The Nigel Tinkler-trained 3-year-old Acklam Express (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) will stay in Dubai and target the key five-furlong sprints at the end of the carnival after finishing second to the elder Equilateral (GB) (Equiano {Fr}) in the G2 Meydan Sprint last week.
Acklam Express could resurface in the G3 Nad Al Sheba Turf Sprint on Super Saturday Mar. 6, or wait for the G1 Al Quoz Sprint on Dubai World Cup night on Mar. 27.
“He ran a marvellous race,” Tinkler said. “He's very well, came out of the race absolutely fine. He's entered for Super Saturday. He might run there. We'll know in a few days if we've got an invite for World Cup night. If he gets an invite for that, he might just go straight there.”
Tinkler provided an update on another speedy 3-year-old in his North Yorkshire yard, Martin Webb's G2 Flying Childers S. winner and G2 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint third Ubettabelieveit (GB) (Kodiac {GB}).
“He went to Mark Dwyer's for the winter,” Tinkler said. “He's been back three weeks, and we're very happy with him. We don't know what races there are, because we've only got the programme book until April. The next one doesn't come out for a fortnight, so I can't say anything concrete. In a normal year we'd look at the something like the [G2] Temple S. or a race at York at the May meeting, before going to Royal Ascot. I don't think he's going to go beyond five furlongs.”
Tinkler reflected on the situation of having two exciting pattern-level 3-year-olds in the yard, saying, “It's just amazing to think one of them is rated 110 and the other is rated 109–and they live next door to each other,” he said. “They were two of the fastest 2-year-olds in the UK last season–over five furlongs there won't be many rated higher, and they are next-door neighbours. It's unbelievable, it's just fortune.”
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