3 minute read

The victory of Night Raider at Southwell on Tuesday night attracted plenty of attention, as the son of Dark Angel demolished the field by nine lengths.

Trained by Karl Burke, the juvenile was purchased by Clipper Logistics for 155,000 at the 2021 Tattersalls December Foal Sale and is a half-brother to Far Above, who remained unbeaten over five and six furlongs during his career including a victory in the Palace House Stakes.

Ridden confidently by Danny Tudhope, Night Raider was always sat prominently on debut in division two of the seven-furlong Bet £10 Get £40 At BetMGM EBF Novice Stakes and hit the front with over a furlong to travel. The colt breezed clear of his floundering rivals in the straight, recording an easy nine length success. His victory contributed to the excellent recent strike rate of Karl Burke, who has recorded four winners from fourteen runners (29%) in the last fourteen days.

In a post-race interview with Sky Sports Racing, Tudhope said: "To be fair, his work at home had been pretty impressive and I think he's a nice horse going forward.

"I'm not sure what he beat tonight, you never know, but he's done it very impressively.

"Beforehand, he was a little bit on it and edgy, so we'd probably want to have a red hood on next time just to keep him relaxed.

"In the race, he was the opposite; he was a bit behind it, but that's the way you like them to be.

"He's done everything right and when I asked him to pick up, he was there for me and he took off – he's a nice horse."

Night Raider holds an entry for next year's Group 1 Irish 2000 Guineas, held at the Curragh on 25 May.