More Thunder Hangs On For Bunbury Cup Glory

William Haggas will evaluate the water at Group-race level before the season is out with More Thunder following his narrow success in the bet365 Bunbury Cup at Newmarket.


The winner of 2 important six-furlong handicaps on the Rowley Mile in the spring, the four-year-old was beaten a head by Get It when bidding for his hat-trick in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot last month.


More Thunder was a 6-5 favourite to get back on the winning path in this ₤ 100,000 contest and having actually been dropped out last by Tom Marquand early on, he was angled towards the stands' rail to mount his challenge and accelerated up wisely to challenge for the lead.


More Thunder gets up on the line to land the @bet365 Bunbury Cup pic.twitter.com/KcjDydcCPF


Last year's winner Aalto, a 40-1 shot to effectively protect his crown, recuperated from an uninspiring run of kind to make a genuine race of it inside the last of seven furlongs and the set flashed by the post nearly as one, but it was More Thunder who had his head down where it mattered, with the him the winner by a nose.


Haggas stated: "I require to see it once again, however for me they didn't go quick at all and he struggled to get momentum. I think he's much better going fast and Tom can be found in and stated 'if you run him over this trip again, they need to go hard'. Six furlongs, he feels, is his finest trip."


More Thunder holds big-race entries in significant handicaps and Pattern races and it is clear his trainer is keen to see him complete in Group One business at some phase.


William Haggas at Newmarket on Saturday (Joe Giddens/PA)


When asked if he had considered running in the July Cup later in the afternoon, Haggas added: "We considered it highly, but we likewise desired to increase to 7 furlongs at some stage and this was an opportunity to do so.


"That is why he came here, but we will at a six-furlong stakes race. He simply requires speed this horse, but in six-furlong Group races, you'll see in the July Cup, they do not go sluggish!


"He could run in another handicap, but I believe he should have a chance at a good race now."