'I'm sure at some point there will be another champion trainer in the north - but I don't think it will be me'

Karl Burke has predicted the north of England will once again be home to Flat racing's champion trainer – but he has played down speculation he will be the one to lift the trophy.

Burke was speaking to the Racing Post for a major interview in Sunday's newspaper in which he reflects on his rise to become the north's leading training force, helped by an increasingly powerful string of horses that have this year included Irish 1,000 Guineas heroine Fallen Angel and Royal Ascot juvenile winners Leovanni and Shareholder.

The Middleham-based 61-year-old also talks candidly about the highs and dramatic lows of his training career, during which he has served a one-year ban and come close to losing his home and business. More recently, Burke faced a challenge of a different kind when diagnosed with bowel cancer.

Following a successful operation and chemotherapy, Burke has been enjoying a tremendous 2024, so much so he occupies fifth position in the championship table. Even so, he does not expect to end a future season at the top of the standings.

Karl Burke: "It's amazing we've managed to get where we are now"Credit: Edward Whitaker

"I'm sure at some point there will be another champion trainer in the north – but I don't think it will be me," said Burke, whose Spigot Lodge team includes wife Elaine and daughters Kelly and Lucy. 

"We would have to be very lucky and everything would have to click through a season. I'm not going to lose any sleep if it doesn't happen. I'm just delighted to be where we are now. As we were coming back from having two runners in Dusseldorf on Monday, I said to Elaine that it's amazing we've managed to get where we are now. I don't know how we've done it.

"Don't get me wrong, if we were within a million pounds of Aidan O'Brien at the start of October, we would go for it, but that won't happen. The fear of failing the horses we get sent drives me on more than chasing a championship ever could."

Read more from Karl Burke in The Big Read, available in Sunday's newspaper or online for Members' Club Ultimate subscribers from 6pm on Saturday. Click here to sign up.

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