The Edward Bethell trained Regional ran to a good level when stepping up into Group One company at York's Ebor meeting in the Nunthorpe when finishing fifth and his trainer is now eyeing a step up to 6f off the back of that run.
Taking his form to a new level this term when running at York over 5f in a Handicap off a mark of 100, he bounced out the stalls and managed to see off a fast finishing well handicapped Korker by 1/2 a length.
Stepped up to Listed level at Haydock when last seen he improved again to take the event from proven sprinter Equilateral to win by over a length.
He bounced at the stalls as well as ever in the Nunthorpe and ran a cracker to finish fifth by two and a half lengths behind the shock winner Live In The Dream.
Bethell is now looking at stepping up his sprinter to 6f with other Group assignments now on his radar.
BOMBSHELL in the Nunthorpe 👀
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) August 25, 2023
28/1 outsider Live In The Dream takes down the big guns with a stunning pillar to post success in the Group 1 @coolmorestud Wootton Bassett Nunthorpe Stakes.
What a day for Adam West and @sb_kirrane 👏
Remarkable scenes on the Knavesmire! pic.twitter.com/U7QyZtEYYE
(Credit ATR) He said: “He ran a really good race. I was really happy with how he got on and he wasn’t beaten far.
“The complexion of the race changed when the winner went off like a scalded cat and fair play to the winner, he kept going and it was a fair performance.
“We’re pretty quick and we jumped well, but we just weren’t as quick as the winner into our stride. If you took him out of it, the complexion of the race would probably have changed dramatically, but it’s a horse race, he set a relentless gallop and won fair and square.
“It looked as if we need to step up to six furlongs maybe at that level. He just got run off his feet the whole way, but on the whole I’m delighted with how he ran and I think we’re possibly going to target the Sprint Cup at Haydock.
“Hopefully it stays dry and we’ll see how we get on.”