Classic credentials on Trial for Spyce at Sandown Park

Interest in the current Flat campaign will ramp up later this week for Alan and his team when Spyce tests his Betfred Derby credentials in the bet365 Classic Trial at Sandown Park on Friday.

In recent years the Group Three contest has been the launch pad to several subsequent Group One winners.

These include Westover, who won the 2022 renewal before tasting Irish Derby success later that year, while 12 months earlier Adayar finished second in the mile and quarter test before striking gold in the Derby at Epsom Downs.

Irrigation issues might have resulted in the pushback of the opening fixture at Epsom Downs, which was supposed to be held on Tuesday, but their loss is Sandown Park’s gain with Alan set to roll the dice with the son of Too Darn Hot in the £95,000 contest.

Alan said: “Spyce was going to go to Epsom this week for the Blue Riband Trial, but that has now been put back so we will go to Sandown Park on Friday as he is ready to start.

“Rossa (Ryan) can’t ride him this week so I’ve booked Tom Marquand for the ride and he is a pretty good deputy.

“He has wintered well and has been working well. We don’t know how good he is yet, and we don’t know what the opposition will be like on Friday, but we will learn an awful lot at the end of the week and hopefully it is positive.”

This week will also see Insanity, whose last appearance came on the final day of the 2025 Flat campaign in the Virgin Bet November Handicap, make his return to action when tackling the RIU Resorts And Hotels Handicap at Pontefract tomorrow.

Alan added: “Insanity runs at Pontefract on Tuesday. He was going to go to Epsom for the meeting that has been rescheduled, but luckily I put him in here.

“There is not a lot else for him so I thought I would get him started. He is a horse that has never run well at Newmarket so I didn’t want to wait for that race there.

“He has been working away grand and had a proper winter holiday. Whatever he does he will improve for the run. The mile and a quarter would be the minimum for him as he is probably a proper mile and a half horse.”

Switching back to the jumps stable stalwart Edwardstone remains on course to contest the Grade One bet365 Celebration Chase over a course and distance he has excelled at in the past. And despite being 12, Alan believes he is still showing plenty of zest.

Alan said: “The plan is to go to Sandown Park with Edwardstone. He worked on Saturday and we will see how he is midweek, but it has always been the plan if we were happy with him that we would go to Sandown Park with him.

“He gave thirteen pounds and six years to the winner at Plumpton. The track didn’t really suit him as he couldn’t get around the bends, but I was delighted with the way he stayed on.”

Several other members of Alan’s Flat team were out in action across Newbury and Nottingham at the end of last week.

And while there was to be no winners from those that graced the track Alan was satisfied with the results starting with Blazeon Five, who finished runner-up in the cityam.com Handicap at Newbury on Friday.

Alan said: “I’m delighted with Blazeon Five. It was her first run back after having a winter break.

“She will come on for it a bit, but she wouldn’t want the ground any quicker than it was at Newbury on Friday. The main target is the Cesarewitch, but that is not until the end of the season.

“We will duck and dive, but we can’t run her on quick ground. That run showed she can be competitive off that mark.”

Twenty four hours later at the Berkshire track it was the turn of the Apple Tree Stud-owned pair of King Al and Atlas Mountain to take to the course.

Alan added: “King Al didn’t handle the ground. He travelled into it well, but Rossa said he just wouldn’t let himself down. He has been happy over quickish ground over hurdles, but quick ground on the flat is a totally different thing.

“The plan is to give him a break and bring him back for maybe a run on the flat at the back end and then maybe we will go hurdling again.

“He might be one that we get ready for that four-year-old handicap hurdle at Chepstow in October.”

“I was satisfied with Atlas Mountain at Newbury as he was just ready to start back. He wouldn’t want the ground any quicker than what it was at Newbury on Saturday.

“He will be one once we have him handicapped that we have a bit of fun with. We will tip away in another maiden or novice next time and see where we are.”

Sandwiched in between that pair running on Saturday was the return to action of Deedaydiva up at Nottingham in the British Stallion Studs EBF Fillies’ Novice Stakes.

And although her third place finish ended dreams of an outing in the Betfred 1000 Guineas, it was a result that may have ignited Royal Ascot aspirations.

Alan said: “She was only just ready to run at Nottingham as she has been a bit backward in her coat. Because she had the Guineas entry I needed to get her out and see where we were.

“She certainly isn’t going to go for a Guineas, but now she has had the run we can just back off her a little bit. There is a lot to look forward to. We will get her handicap mark this week and we will see what options we have.

“I still think the world of her and there will be a lot of improvement to come. It could be that we look at a Sandringham as Rossa (Ryan) mentioned that, but let’s just see where we are. She will certainly come on plenty for the run and she was fine on Sunday morning.”