Charlie Appleby saddles a big team at the Dubai Future Champions Festival at Newmarket this weekend including Distant Storm in the Group 1 Darley Dewhurst Stakes.
The Night Of Thunder colt was a beaten favourite in the Acomb Stakes at York but bounced back at Newmarket last time to set up a Dewhurst bid with Appleby going for his fourth win the last seven years.
The Godolphin trainer told the Nick Luck Daily Podcast: “I went into the Acomb hopeful that he’d be the horse they’ve got to beat, but he’s not the first horse I’ve run there that has been beaten and he got back on track in the Somerville Stakes.
“I thought he was very impressive there, they went sensible even fractions and when he hit the rising ground he got home very well.
“The seven furlongs (at York) can just catch some of those two-year-olds out.
“It’s lovely to have an unbeaten colt don’t get me wrong, but I don’t mind them getting beaten.
“Like an unbeaten boxer when they are down on the canvas they’ve got to back up again and I thought that horse, certainly mentally, matured a lot and we saw that at Newmarket.”
Appleby also runs Saba Desert and Pacific Avenue in the same top-class race.
The trainer said: “Saba Desert, I was disappointed with him in the National Stakes, he went there on the back of a Superlative win so it’s a route we’ve gone before. The ground was on the slow side and he never got going.
“He came out of it well and we hold him in high regard. We’ve popped the cheekpieces on for concentration, hopefully he can rekindle the Superlative form.
“Pacific Avenue, he’s in there to make sure there’s a nice even gallop, I’m sure everyone will be happy to see that. Coming back to seven won’t be against him, he didn’t see out the mile (in the Solario).
“On paper it’s one of the strongest we’ve seen for a few years. They’re nearly all stakes winners and whoever wins will probably be 2000 Guineas favourite.”
On Friday Appleby runs Dance To the Music in the bet365 Fillies’ Mile and, while he’s still eyeing a Breeders’ Cup tilt with the daughter of Dubawi, he didn’t think there was anything to run scared from in the Newmarket race.
“She didn’t handle the first turn (at Woodbine) and we were inexperienced and trapped out there, not in an ideal position but she ran on well,” Appleby said.
“She learnt plenty and we felt she’d be a contender for the Breeders’ Cup. She deserves to be in the Fillies’ Mile, I didn’t think there was a standout filly in there.”
The Group 3 Emirates Autumn Stakes on Saturday has gone Appleby’s way five times in the last eight years and this time around he runs the once-raced Dubawi colt Al Zanati.
He said: “He’s very raw and has definitely come forward from Newmarket. He’s a horse we like, he’s a Dubawi, plenty of presence about him and he’s a player."
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