Clipper Logistics' Night Raider (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), a winner of the Listed Golden Rose Stakes last out, has, for now at least, been ruled out of a trip to Dubai, according to trainer Karl Burke. Both the G2 Duke Of York and the G2 Temple Stakes in May are local options for the 4-year-old.
A winner of his first two trips to the post last year, Night Raider was tried in the G1 2000 Guineas, but ran unplaced, and the result was the same in the G3 Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot. Given a break, the dark bay resumed with a fifth in a Newmarket listed race last summer, and has won his two latest starts, a conditions stakes at Kempton in October, and the aforementioned listed race at Newcastle in November.
Burke said, “He was a horse that could have gone out to Dubai, but the owners have decided against it. There's pros and cons for going out there obviously, but he's never run on fast ground on turf so he would have had a chance to do that and there were listed and group races for him.
“If he didn't go out there there's nothing for him on the all-weather because the Finals Day races are nearly all handicaps now and we're not going to do that as he's rated 111 and we're hoping to make him into a stallion.”
There is still a chance for a foreign foray, with Dubai World Cup night in April given as an option for the sprinter.
“We'll probably have to wait for either the Duke of York or the Temple Stakes, unless I can persuade Steve [Parkin] to go out to Dubai for World Cup night or something, we'll see,” added Burke.
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