Tuesday 5 April 2016 09:38, UK
John Ryan feels Sandro Botticelli could develop into an Ebor contender should he build on his impressive seasonal return at Doncaster on Sunday.
The ex-Aidan O'Brien-trained gelding defied a 311-day absence to win on his first start for the Newmarket handler when ploughing through the testing conditions on Town Moor to strike in the Doncaster Shield.
Although plans for his next outing remain up in the air, Ryan is looking towards the lucrative handicap at York in August as a potential long-term aim for the four-year-old.
He said: "The way he won at Doncaster on Sunday was very impressive. Heavy ground does turn the form upside down a bit.
"It did come as a bit of a surprise. We thought he would like the ground, but being as it was his first run you are always a little bit cautious how fit they are, but he had been working with Battle Of Marathon and Ocean Tempest so we felt we had done enough work with him.
"Even though it was only a five-runner race, three were class horses. We won't get over excited at the moment and we will just take our time, as we have waited a long time to get him on the course and we don't want to ruin what we have got.
"Frankie (Dettori) was very pleased with him and said he was a bit green and would come on a lot for that. He felt that in time he would get further as he has got a high cruising speed and if he is still in the handicap ranks we could probably have a look at the Ebor."
Despite being satisfied with the third-place finish achieved by Battle Of Marathon in the Lincoln, the Cadland Stables handler, who also saddled Ocean Tempest in the race, feels the result could have been even better had the contest been over marginally further.
He said: "I was worried about the ground for Battle Of Marathon in the Lincoln, but he ran a blinder and with another 20 yards he could have been even closer.
"Adam Kirby gave him a great ride and that race had been the plan for him for a while. There are some nice handicaps coming up for him. We will just find our way through the races with him."
