Friday, 29 June 2012: Sole Power will be prepared for the Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes at York following his fine third in the King's Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Eddie Lynam's sprinter is enjoying a midsummer break before he bids to regain his Nunthorpe crown on August 24, having won the race as a 100-1 shot two years ago.
Lynam said: "He took the race very well and he is just having a nice break out in the field. He ran very well at Ascot. I was worried beforehand that he wouldn't handle the ground as he loves to hear his hooves rattle. But Johnny (Murtagh) said he handled it well and there wouldn't be any excuses on the day."
The trainer added: "The plan would be to freshen him up and go straight to the Nunthorpe if we get any sort of good weather at all between now and then."
Lynam trains another smart sprinter in Slade Power, who won his third race from five starts in the Listed Sandy Lane Stakes at Haydock last time. Although he has some way to go to replicate his esteemed stable companion, Lynam hopes the three-year-old will develop into a top-level performer.
"He had his first piece of work since his Haydock run (on Thursday morning) and it went really well," said the County Meath handler.
"Hopefully he'll step up to a Group Three now and it would be nice to think he could win one of those before the end of the year. He's still a horse we're very much minding for next season.
"The form of his Haydock win is good and the time before that he was second to Ishvana, who won at Royal Ascot. We think he could be a very smart horse next year."
Lynam admits it is not improbable his two stable stars could cross paths at some stage, but hopes they can be kept apart, saying: "It wouldn't be impossible they could meet, but we think at this stage that Sole Power is a five-furlong specialist and Slade is a six-furlong horse.
"If Slade Power progresses as we hope he will, we could be in a very good position for all the top sprint races next season."
