Youthful King

Youthful King did well to get as close as he got from the rear of the field in the Rosebery Handicap at Kempton last Saturday. Weak in the market, he was held up early on from his high draw in a race in which it was very difficult for the hold-up horses to get involved. Eleventh of the 14 runners as they turned for home, he stayed on well towards the far side in the home straight to get up for fifth place. The four horses who finished in front of him were first, second, third and sixth turning for home, in a race in which the winner’s finishing speed was over 111% of overall speed.

Luke Dace’s horse made all the running twice to win at Windsor during the summer, but he was held up in his previous two runs, both over 10 furlongs at Lingfield, and he did well on both occasions, finishing off well in races that were not run to suit the hold-up horses. He remains potentially well handicapped now on a mark of 90, and he will be of interest when he gets back on turf, or back into a race in which hold-up horses are not disadvantaged. He could be well suited by a competitive middle-distance handicap at Ascot, a track at which he finished third in the Shergar Cup Challenge over a mile and a half last August on his only visit to date.

Kempton, 6^th April 2024