Bahrain International Trophy: Alflaila ‘showing all the right signs’

Owen Burrows is aiming to carry on a strong finish to the year for his yard with another major success when Alflailaruns in the Bahrain International Trophy next Friday.

Having been down on winners and prize-money approaching the autumn, Burrows has ended in a blaze of glory with Anmaat winning the Champion Stakes, Nakheel the Park Hill and Raqiya scoring at Del Mar on the Breeders’ Cup undercard.

Alflaila, not seen since a rare disappointing run in the Juddmonte International in August, was an intended runner in Bahrain last year but an injury picked up while already there prevented him from taking part.

“The plan is to run and he ships out on Friday night,” said Burrows.

“Jim (Crowley) had a sit on him this week and was very happy with him. They can all have an off-day and that is what we are putting York down to. He missed the break and never got involved.

“I suppose because he’s never had an off-day previously it caught us out a bit, but they can all have them.

“He’s never been over-raced, though, and he’s showing all the right signs again at home. If he can get back to the form of his Group Two win at York or even his Royal Ascot run when only three lengths behind Auguste Rodin in the Prince of Wales’s, which was his first run of the year, you’d have to think he’d go close.

“The race is worth £1million this year, it’s a proper Group Two with some nice horses going for it. We wanted to run him in it last year, but he had a setback when we were already there.”