Saeed bin Suroor expects Soul to challenge Richard Hannon’s trainees in Betfred Hungerford Stakes
Veteran trainer, Saeed bin Suroor, has set his sights on winning the Betfred Hungerford Stakes (Group 2) at Newbury in England on Saturday, August 18, 2012. He will be trying his luck with Australian runner, Soul, who is carrying the winning momentum at
the moment.
The five-year-old gelding has participated in a total of 17 events, winning five of them. Although, his strike rate is not on the higher side, yet it is quite impressive. Other than his victories, he has finished as a runner up on a couple of occasions whereas
secured the third spot on the same number of times.
Due to this, Saeed bin Suroor believes that his trainee has got a solid chance of making a strong impact at Newbury, despite the fact that he will be up against some very good runners.
According to the experienced trainer, “I think that Soul will be fine racing over seven furlongs and he has been in very good form this year. He has run well on all types of ground and he has the class to run a big race in a Group 2 contest.”
On the other hand, Richard Hannon seems to be the more likely to win the battle in the Group-2 event. He will test his luck with a couple of decent performers like Strong Suit and Libranno.
The former of the above mentioned challengers is rated highly than his opponents. He is a strong candidate to win the race, but he will want the conditions to favour him. If it rains, he will not be strong enough to claim victory.
According to Hannon, “Strong Suit floats along over fast ground and, while we all have fingers crossed that he might yet get a place at the top table later on, this is a valuable Group 2 which looks tailor-made for him. Unless the heavens open, he should
get close to good ground, which will be okay.”
The four-year-old colt has participated in a couple of events during the 2012 season, but his performances have been below par. The main reason for his failure was the change in weather conditions in both those races. However, the going will be good in the
Betfred Hungerford Stakes, which will suit him.
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