Alparslan much the best for Karl Burke in Curragh sales race

Karl Burke will look to step Alparslan up in class following a runaway victory in the Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sales Stakes at the Curragh.

The Spigot Lodge handler enjoyed a double on day one of the Irish Champions Festival at Leopardstown on Saturday courtesy of Convergent and Fallen Angel and his latest representative was a heavily-supported 5-4 favourite on the back of an impressive debut at Leicester last month.

Always up with the pace in the hands of Clifford Lee, Alparslan came under pressure with over a furlong still to run, but the further he went the better he looked and he passed the post with three and a half lengths in hand over Magny Cours.

Burke said: “I’m delighted with him, he’s a lovely colt.

“We purposely left him for this race after he won his maiden. He’d improved a lot on that and we’ll obviously throw him into black-type races now and see how high we can take him.

“He’s workmanlike at home, he’s not a speed horse, so you never know until you get those horses on the track exactly what they’ve got under the bonnet.”

Paddy Power make Alparslan a 20-1 shot for next year’s 2000 Guineas, while he is 8-1 from 25-1 for the Dewhurst – but Burke suggested he could set his sights a little lower.

He added: “I’ll have to discuss it with Mohamed (Saeed Al Shehhi, owner) but I’d say he’ll go for a Listed race somewhere, or maybe the Horris Hill at Newbury might be a nice race for him as he obviously handles a bit of cut in the ground.”