Hugo Palmer Saturday runners blog - September 5, 2026

Thirsk 1.35 – Coco Nova

Coco Nova probably doesn’t want to be making the running, so his draw in six is OK.  He’s a horse we like, and he ran really well on debut, and then on his second start, the track at Beverley was his undoing, it was just too sharp for him.  A mile at Thirsk should suit him, and I’m looking forward to seeing how he gets on.

Thirsk 2.05 – Savage Mariner

Savage Mariner was a bit over eager at York last time, and then he seemed to sulk, so we’ll put a line through that, and probably just let him bowl along over the straight five furlongs here.  His work in blinkers has been very good but I think it's fair to say we haven't found the key to this horse yet. He ran so well on debut and things have conspired against him since then, so we are on a retrieval mission here but if he races like he works at home in blinkers, he could go very well.

Kempton 3.20 – Adaay Of Scarlett

Adaay Of Scarlett is in very good form, and he’s got a nice draw from stall four.  He’s really thrived on his racing this year, I thought he was poorly positioned in a slowly-run Gimcrack last time, and was a never nearer fifth.  It wasn’t a bad run, and it was probably a better race than we thought ahead of it, but it was still frustrating.

This will be the first time he’s raced around a bend, and he trains on an all-weather surface, so I don’t see the track being a problem.  Rossa Ryan is a good, strong jockey, so hopefully he can get a nice position from this draw, and be strong to the line.  The horse has run a lot of good races in defeat this season, and he really does deserve to win a Group race.

Ascot 3.25 – Lion Of Alba

Just seven run here, so the draw is absolutely fine.  It was quite a messy race at Goodwood, but we felt he stayed the trip well, so it was worth having another go over ten furlongs here.  He seems to be improving physically and he looks great, and the last time he won I was watching from America – as I will be this time – so fingers-crossed for a repeat of that!

Haydock 4.50 – King Of Thunder

King Of Thunder also has the option of Ascot on Friday, but I think he’ll run here.  He has won at Haydock with cut in the ground so should handle conditions, but he has been frustrating, and has had a series of niggles, nothing serious, but they’ve kept him off the track since May.  He’s done plenty of work and seems in the form of his life, so I don’t think he’ll need the run, and I hope he can go very well.

Haydock 5.25 – Kindest Nation

Kindest Nation is a hold-up horse, so her draw in nine is fine, and we know she wants to get her toe in, so the ground is right for her.  She could well run at Chester in the next couple of weeks too, as we’ve been waiting for her ground.  She ran well at Kempton on the all-weather last month, and if she can step forward from that she can be competitive here, but she does need the race to be set up right for her.

Kentucky Downs 22.36 – Glacius

We’re really excited to be heading back to America with this horse, when we took him out there last month for the Saratoga Derby we were going there with hope rather than expectation.  We thought he might be able to mix it at that level, but we weren’t certain, so it was a fact-finding mission in a way, but in winning that Grade 1, he’s proven he is a very good horse.

He does have to carry a two pounds penalty for the Saratoga win, but I don’t think that’s insurmountable, and he’s been handed a nice draw.  We also have jockey Luis Saez riding once again, and he gave him an excellent ride last month.  This is over a furlong extra, and obviously at a different track, but I don’t see either being a problem.

When we were looking at the Saratoga Derby, we couldn’t see any obvious pace in the race, whereas this time Joseph O’Brien’s horse [Nil Bua Gan Dua] likes to make the running, and I imagine Ryan Moore will want it to be a test of stamina for Causeway, so that pair might go forward, and we can take a sit in behind them, but we are drawn well in three and we won’t want to give that position up.

This is a deeper race than Saratoga, with greater European representation, it’s only a Grade 2 but it’s worth considerably more than last month, and so we are taking on Aidan O’Brien this time, which we weren’t at Saratoga.  That said, we’re rated three pounds higher than Causeway, and we’re giving him two pounds, so technically we’re a pound well in with that one.

He is going to have to be better than he’s been before to win this, but he is a rare horse who has performed better with every run, so if he can do that again here, he would be the one to beat. He’s travelled out there well again, we brough him home after Saratoga as that was always the plan.  It was better to have him here at home, and once we knew we were happy with him, we could go again. 

Everything has gone smoothly out there, he quarantined at Churchill Downs, and Mike, who rides him every day, is very happy with him, and says he feels great.  All the signs are good for a big race, so fingers-crossed.

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