Carr takes on former Nicholls star Sovereign Debt

Sovereign Debt, the well-travelled star of the David Nicholls yard prior to the trainer's retirement earlier this month, has joined Ruth Carr.

Carr, based less than ten miles from Nicholls' stables south of Thirsk, said: "We've not had him long, he's only come in the last week or so, but he's settled in well and we're very excited to have a horse of his calibre.

"It's great for a small yard like ours to have the chance to train a horse like him. I've got to thank the owner, Lady O'Reilly, for letting us have him. He did David Nicholls proud and hopefully we can have some success with him as well."

Sovereign Debt joined Nicholls from Michael Bell in early 2014 and did not race that season, but in the two seasons that followed built up an admirable record. He won the Group 3 Concorde Stakes at Tipperary in October 2015 and four Listed races, finishing outside the first four only three times in 28 starts.

He visited both France and Ireland more than once in 2016 and made his final start for Nicholls in Qatar, but Carr suggested that, initially at least, he will be kept closer to home.

"In the short term, we'd like to qualify for Good Friday," she said. "We're going to run at Kempton on April 1 in a Listed race over a mile and a quarter which will be stretching his stamina, but we need that third run on the all-weather to get him qualified for the Mile championship, which he's been second in the last two years."

She added: "After that we'll see how we get on with him. But put it this way, I've just renewed my passport!"