Walker on weather watch for Almaqam target
'I'm just waiting for soft ground really which is a bit frustrating,' said Walker.
'We would have loved to have been a part of the Eclipse, although to watch it was pretty messy and we're kind of all dressed up with nowhere to go at the moment.'
Walker's weather watch looks set to continue throughout July, but he is optimistically hoping the end of the month could signal Almaqam's eagerly-awaited return, with the Sky Bet York Stakes on July 26 or the following day's Grosser Dallmayr-Preis – Bayerisches Zuchtrennen in Munich both options at 10 furlongs.
The son of Lope De Vega has also been left in the same weekend's feature King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot, but his handler is inclined to wait until later in the season before stretching out in distance.
Walker added: 'We're looking at running him in the York Stakes which is a Group Two and all being well we could go there, he's also in a Group One in Germany over 10 furlongs the same weekend and we've also left him in the King George, so we're keeping the options open and tracking the weather.
'I think the King George may be the least likely and I'm not convinced I want to try him first time over a mile and a half at Ascot. I think I'd rather try it on a slightly more conventional flat, galloping track, but we'll keep the options open.'
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Few could have expected such an epic finish though, as the pair went toe-to-toe for the best part of two furlongs, with Crystal Ocean finding generously when it looked as though Enable would go on. It was nip and tuck all the way, but Enable just poked her head in front on the line to triumph by a neck, with future Arc winner Waldgeist just under two lengths back in third, with a further seven lengths back to the next home in what was a race for the ages.
