Tag Archive for: Tim Palin

Tutty backing Blue Storm to make Bullet impact

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Gemma Tutty is confident her gamble on sprint star Blue Storm will pay off when she attempts to land the William Hill Beverley Bullet Sprint Stakes on Saturday.

The Blue Point colt has been on an upward trajectory this year, finishing fourth at Chester on his seasonal reappearance in May before taking the 3YO “Dash” Handicap honours at Epsom a month later.

He produced a career-best run at Royal Ascot in the Palace of Holyrood House Stakes, where Blue Storm missed the start and was short of room when battling with eventual winner Pilgrim to finish a half-length second.

The three-year-old has not been seen since those exploits, with Tutty admitting he is “a gallop short” in his preparations for the Listed contest on the Westwood, but she does anticipate another strong performance.

“He didn’t come out of Ascot very well, it took a lot more out of him than we realised it was going to,” Tutty said.

“It has been a bit of a battle to get him back to where we needed him, he’s probably going into this a gallop short but I’m hoping he gets away with it.

“He’s a seriously fast horse and he’s done a lot of base fitness, I just would have liked, ideally, to have got another fast piece into him.

“I’m happy enough to take his chance but given we have never run him on a stiff track like Beverley and he wasn’t seen to best effect at tracks like Hamilton before we got him, there’s a little bit of a question mark.

“But he’s drawn very well and at Ascot he handled the stiffer finish very well, so it’s worth a try anyway.”

Clarendon House wins the Lindum York Handicap
Connections of Clarendon House hope for improvements with a change of routine at Beverley (Mike Egerton/PA)

Robert Cowell’s Clarendon House is the only contender to have run at Beverley during his career, winning a three-horse contest in June 2022 before finishing a length and three-quarters behind Judicial three months later.

The six-year-old claimed a Listed triumph at Cork in June before coming home towards the rear of the field on his last two starts at York, latterly in the Group One Nunthorpe Stakes, which has resulted in a change of routine for the son of Mehmas.

“We’re going to go back to basics. He’s been going in with the hood and we’ve been whipping it off late. It worked in Ireland, but it didn’t work in the City Walls or the Nunthorpe,” said Tim Palin, racing manager for owners Middleham Park Racing.

“On Saturday, he’s going to go in naked, so to speak. We’ll strip back the headgear and go in as late as we can and see what happens.

“If he gets out of the right side of bed and jumps off on terms, he’s got a favourite’s chance I think.”

Commanche Falls heading up to the starting stalls in the Betfred Passionate About Sport Achilles Stakes at Haydock
Commanche Falls could be another Beverley Bullet Sprint Stakes winner for trainer Michael Dods (Richard Sellers/PA)

Democracy Dilemma provides another strong challenge for Cowell, with the four-year-old narrowly missing out at the Ebor Festival last week.

He made the running in the five-and-a-half-furlong Symphony Group Handicap before being usurped by Jm Jungle, Jordan Electrics and Looking For Lynda in the closing stages for a one-length fourth.

Michael Dods, who won this race with Dakota Gold in 2020, hopes a drop in trip for only the second time in his career can get Commanche Falls back in the winner’s enclosure.

Jamie Osborne’s Emaraaty Ana is the oldest horse of the seven runners in the contest, while Albasheer aims to return to form for Archie Watson.

Staincliff moves up to Listed level in a bid to complete a hat-trick for Jack Channon.



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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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