Michael Blencowe Dreaming Big with Breakthrough Stakes Winner West Acre

[Wandering Eyes]

Having endured a number of near-misses in similar company, Michael Blencowe can be forgiven if he's still basking in the glory of last month's Group 2 victory at Meydan with West Acre (Ire), an “exhilarating” experience which now has the owner dreaming of a first Group 1 triumph in the Al Quoz Sprint on Dubai World Cup night.

Blencowe's red silks with gold collar, cuffs and cap have become an increasingly familiar sight on British racecourses in recent years, but he was still yet to see one of his horses pass the post in front in a black-type contest when West Acre made his way to post for the AED850,000 Blue Point Sprint.

The son of Mehmas (Ire) was sent off the 2-1 favourite with British bookmakers, having suffered a narrow defeat to Godolphin's Symbol Of Honour (GB) (Havana Grey {GB}) when having his first run in Dubai two weeks earlier, but Blencowe was understandably taking nothing for granted beforehand.

“It's hard to say that I was confident because I'd never had any Group success,” he begins. “We've had a lot of second places, but this is the first time we've actually had a stakes winner. I kept thinking I was a bit unlucky, but hopefully he's broken that curse.

“I thought he was too far behind early on in the race, so for him to win by three and a half lengths, with the turn of foot he showed, was just exhilarating. It was great to watch.”

It was back in 2019 that Blencowe, the founder and managing director of Moretons Investments, a privately-owned property investment and development company, took his first steps into racehorse ownership. It followed an introduction to leading trainer Andrew Balding, after he'd developed a keen interest in the sport through regular trips to the races with the Stewart family, at a time when they owned top-class National Hunt performers such as the record-breaking Big Buck's (Fr).

“That was around seven or eight years ago,” he says of the encounter with Balding. “I started off with one horse, then two, and it kind of went on from there. Covid slowed me down because I probably didn't get as many, but now I've got 18, I think, on my own with Andrew.”

Blencowe's first horse went by the name of Stanford (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) who, as a juvenile, was placed in both of his starts at Kempton in the autumn of 2019, before returning to the same track early the following year in his quest for a first win.

“It was the 4th of January,” Blencowe instantly recalls when the significance of that breakthrough success is put to him. “It was my daughter's birthday and I had to leave it to go and watch the race because I knew he was going to win. I'm always going to remember that day!

“That was the first winner and our second horse was Imperial Force (Ire) (Camacho {GB}), who finished third in the Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot when we were in lockdown and couldn't go and see him. But I'd say Imperial Fighter (Ire) (The Gurkha {Ire}) was the first proper horse we had. He finished second in the Acomb and the Autumn Stakes as a two-year-old. His third in the Irish Guineas was good fun as well, but then he got injured in the French Derby and never really came back to his best after that.”

He continues, “We've got a few different trainers now and we've got a few in partnership with Valmont. The numbers keep growing every year and always the ambition was to have the kind of success that we're having now with West Acre.”

The George Scott-trained West Acre was among the horses initially owned in partnership with Valmont's Anthony Ramsden, but Blencowe now owns the gelding outright in a deal that was struck after his runner-up finish at Kempton in October last year, a few weeks on from his debut success at Newcastle.

“Anthony Ramsden was in my boarding house at Harrow and that was called West Acre,” Blencowe says of how the now-three-year-old got his name. “We bought him together, but they wanted out after the race at Kempton, so we came to an agreement and that was it. It's unfortunate now that he's having this success because it would have been nice to do it together, but that was what they wanted at the time.”

Explaining the inner workings of the partnership with Valmont, he adds, “Alex Elliott acts for Anthony and Billy Jackson-Stops acts for me. They kind of arranged it between them where we have a couple of horses with Ralph Beckett, a couple with Andrew and a couple with George. We're in our second year of that now.

“Alex and Billy will have their own lists at the sales, then they'll see where they cross and whether they think the horse is right for the partnership. Sometimes Valmont might want to have it on their own or whatever. It's just about agreeing what fits the partnership best and we're both quite relaxed about it. When Alex and Billy agree, we put a limit on the price and, if it goes in that region, we'll do it.”

 

Looks useful – West Acre impresses in the Blue Point Sprint @GScottracing | @CallumSheppy | @RacingDubai | #DubaiCarnival | #FashionFriday pic.twitter.com/XNH0qJoV0H

— Racing TV (@RacingTV) January 24, 2025

 

It cost the partnership £95,000 to secure West Acre when he went through the ring at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale. The second foal out of the G3 Dick Poole Fillies' Stakes runner-up Lady Aria (GB) (Kodiac {GB}), he was reportedly showing his trainer plenty in his work in the first part of last year, before an ill-timed setback delayed his debut until September.

“I think he was actually one of the earliest ones at the yard,” Blencowe explains. “He was entered for a race at Chelmsford but hurt himself when he was doing a bit of work the day before and that was it. He had to be rested for five or six months, whatever it was, and at the time we weren't sure that he'd come back from it. The horse has done very well to come through that injury and he's now showing what George saw back then.”

West Acre made a third appearance on the all-weather in October last year, when he defied a penalty in a five-furlong novice at Southwell–by six lengths, no less–to book his ticket to Dubai in a first for his enthusiastic owner.

“He's a horse who probably needs to keep racing,” says Blencowe. “He's a bit quirky and you never know with him–he keeps you on your toes, basically. Once he gets to the start I'm a bit more relaxed, but you have to be quite delicate with him up to that point.

“After he won so convincingly at Southwell, George said that there was going to be absolutely nothing for him in England. He suggested Dubai and I'm always up for giving things a go. I had no idea what to expect because I'd never sent a horse over there. I was up for it, George had always liked the horse, and it seemed like it was worth the risk.”

That risk paid off in no uncertain terms last month when the rapid West Acre dismissed his older rivals to win the Blue Point Sprint in a time of 55.38 seconds, a new course record for five furlongs at Meydan. The G3 Nad Al Sheba Turf Sprint, run over the same course and distance on Super Saturday (Saturday, March 1), is now said to be the next big target, before attentions then turn to World Cup night (Saturday, April 5) and a return to six furlongs for the Al Quoz Sprint.

“It's definitely been a massive bonus, I've got to say, to be racing out there and enjoying the warm weather, when it's cold and murky and the season hasn't really started in Britain,” Blencowe says of the experience so far.

“I'm already planning on going back out for Super Saturday and then it will be on to World Cup night. He'll have to step up to six furlongs there, but I think George is relatively confident that he'll be okay. All of his wins have been over five and he's finished second when we've tried him over six. Five is obviously his optimum trip, but we'll give it a go over six on World Cup night. It's exciting because anything can happen.”

Beyond that, Blencowe is hopeful that Royal Ascot might be on the agenda when West Acre returns to Britain, where the owner expects to have around 30 horses to represent him in 2025, either in his own name or in partnership with others.

He sums up, “We're hoping there's something hiding away among the two-year-olds that can come forward and be a star in their own right, but at the minute we're enjoying West Acre.

“He's always had an almighty engine, but you probably don't expect them to reach this kind of level. He was a nice horse and he'd won nicely on the all-weather, but to go to Dubai and do what he's done, breaking the track record, has surpassed my expectations. Long may it continue.”

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