Tag Archive for: Owen Burrows

Alflaila pencilled in for June return

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Owen Burrows will not rush Alflaila back into action, with a late June return on the radar.

The four-year-old won four times for the trainer last term, scooping Group Three success in both the Strensall Stakes and Darley Stakes.

His planned international adventures over the winter were scuppered by injury, but he is now back with Burrows building up to his return later this summer.

“He has come back to me recently,” the trainer said. “He has been rehabbing with Shadwell and they have done a tremendous job with him and he looks magnificent.

“Angus (Gold, racing manager for owner Shadwell) and Richard Hills have been down and we were sort of thinking end of June at the earliest with him. I don’t think we will get him to Royal Ascot because it would just mean trying to press too much.

“The natural progression with him is to try to win a Group Two and I’ve always thought Dubai would suit him. My plan before he got injured was to go to the Jebel Hatta on Super Saturday and if he did well, stay for World Cup night.”

Burrows also has Anmaat to look forward to this term, with the Tattersalls Gold Cup or the Prix d’Ispahan as possible starting points for the five-year-old.

The Shadwell-owned gelding went unbeaten in three starts last year, plundering York’s John Smith’s Cup on his return before adding the Rose Of Lancaster in great style then finishing with a battling victory in the Prix Dollar at ParisLongchamp.

Having improved more than a stone during the course of 2022, Burrows is now keen to see if he can eke out further improvement from his charge this term – who could bid for top honours on reappearance.

“He’s well and there’s obviously the Tattersalls Gold Cup which comes soon enough maybe, but he appreciates getting his toe in a little bit,” said Burrows.

“He’ll also have an entry in the Prix d’Ispahan and we feel one of the the races will cut up. He’s not a definite for France on May 29, but that’s what we’re thinking, otherwise you will be starting in the Gordon Richards or something with a Group Two penalty.

“We’ll see and we managed to get him to win a John Smith’s Cup first time up, so he is a horse that can run well fresh.

Anmaat at Longchamp
Anmaat at Longchamp (Ashley Iveson/PA)

“He’s a gelding and he’s there to race. We would love to make him a Group One winner, obviously that would be great.

“He’s got to obviously step up because he’s 118, but he went from 103 and improved a stone last year. He only had three runs so he hasn’t got many miles on the clock and there is no reason why he can’t improve another few pounds to get up to Group One level.

“Both Anmaat and Alflaila are going to be in the similar sort of races but we should be able to keep them apart.”

Burrows sights set on Group One gold for Anmaat

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Owen Burrows has Group One goals for the ever-improving Anmaat.

The Shadwell-owned five-year-old has placed in each of his 10 starts, with six victories including an impressive treble that spanned last season.

Starting his campaign with a half-length success in the John Smith’s Cup at York, the bay then left handicapping behind to land the Group Three Rose Of Lancaster Stakes by four lengths at Haydock in August.

He signed off 2022 with a step up to Group Two class at ParisLongchamp in October, winning the Prix Dollar by a head.

Anmaat holds an entry for the Group One Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh in May, but a trip across the Channel to Longchamp is under consideration again as he will also be pencilled in for the Prix Ganay and the Prix d’Ispahan.

Anmaat winning the John Smith's Cup
Anmaat winning the John Smith’s Cup (Nigel French/PA)

Burrows said: “He’s good, he’s in strong work. I’ve made an entry for him in the Tattersalls Gold Cup and he’ll also have an entry for those two Group races in France – the Ganay and the Prix d’Ispahan. One is at the end of April and one’s at the end of May.

“We’re very pleased with him, fingers crossed we can get him out a bit earlier this year.

“You’ve got Group Threes at Sandown – the Gordon Richards and the Brigadier Gerard – but he’d have a Group Two penalty in those, so I think if we’re happy and he’s showing all the right signs at home, then why not have a crack?

“He was able to win the John Smith’s first time out last year, so he’s a horse we’d like to think we can get ready first time.”

Plans for the return of Hukum, winner of the Group One Coronation Cup on his only domestic start last season, are also under discussion.

Hukum during his Coronation Cup victory
Hukum during his Coronation Cup victory (Tim Goode/PA)

A hind leg injury ended his campaign early, but the full brother to Baaeed was not written off prematurely and after a successful operation, he began the rehabilitation process.

