Tornado Alert going for Group One double in Germany Tornado Alert will be joined by his veteran stablemate Dubai Future when he makes his long-awaited return in the Westminster 136th Grosser Preis von Berlin at Hoppegarten on Sunday. Tornado Alert was fourth in the 2000 Guineas, sixth in the Derby and second in the Hampton Court at Royal Ascot last season before travelling across Europe to claim Group One glory in the Grosser Dallmayr-Preis in Munich at the end of July. The four-year-old has been off the track since, but having nursed his stable star back to fitness trainer Saeed bin Suroor is looking forward to seeing him back in action this weekend under the former British-based Thore Hammer Hansen, now making his mark in his native Germany. “The horse is doing well, Oisin Murphy rode him the other morning and said he is improving all the time,” said Bin Suroor. “Oisin said a mile and a half will be better this year for him. He’s in good form, but whatever happens he will improve from the race. “I’d rather run him in a Group One than in a small race somewhere. He looks good and is ready for Sunday.” Danny Tudhope partners Dubai Future, who proved he is no back number at the age of 10 by winning the Henry II Stakes at Sandown in May before finishing down the field in the Gold Cup at Ascot in June. Bin Suroor added: “Dubai Future is a two-mile/mile-and-six-furlong horse, but a mile and a half will be nice for him. “He is a tough, older horse who always tries and at this stage a mile and a half to two miles is good for him. “Tornado has the best form from the Guineas, Royal Ascot and winning the Group One in Germany last year where he beat good horses.” The Newmarket trainer is keen to see how Tornado Alert performs before considering plans for the rest of the season, but he has given his charge an early entry in the Qipco Champion Stakes at Ascot in October. He said: “We’ll see how he runs, but there are good options open for him. At the end of the season maybe he could go to Ascot on Champions Day, or maybe we’ll take him abroad – we’ll have a look.” The Bin Suroor pair are two of four British-trained contenders in a 10-strong field, with Andrew Balding’s Almeric and Sir Mark Prescott’s perennial runner-up Tiffany also making the trip. The latter was second in three German Group Ones last season and has continued in the same vein, finishing second on her reappearance in a French Listed race and again in the rehomed Lancashire Oaks at Newmarket on her latest appearance. Prescott said: “She’s been second on her last five starts and three of those seconds have been in Group Ones, so she’s due one isn’t she? And the connections are due one in my opinion, I can tell you – it’s been tiresome for all of us! “She’s got her usual good chance and she’ll run her usual good race, whether there’ll be one to beat her again, I don’t know. She’s comes out third on the ratings. “We put the visor last time and have taken it off again as she doesn’t need it. It’s just that you keep trying to ring the changes to see if we can get some improvement out of her. “She doesn’t need anything, but when they’ve been second four times, which she had been prior to her last run, you sort of think I ought to be seen to be trying!”
