Temple Stakes next on list for Sole Power

Eddie Lynam is excited about what he hopes will be another profitable year with Sole Power following his excellent run in defeat at Meydan on Saturday night.

The five-year-old was a 100-1 winner of the Nunthorpe Stakes at York in 2010, but he has proved that to be no fluke on countless occasions since.

He beat all bar impressive Australian mare Ortensia in the Group One Al Quoz sprint at the weekend, and Lynam is looking forward to campaigning his charge, who has no stud value being a gelding, in all the top sprints this season.

“He’s come out of the race great and has already put back on the little bit of weight he lost in the race,” said Lynam.

“He is coming home tomorrow and I have to say, he’s been out in Dubai a month and he has been looked after tremendously well by the people in the international barn.

“He’s basically had a holiday and made a lot of money while he was on holiday! He’s coming home fresh and well and ready to go again.

“He ran a fantastic race and we were delighted with him. Unfortunately, whether it’s rugby or racing you can always rely on the Aussies to put you away!

“We’ll keep our horse on the go and his next target would be the Temple Stakes at Haydock.

“We’ll be looking at all the normal races for him, the Temple, the King’s Stand at Royal Ascot and the Nunthorpe later on. Obviously, it is all ground dependant.”

Although Sole Power does the majority of his racing over the minimum distance of five furlongs, Lynam is not ruling out a try at six again at some stage.

However, he has no intention of letting his charge lock horns with unbeaten Australian Black Caviar, who is bound for Britain later this season.

“I’d say we will have another crack at six furlongs somewhere along the line, when the time is right,” Lynam added.

“He’s getting older now and you’d hope he would stay better.

“I’m not afraid of many horses, but I think we might avoid Black Caviar, I think she’s a bit special.”

Another horse Lynam is excited about is Slade Power, who is due to make his seasonal return at Cork this weekend.

After a most taking debut at the Curragh last May, he impressed on the all-weather at Dundalk in December and has been given an entry in the Irish 2,000 Guineas.

Lynam said: “The Irish Guineas is just a dream at this stage, but he is a horse we’ve always liked.

“The plan is for him to start off in a 0-100 handicap at Cork this weekend, so we’ll see how he gets on there and then make a plan.

“He’s fairly straight. He has a high rating on 92, but I think he’s well up to it.”