Tangerine Trees and Borderlescott are on a potential collision course for the Totepool Beverley Bullet in August as horse racing returns to Beverley Racecourse on Wednesday.
The popular sprinters fought out a stirring finish at Musselburgh on Good Friday as Tangerine Trees came out on top in a race appropriately named in honour of the 13-year-old Borderlescott.
Even though the Flat campaign is in its infancy, both horses are already in contention for the five-furlong Bullet, one of the keynote races of Beverley’s 19-meeting season, on August 29.
Tangerine Trees won the valuable Listed prize in 2011, with his Beverley-based owner-breeder Marie Matthews keen to return to her local track.
She said: “It was wonderful to see him winning like that at Musselburgh. Hopefully that sets him up for a good year.
“The Palace House is next for him as he runs very well at Newmarket, but the Bullet is definitely on the agenda again.
“It’s always a dream to try and win races at our local course, so a return to Beverley is on the radar as he loves running at the track.”
Dual Nunthorpe scorer Borderlescott is also a former Bullet winner, having triumphed by a length in the 2012 renewal of the £50,000 heat.
Wetherby-based trainer Rebecca Bastiman said: “I’d have retired him a long time ago if I thought it was the right thing to do, but he’s still got that zest.
“There’s a race at Goodwood on May 2 that we’re thinking about, but Beverley is in our thoughts as it’s a good track and he runs well there.
“The last place he won was at Beverley, and I’d like to think he’d be up for the Bullet.”
The Bastiman operation also intends to send Singeur to Beverley for their curtain-raiser on Wednesday.
Now an eight-year-old, the reliable sprinter has been entered in the feature race on the card, the five-furlong Supporting
RAPt And The Bridges, Hull Handicap at 1.55pm.
“He’s done us proud over the years and this looks the right race for him as it’s good prize-money,” said Ms Bastiman.
With dry conditions having been forecast for their seasonal opener, Beverley chief executive Sally Iggulden has high hopes of another profitable campaign at the East Yorkshire circuit.
She said: “We are delighted that this season sees an increase in our prize-money pot, with nearly £1million up for grabs at Beverley.
“Last year, we saw many of our Beverley winners fly the flag at some of the country’s most prestigious race meetings.
“Let’s hope that is the case again this season.”
