Love A Giggle strikes for Burke in Marygate

Karl Burke won the Design Tonic Out Of This World Spaces At The Races EBF Marygate Fillies’ Stakes for the third time in four years, as Love A Giggle edged out Armor Supreme at York.

A winner at Southwell on debut, the daughter of Kodiac bided her time in the hands of Clifford Lee, with 3-1 favourite Princesse d’Orange making a bold bid from the front.

Diego Dias’ Armor Supreme was in the leader’s slipstream and made her challenge up the far side, but almost matching strides was Love A Giggle (9-1) who showed a tremendous attitude and equally proficient turn of foot to secure a head victory over the Irish raider.

Burke said: “She’s exciting, she’s small but she’s tough. She’s obviously stepped forward from Southwell.

“I said to Clifford there’ll be a lot of speed on here and at Southwell she looked a little bit outpaced and then came home really strong. So I thought there’s no point getting involved early here even if she had improved for that run, so he’s pulled it off to perfection.

“Why wouldn’t we go there (to the Queen Mary)? Obviously that’s going to be a tougher race yet again, but she deserves to take her chance.”

Dias was second with his second juvenile of the week through Armor Supreme and said: “That was just her second run so we were very pleased.

“I think we’ll take her to Ascot for the Queen Mary, that’s where we’ll go next.

“We have a couple of nice horses this year and we’ve got a couple at home who have not raced yet, they’re just going to take a bit of time and will be out in the middle of the season.

“We’re not afraid to travel, we go where we think suits the horses – and where the good prize-money is!”