Late call, but Cold Case could make swift Mill Reef reappearance

Smart Karl Burke-trained colt picked up a big prize at Doncaster last week.

Karl Burke will leave it later before deciding whether his Doncaster sales race winner Cold Case will make a swift return to action in the Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef Stakes at Newbury on Saturday.

Having finished third in the Gimcrack Stakes at York last month, the Showcasing colt rewarded favourite-backers with a lucrative success in the Weatherbys Scientific GBP 300,000 2-Y-O Stakes on Town Moor.

This weekend’s Group Two feature comes just nine days later, but Burke admits he is tempted to send his charge into battle once more.

“I’m pretty keen. It probably comes a bit quick and Sheikh Mohammed Obaid (owner) is not keen to run them back quick, but he has left the decision with me,” said the Spigot Lodge handler.

“We have got other options, i.e. the Two Year Old Trophy at Redcar (October 1), which would give him another couple of weeks and that would be the sensible one.

“But I just want to keep an eye on how Saturday’s race cuts up as it doesn’t look the strongest renewal of the Mill Reef and it’s a step on the way to making him a stallion if he can win it.

“He’s not a definite runner, but the horse is in great form and seems to have taken Doncaster well.”

Shouldvebeenaring will bid to provide Richard Hannon with a first victory prestigious contest – 50 years on from his father winning the inaugural running with subsequent 2000 Guineas hero Mon Fils.

Shouldvebeenaring at Ripon
Shouldvebeenaring at Ripon (PA)

Hannon snr went on to enjoy further success with Showbrook (1991), Galeota (2004) and Cool Creek (2005) and in Shouldvebeenaring – supplemented after winning a valuable sales race at York and the Listed Champion Two-Year-old Trophy at Ripon on his last two starts – Hannon jnr believes he has a leading contender.

He said: “Shouldvebeenaring has been supplemented. He won the Listed race at Ripon last time and the sales race at York before that and we think he is a very nice horse.

“My dad trained the first winner of this race so it would be nice to do it this year.”

Hannon also has the top-class Persian Force – last seen going down by just half a length to Blackbeard in the Prix Morny – in contention, but his participation remains undecided.

Hannon added: “I don’t know yet whether Persian Force will run. His main objective is the Middle Park Stakes, but we left him in and we’ll see what it looks like.”

Classic winning at Newmarket
Classic winning at Newmarket (John Walton/PA)

One of the highlights on Friday’s card at Newbury is the 42nd Running Of The Haynes, Hanson & Clark Conditions Stakes, a race previously won by the likes of Shergar, Rainbow Quest and Nayef.

Hannon is planning a twin assault, with 260,000 guineas purchase Classic, a winner at Newmarket last time, set to be joined by once-raced maiden Palamon.

“I am going to run Palamon and Classic is in there and he is a horse we think a lot of so he might well go. It’s always a very nice race and we have two very nice entries,” said Hannon.

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