Hugo Palmer Saturday Blog | Curragh, Haydock and Newmarket
26 Sep 2025
Can Hugo Palmer land Group 1 glory with Fitzella at Newmarket in the Cheveley Park Stakes? Check out his exclusive preview of his four runners on Saturday below.
14:25 Newmarket – Fitzella
A Group 1 runner is always very exciting, and Fitzella has been an absolute star for us this season. She has grown and developed as every week has passed this summer. Franny Norton, who rides out here a lot, hadn’t sat on her since before Ascot in July, and when he rode her in her final piece of work ahead of this race, he couldn’t believe how she had grown in her shoulders and how she was such a bigger, stronger filly than two months ago.
She has been on the go since May, so there is always a doubt that such a precocious filly will still be improving at this stage of the season, but all her work at home suggests she is. She’s physically well and we’re very happy with how she goes into the race.
Her last run at Deauville was over seven furlongs, and we felt she stayed that trip well, just finding My Highness too good, and I think that one is a bit of a monster who will take a lot of beating in the Group 1 Marcel Boussac on Arc day. We could have run in Friday’s Group 2 Rockfel Stakes over seven, but in all honesty, I was more afraid of Touleen in that race than I was any of her Cheveley Park rivals. That latter race is also a valuable Group 1, and we know our filly has bags of speed, so dropping back to six furlongs doesn’t worry us.
I think she will like Newmarket, I can’t see her not handling the Rowley mile, and she’s versatile groundwise, so there is a lot to be excited about ahead of this.
15:15 Haydock – Hawksbill
We do need the ground to dry out further for this horse, but Friday was a beautiful day, and the latest forecast has the rain arriving after racing on Saturday, so hopefully we will get good ground for him. He hadn’t done too much wrong this season until his last run, when he did just about everything wrong!
We don’t want to make the running with him, nor do we want to get too far back, so he should be good from the inside draw in stall 1. He seems in good order and on the right ground I hope can go well.
15:45 Curragh – Mr Seagull
I very nearly scratched Mr Seagull when I saw he was a 100-1 shot, but then I thought if we ignore his last run at Doncaster, which in hindsight came too soon after his Kempton run, then he would be nowhere near those odds. So we’ll forgive him that run, he’s travelled well to Ireland, he looks great, I think we’re drawn on the right [stands] side, and if he can get out of the stalls better than he did at Doncaster, he could outrun his odds in this very valuable contest.
15:50 Haydock – Double Combo
We like this colt, but he would want some cut in the ground, so if it goes too quick here then we’d wait for another day, but it should be good which will be fine. Those runners with form don’t look that far clear, so this could well go to a newcomer, and this son of Dubawi goes well at home, form I hope he can take to the racecourse.
Hugo Palmer, Coral Racing Ambassador
14:25 Newmarket – Fitzella
A Group 1 runner is always very exciting, and Fitzella has been an absolute star for us this season. She has grown and developed as every week has passed this summer. Franny Norton, who rides out here a lot, hadn’t sat on her since before Ascot in July, and when he rode her in her final piece of work ahead of this race, he couldn’t believe how she had grown in her shoulders and how she was such a bigger, stronger filly than two months ago.
She has been on the go since May, so there is always a doubt that such a precocious filly will still be improving at this stage of the season, but all her work at home suggests she is. She’s physically well and we’re very happy with how she goes into the race.
Her last run at Deauville was over seven furlongs, and we felt she stayed that trip well, just finding My Highness too good, and I think that one is a bit of a monster who will take a lot of beating in the Group 1 Marcel Boussac on Arc day. We could have run in Friday’s Group 2 Rockfel Stakes over seven, but in all honesty, I was more afraid of Touleen in that race than I was any of her Cheveley Park rivals. That latter race is also a valuable Group 1, and we know our filly has bags of speed, so dropping back to six furlongs doesn’t worry us.
I think she will like Newmarket, I can’t see her not handling the Rowley mile, and she’s versatile groundwise, so there is a lot to be excited about ahead of this.
15:15 Haydock – Hawksbill
We do need the ground to dry out further for this horse, but Friday was a beautiful day, and the latest forecast has the rain arriving after racing on Saturday, so hopefully we will get good ground for him. He hadn’t done too much wrong this season until his last run, when he did just about everything wrong!
We don’t want to make the running with him, nor do we want to get too far back, so he should be good from the inside draw in stall 1. He seems in good order and on the right ground I hope can go well.
15:45 Curragh – Mr Seagull
I very nearly scratched Mr Seagull when I saw he was a 100-1 shot, but then I thought if we ignore his last run at Doncaster, which in hindsight came too soon after his Kempton run, then he would be nowhere near those odds. So we’ll forgive him that run, he’s travelled well to Ireland, he looks great, I think we’re drawn on the right [stands] side, and if he can get out of the stalls better than he did at Doncaster, he could outrun his odds in this very valuable contest.
15:50 Haydock – Double Combo
We like this colt, but he would want some cut in the ground, so if it goes too quick here then we’d wait for another day, but it should be good which will be fine. Those runners with form don’t look that far clear, so this could well go to a newcomer, and this son of Dubawi goes well at home, form I hope he can take to the racecourse.
Hugo Palmer, Coral Racing Ambassador
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