David Morley has discovered a knack to winning the Thoroughbred Corporation Middle Park Stakes - fitting blinkers to his challengers. The ploy worked for the second time in three years when Hayil, an otherwise exposed colt, landed the Group One race at odds of 14 to 1 at Newmarket yesterday.
On his only previous run in pattern company, Hayil finished fifth in the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot and was beaten three lengths into third at Doncaster last time.
But with the headgear to help him concentrate, he emulated Morley's 33 to 1 winner of 1994 Fard to hold Carrowkeel by threequarters of a length, with Designer third.
Morley, who earlier saddled Intikhab to take the listed Heath Court Hotel Joel Stakes, said: "He's completely genuine but sometimes I think he doesn't concentrate.
"He's never run a bad race but I thought blinkers would make him think about what he was doing, just like children at school do better when they're not looking out of the window."
Hayil's victory did not impress bookmakers with Ladbrokes and William Hill offering the colt at 50 to 1 for next year's 2,000 Guineas.
The same price is now available about the 10 to 11 favourite Arkadian Hero who finished nearly three lengths back. "We are slightly disappointed. Last time we blamed the ground when it was soft, so we can't blame it today," said trainer Luca Cumani. "The only explanation I can offer is that the race came just 12 days after he had a hard race at Newbury. "He looks like a six furlong horse but with another winter on his back things might change."
Barry Hills was pleased with the performance of Gimcrack winner Carrowkeel but John Gosden reckoned his colt Designer had met a better horse than Hayil at Yarmouth last time.
Then Designer finished third behind the Pip Payne-trained two-year-old Raise A King. "That was a very hot race. The winner is a bloody nice horse and would have won the Middle Park if he had run in it," remarked Gosden.
Richard Hills, who partnered the two Morley winners, completed a 111 to 1 treble when Ed Dunlop's Quiet Assurance justified even-money favouritism in the Westley Maiden.
Only a neck and a head separated him and Tipsy Creek from victory in the Rous Stakes, as Ian Balding's Portland winner Dashing Blue arrived with a late thrust to beat Bishops Court.
The sex allowance for fillies will be increased from 3lb to 5lb in all maiden and conditions races, with the exception of Pattern and Listed events, from the start of the 1998 Flat racing season. The decision was reached by the stewards of the Turf Club after a statistical analysis of past races over a number of years.
