I was initially a little bit disappointed with Ribbon Is A Dancer’s debut run at Southwell last month, he’d showed more at home than he did in the race.

On reflection, he found the whole racecourse experience a bit overwhelming, which is far from unusual for a young horse. I think he’ll probably need three runs to get his handicap mark, and in those runs he’ll also gain more experience, so we’ll look to get two runs into him in the near future.

The first entry we’ve given him is at Kempton next Wednesday, over 7 furlongs. That’s a furlong further than his debut, which should help him as they may not go as quick from the word go as they did over 6 furlongs last time. The race has attracted plenty of entries, and while it could divide, there is a chance he won’t get in, so we’ll look for a few alternative options for him.

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Once he’s had his three runs we’ll know a lot more about him and be able to make more of a plan, but I would also add at this stage, we may look at gelding him before he goes into handicap company. 

Hugo Palmer, Coral Racing Club Trainer