Murray Strategises Arizona Blaze's Journey to Royal Ascot

Adrian Murray is eager to provide Arizona Blaze with more opportunities to compete in matches before the planned appearance at Royal Ascot, following the horse's impressive début at the Curragh earlier this month.

The trainer from County Westmeath previously trained Bucanero Fuerte, who went on to win a Group One race in the Irish turf campaign last year as a two-year-old. Murray achieved a similar feat with Arizona Blaze, who is the offspring of first-season sire Sergei Prokofiev.

Although Arizona Blaze's victory occurred on challenging ground conditions, Murray was not hesitant to run the horse on a faster surface. This decision is aimed at furthering the horse's development and preparation for the prestigious meeting at Berkshire in mid-June.

"We were extremely pleased with the race, and Arizona Blaze has recovered well. He showed his best performance towards the end of the race on very difficult ground, indicating that he possesses talent," explained the trainer.

"Most likely, he will participate in one more race before we head to Royal Ascot, provided everything goes well. We haven't made any specific plans yet, as we want to give him some time to recover from his first race."

"It's difficult to determine his preferred ground conditions. He handled the heavy ground admirably, but we are looking forward to seeing him perform on a better surface."