Mick Appleby appears to have a Finals Day contender on his hands after Royal Zabeel delivered a commanding performance in a seven-furlong handicap at Wolverhampton.
The 91-rated four-year-old always looked in control as he defeated Society Man by a length and a half, following up a similarly dominant success at Southwell in December.
Royal Zabeel has now won two of his three starts since joining the all-weather champion trainer, having previously been with Kevin Ryan and James Tate.
Appleby said: “I am very pleased with Royal Zabeel and hopefully he keeps progressing for us.
“We will give him a few weeks now and then see where we go. All roads will lead to Finals Day and hopefully he can pick up a couple more in between.
“Newcastle will be fine for him. He has such a high cruising speed and can quicken off it as well – which makes him a very good horse.”
Roger Varian’s Glen Buck could have the Easter Classic as an end-of-season target after landing an 11-furlong handicap at Southwell, with the three-quarter length victory earning him a 5lb rise to 88.
This was only a fourth career start for the six-year-old, who captured a pair of novice contests during the 2022/23 All-Weather Championships and returned with an eye-catching third at Wolverhampton in November.
Jockey Jack Mitchell said: “That was a lovely performance from Glen Buck as he is a very inexperienced horse.
“The way the race panned out, I was in the box seat with loads of cover, but when I asked him to quicken, he was still a little unsure about things. Once he got competitive, he stuck his neck out.
“He was going up in trip, but that never became a factor because he galloped right out, and I would imagine you will see him over a bit further in time. He is learning all the time and is pretty easy to deal with.
“Fair credit to Roger and [owner] Craig Bennett [for persevering]. Hopefully, he will be a nice horse for the season ahead.”
Elsewhere, The Caltonian registered a fifth course success at Newcastle as the track staged a pair of class two contests on New Year’s Day. Linda Perratt’s sprinter has been handed a 5lb rise to 93.
Andrew Balding’s Storm Star was rewarded for a string of consistent efforts as he annexed a mile handicap on the same card. The four-year-old, who has been given a revised rating of 90, had made the frame on all five of his previous handicap starts.
Newcastle also witnessed a promising introduction from First Ambition, with the first foal out of six-time G1 winner Laurens taking a seven-furlong maiden for Karl Burke.
Angel Of Antrim continued his rise through the handicap with comfortable wins at Newcastle and Wolverhampton in the space of three days. Up a further 15lb to 85, Jack Morland’s runner could be out again this weekend.
William Haggas’ three-year-old sprinter Carbine Harvester bids to defy a penalty at Lingfield Park on Thursday, having copped a 10lb rise to 82 for a recent success at Southwell.
Roaring Legend has also been given a 10lb hike to 92 after taking a Wolverhampton handicap by six lengths on his first start for Hugo Palmer, a performance that brings the stayer into the reckoning for the Marathon Final.
