Owen and Palmer harbouring high hopes

MICHAEL OWEN and Hugo Palmer have been thrilled with the start their new association has made and have big ambitions going forward.

Palmer replaced Tom Dascombe at Owen’s Manor House Stables and is already among the winners, which bodes well considering half his string have had to settle into new surroundings.

With Dubawi Legend boasting solid claims in Saturday’s 2000 Guineas and Owen’s favourite meeting, the Boodles Chester May Festival on the horizon, there was no time for a settling in period.

To top it all, there is even the prospect of an Investec Derby challenge from Mr McCann, owned by half a dozen of Owen’s friends from his former club Liverpool.

“I’m loving life up here and the most important thing is that the horses have settled in,” said Palmer. “I was always a bit twitchy, largely because the world is full of naysayers who questioned doing it so close to the season but there’s been nothing to worry about, we’ve run an enormous amount of tests and continue to do so and not a single horse who moved has been off their food – as that would be their first sign of protest.”

Owen and Palmer were friends before the more formal arrangement began but to begin with Palmer had no intention of uprooting from Newmarket, his home for the previous 10 years.

“Michael Owen is a very persuasive man. We’ve known each other for a long time and he first asked me in December to come, to which I said no,” said Palmer.

“He asked a couple of weeks later and my answer was still no, but it wasn’t until he rang on January 2 when I was up in Scotland when he talked me into having a look.”