

“Every time he goes racing, Luke keeps getting off and saying ‘he’s feeling faster’, he’s just improving all the time. Luke got off him this time in Italy and said ‘he’s really starting to feel like a good horse now’.

“Usually with good horses you get the impression that they’re good quite quickly, but this horse is a bit quirky in that he’s getting better as he goes along. The more we run him, the better he’s getting.”

Brave Emperor will have a break now and return to action next year with some targets in the Middle East and Hong Kong to get him started before the domestic campaign.

Palin said: “He deserves a bit of a break now, then we’ll look at a Group Two out in Qatar and we’ll see if Hong Kong might like him, that’s an invite only so we’ll see if they’re interested in having him run over there.

“Maybe we could look at the Godolphin Dirt Mile, that’s on World Cup night, then maybe something like the Lockinge. He’s got Group Two penalties now, and Group Three penalties, so he is going to have to roll some big boy dice. He’s probably going to be (rated) 113 or 114 next Tuesday, so he deserves a crack at something like that.

“He just loves it, wherever he goes he takes it in his stride and runs his race. I’ve run out of superlatives to describe him to the owners!

“He is so much fun and such a cool horse to manage because we don’t have to. Archie picks the races, I tell the owners where they’re going, they travel out there, he travels on the box and then he just seems to win! He’s a manager’s dream and an owner’s dream.”



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‘Precarious weather watch’ in prospect for connections of Shouldvebeenaring

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Shouldvebeenaring’s owners were delighted after they saw their late entry for the Prix de la Foret pay off with a gallant run at ParisLongchamp, but they could now face a similar conundrum with regards to Qipco British Champions Day.

The Richard Hannon-trained grey was supplemented for the French Group One after the ground, which is usually soft in Paris in autumn, turned out to be rather quicker than expected.

Ridden by Sean Levey, the colt held his own at the level once again, finishing third behind Kelina and Kinross in a field of 14 to justify the decision to add him to the line-up.

“Vindicated and relief are the two words that spring to mind! Spending €25,000 to go in comes with a little bit of pressure, so to see him run so well, we were absolutely thrilled,” said Tim Palin of owners Middleham Park Racing.

“Every day as the week went on it was drying up and then they were breaking track records, we knew it would play into his hands because he is best on the top of the ground.

“It was a great ride from Sean and there was a thrilling moment there when you thought he was coming to win, but of course the two class acts were just a length or two in front of him.

“For all that we got there, we couldn’t quite go past but to even finish in the same postcode as Kinross is a real feather in our horse’s cap, a real testament to his tenacity and his durability.

“He’s danced pretty much every dance this year, there’s only one month that he’s not run in this year.

“I think one of the beauties of him is the way that he switches off in his races and the way that Sean rides, it just means that he only ever has to sprint for two furlongs in his races. He’s not a make-all, eyeballs-out horse who is on the speed and in the thick of it from start to finish.”

The gamble also paid off financially as his prize-money well exceeded his supplementary fee, and similar calculations could now justify another late entry – this time for the British Champions Sprint Stakes at Ascot.

Again the ground will prove pivotal with quick going preferred, meaning connections will keep a keen eye on the weather forecast as they weigh-up the Ascot race with the Challenge Stakes at Newmarket just over a week beforehand.

Palin said: “There’s a couple of options – he is in the Challenge Stakes, a week on Friday, the Group Two, that’s seven furlongs at Newmarket and he’d probably go there with a favourite’s chance. We’ll have to talk to Richard and Sean and give him a breeze next week to see if he’s over his exertions.

“That would be on the agenda, but that’s only about eight days before the Champions Sprint at Ascot. We’d need to look at the weather forecast to see whether we’d dare wait another week for the rain not to arrive or the heavens not to open.

“He’s not in there, realistically because at the time of entry you’re assuming it’s going to be soft or heavy ground. A bit like the Foret, he was never in that, we took the decision to wait and supplement and of course it paid off.

Shouldvebeenaring was a winner at Newmarket back in May
Shouldvebeenaring was a winner at Newmarket back in May (David Davies/PA)

“Being second at Haydock in the Sprint Cup meant that he earned £91,000, so that gave us a little bit of financial wiggle room to be able to play the supplementary game. It cost €25,000 to go in the other day and he earned €40,000, so there’s plenty of money in the kitty if we need to supplement for that.

“The weather gods might shine on us, literally, in that week coming up to it but we’ll have to make a decision before we truly know – declarations for the Challenge Stakes will be on the Wednesday and it’s another 10 days to the Champions Sprint.

“It’s going to be a precarious weather watch to see which way we go.”



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