Burke eyeing Dante date for Caviar Heights

Ashley Iveson
May 8, 2024 8:57 am

Newmarket Listed winner could step back up in class at York.

Caviar Heights appears increasingly likely to line up in next week’s Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Dante Stakes following his impressive victory at Newmarket on Friday.

Formerly trained by Andrew Balding, the Sea The Stars colt finished a promising third as a 50-1 shot for last month’s Feilden Stakes on his first start for Karl Burke and took another significant step forward to go two places better on his return to the Rowley Mile in the Newmarket Stakes.

Burke is now eyeing a swift rise in class for one of Britain’s leading trials for the Betfred Derby at York next week, although the jury is out on whether the premier Classic itself will prove to be a suitable target.

“He was brilliant and he’ll be confirmed for the Dante. Obviously we don’t have to do too much work with him, he’s had his two runs already, so he could easily turn up there,” said the trainer.

“I don’t know (about the Derby), there’s a lot of speed in the family. I’m not saying he won’t stay a mile and a half, but the pedigree wouldn’t be obvious, although he’s by Sea The Stars.

“He’s a bit of a relentless galloper and you can make plenty of use of him over that mile and a quarter, so we’ll see how things play out.”

Caviar Heights was one of two winners for Burke and owner Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum at the Guineas Festival, with Liberty Lane bouncing back from Lincoln disappointment to plunder a valuable handicap on the 2000 Guineas undercard on Saturday.

The North Yorkshire trainer was also pleased with the performance of Beautiful Diamond, who finished a close-up third in the Group Three Palace House Stakes on the same afternoon.

“I was delighted with Liberty Lane, I always thought he was a very good horse, but he was always very keen last year and always ran with the choke out and we were always trying to settle him,” Burke added.

“Saturday is the first time he’s really jumped and dropped his head and relaxed into a nice rhythm. He finished out really well and he’ll stay an extra furlong no problem now he’s running like that.

“Beautiful Diamond got a little bump at the start from the second horse and she changed legs and didn’t really seem to handle the track at all, so I think those two things together probably cost us the race.

“It was a good run and she goes to the Temple Stakes at Haydock.”