Hugo Palmer Saturday runners blog - August 22, 2026

Newmarket - 3.19 - Dubai Bling

Dubai Bling ran on Thursday at York and, to be honest, I was disappointed with him. He just didn’t involve himself in the race at all and wouldn’t have blown a candle out afterwards – he hardly had a race.

It’s a small field on Saturday, with only eight declared, and that is part of the reason we’re having another go. His owners also own his sister, who picked up some black type in France the other day, so anything Dubai Bling can do will also help to enhance her pedigree and value. If he could finish in the first three, that would be a positive from that point of view.

York - 4.10 - Stratusnine

Stratusnine also ran on Thursday but will come out again on Saturday. He wasn’t disgraced, and in fact he was the fastest finisher in the race. The main problem at York was the draw. He was badly positioned from the outset, and it was just a rotten draw for him. We’ll see where he gets drawn this time, although the draw can be particularly important at York, especially as the far side can get chewed up as the meeting progresses. He has been drawn in stall 13 this time, which is not ideal again, but fingers crossed for a better run.

York - 4.45 - Sale Shark

Sale Shark takes a step down in class here, but with it being at York, it’s obviously a strong contest still, but we’re very happy with him. He looks great at the moment and his work this week has been good. The ground is a bit of an unknown for him, but we’re happy with where he is and we’ll give it a go and see how we get on.

Chester - 5.00 - Tricky Tel & Roman Dragon

Tricky Tel is another one heading to Chester. He was entered at York but didn’t get in, so Chester was the obvious alternative. I was very disappointed with his run on Thursday. One of his owners thinks he might not like a big field and that he effectively spat the dummy out, although I’m not completely convinced that’s the reason. What we do know is that he has run well at Chester on many occasions, so it makes sense to give him another chance there. He didn’t have much of a race at York, so hopefully he can show a lot more here.

Roman Dragon will also feature at Chester. He has been drawn in stall five, which is a decent draw. He’s back over six furlongs and he’s something of a specialist over the trip, so there’s plenty of reason to be hopeful.

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