Burke says it was tough call for Lee to forego Classic chance Karl Burke has spoken of the “tough” decision his stable jockey Clifford Lee faced to forego a ride in the Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas on Saturday on Alparslan to stay at Haydock. Lee has chosen to stay in Britain to partner Prix Morny winner Venetian Sun in the William Hill Sandy Lane Stakes and Night Raider in the William Hill Temple Stakes on Merseyside. Burke would usually help inform Lee of where he thinks his attributes will be best used, but this time the Leyburn handler left his number one pilot to make his own mind up. “I left it totally with Cliff,” said Burke. “He usually throws it back at me and says he’ll go wherever I want him to, but on this occasion I left it with him. “It did cause a little bit of an issue as I think it was a tough one for him. I think the fact that James Doyle was banned and he could ride Night Raider as well sort of swung it for him. “But he wouldn’t have enjoyed getting off Venetian Sun either, really, and equally he didn’t enjoy getting off Alparslan, who he’s also won on. “Sam James has won on Alparslan too first time out as a two-year-old and he’s ridden him plenty of times at home, so we had the perfect jockey to go there for him with Cliff going to Haydock.”