That was also a success and the horse returned to Burrows in due course, where he is being prepared for latter-season targets that could culminate in a bid for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Burrows said: “He’s been back with me quite a while now, he’s just started easy, half-speed work.

“I was speaking to Angus (Gold, Shadwell racing manager) about a month ago about whether we’d be brave enough to go back to Epsom first time out but we’re probably not.

“We’ll probably have a prep run somewhere in May, with a view to the main target being the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot and then the races are all pretty mapped out for him.

Hukum winning the King George V Stakes at Royal Ascot
Hukum winning the King George V Stakes at Royal Ascot (Edward Whitaker/PA)

“The good thing with him is that he’s shown a preference for going on soft ground, so it’s lovely to think he’d be turning up in France in October. That (Arc) would be the main aim, so he’s got more of a second (half of the) season plan.

“He’s rehabbed well and Sheikha Hissa was quite keen to give him another chance. I felt he’d only just really hit a peak, it was impressive what he did at Epsom and I felt he ran a big race in the Sheema Classic considering things didn’t really pan out for him (seventh of 15) – he was only beaten a length and three-quarters.

“If he can continue in that sort of form, then we should have a lot of fun with him this year.”

Burrows also provided an update on Alflaila, who scored a hat-trick of Listed and Group Three victories at the end of last season before sustaining a fracture to his left fetlock.

The injury ruled him out of a Bahrain run in November, but he is making strides in his recovery and is expected back at Burrows’ base in the next few weeks.

Alflaila winning the Strensall Stakes at York
Alflaila winning the Strensall Stakes at York (Mike Egerton/PA)

“Alflaila is still back at Shadwell, I had an update a few weeks ago and he was back cantering,” he said.

“I’m hoping he’ll be back with me next week or the week after at the latest.

“Touch wood, everything’s going very well, he’s been back cantering for about three weeks and they’re very happy with how he’s healed.”

Hukum back in training after injury break

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Coronation Cup winner Hukum will be kept in training, with a mid-summer return in mind for the lightly-raced six-year-old.

Hukum gave trainer Owen Burrows a first Group One success in June when landing the Epsom contest under Jim Crowley.

After beating Pyledriver, who had won the same prize in 2021, thoughts turned to a run in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.

However, those plans were short-lived. While Pyledriver took the King George, the Shadwell-owned horse required surgery on an injury picked up during his Epsom success, having been found lame when he returned to Farncombe Down Stables in Hungerford.

The injury, which required three screws inserted into a hind leg, has now healed and Hukum is likely race on in a bid to add to a tally of nine wins from 15 starts and earnings of over £630,000.

Shadwell’s racing manager Angus Gold said of the six-time Group winner: “He has been back in training a while now, so as long as he stays in one piece, he will remain in training.

“There isn’t a plan. There is no point having a plan in January, as we don’t know if he will be sound in the middle of February.

“I would think he will be out from the middle of summer onwards. We need to take one step at a time with him. There is no point making a plan in case it all goes wrong.

“Hopefully we can stay on track.”

Minzaal oozes class in Gimcrack

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Minzaal overcame a tardy start to register a taking success in the Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Gimcrack Stakes at York.

Completing a treble for jockey Jim Crowley, Minzaal fluffed the break in the six-furlong Group Two but soon got back on terms and travelled supremely well throughout.

Mohawk King tried to make all, but Minzaal made smooth progress to take up position on the leader’s shoulder with two furlongs to run and really stepped up a gear when asked to go about his business.

Having just his third start, Minzaal drifted across the track a touch in the final furlong, but he had a ready two lengths in hand at the finish over Devilwala, with Mystery Smiles back in third.

Betfair offered 33-1 about Minzaal for next year’s 2000 Guineas and 14-1 for the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot.

Burrows said: “That was very straightforward. He didn’t jump out very quick, but I don’t think Jim wanted to set him alight in any case, as he has so much speed.

“He just lets him find his rhythm and Jim said he couldn’t believe how well he was going – if anything he got there too soon, but there was nothing else he could do.”

Looking to potential targets, the trainer said: “I think he’s all speed, I don’t think he needs to be going further than six furlongs, so we’ll be looking Middle Park rather than Dewhurst and it will be straight there.

“I don’t see him as a Guineas horse, more Commonwealth Cup and Jim thinks that, too.”