Hammond hoping Walk can stroll to glory
The Montjeu colt was a five-length runner up to the impressive Motivator in the Vodafone Derby, running on after being near the back of the pack for much of the race.
Walk In The Park will not have to face Motivator again in Ireland, but he will have to contend with the French Derby second Hurricane Run, as well as well the Epsom fourth and fifth, Fracas and Gypsy King.
Hammond is pleased with the way Walk In The Park has come out of his Derby run, particularly given that he got a little worked up in the preliminaries.
“He took the race at Epsom well. He lost surprisingly little weight considering the race and that he got a bit sweaty beforehand. I think he took it well,” he said yesterday.
“He is highly strung - always has been, always will be. He got a little bit upset coming out of the paddock where there’s not a lot of room.
“He was pretty good in the parade and then got fairly sweaty behind the stalls which is something I suspect he probably always will do, but it doesn’t seem to affect him in the race.”
Walk In The Park will be having his third trip away from France this season after running in the Lingfield Derby Trial in April.
But Hammond thinks those experiences may help the colt to settle at the weekend.
He explained: “I think all the travelling has helped him. He is a horse with a lot of energy and I think the more outings he gets like that, the more travelling he does, in a way, the more it suits him and gives him something to get between his teeth as it were.
“I think the track will be fine for him.
“I think most horses act at the Curragh and it doesn’t really pose a problem for too many horses.”
Andre Fabre’s French Derby runner-up Hurricane Run is a hot favourite at the weekend and Hammond believes he is a worthy market leader.
“Obviously Hurricane Run is a very good horse and the Prix du Jockey-Club wasn’t run to suit him at all,” he added.
“He’s probably better over further or at least in a race with plenty of pace. I think under the circumstances he did very well to make up the ground that he did.”
Mark Johnston is still waiting to hear whether Brahminy Kite will be allowed to take his chance in the mile-and-a-half showpiece.
Although he only had his first run of the season at Royal Ascot at York last week, the son of Silver Hawk has come out of his race well. On only the third start of his life, Brahminy Kite finished three-quarters of a length second to Plea Bargain in the King Edward VII Stakes.
Bruce Raymond, representing owners Gainsborough Stud, said: “We are waiting to see what Sheikh Maktoum (the stud’s owner) thinks and Mark has said that he does not mind either way, but if he gets approval, he would like him to run.
“Declarations have to be in by tomorrow, so we will have to speak to Sheikh Maktoum before then.”
