Cumani puts faith in gifted performer

Luca Cumani believes Speed Gifted can develop into a Group-race performer this season.

The four-year-old has had just the three races, all of which came last year and ended with a smooth victory in the Melrose Handicap at York in August.

He is likely to make his seasonal debut in either the stanjamesuk.com Jockey Club Stakes at Newmarket on May 4 or back at York in the Emirates Airline Yorkshire Cup 12 days later, both Group Two contests.

“He has been lightly-raced so far as it took a long time for him to act his act together both physically and mentally. I have high hopes of him making up into a Group horse,” said Cumani.

Cumani has also pencilled in Listed winner Lion Sands for one of those two races.

“He’s a well-balanced horse and he could run in the Jockey Club Stakes at the next Newmarket meeting,” the Newmarket-based trainer went on.

“Between the two, one will run in the Jockey Club Stakes and the other probably in the Yorkshire Cup.”

York is the next port of call for the dual Group-winning sprinter Balthazaar’s Gift, who was down the field on his reappearance at Newmarket last week.

“He ran there but the race was not suitable for him as he had a 6lb penalty. We ran him there to sharpen him up for York,” Cumani told At The Races.

“He’s a good horse but with sprinters unless you have an exceptional one they tend to beat each other a bit. One of these days he might get the chance to win a major one.”