Breeders’ Cup Connections: With Linwood, El Cordobes at the Top of His Game

[Wandering Eyes]

Jamie Linwood was cheering as the horses rounded the final turn in the GI Sword Dancer Stakes, but it wasn't for the mount he had come to America to ride. It was the other Charlie Appleby trainee, Nations Pride (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), who looked like the stronger pick at the top of the stretch, but then El Cordobes (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) weaved through one gap and slipped through another, surging past his more-accomplished stablemate to snatch a dramatic victory.

“I saw Nations Pride was going well and obviously we're the same team so I was happy for him to take it up,” Linwood recalled. “William [Buick] kicked and I was like, 'Oh we've got this in the bag.' As long as my lad got out and ran home, I was going to be happy. Then all of a sudden I see my lad get through all the spots and as soon as he lengthened out in the straight, I knew he'd find the line. It was just if he was going to get there in time. Flavien Prat gave him an amazing ride and yeah, he got there in time.”

The victory made a long trip more than worth it for Linwood, who has been part of the Appleby team for the past two and a half years. Although he is not El Cordobes's regular rider, Linwood has formed a connection with the gelding in a short time. El Cordobes's usual handler is based at Appleby's Newmarket yard year-round, which opened the door for Linwood to travel to Saratoga and oversee the horse's morning training and daily care during his two-week stay in the States.

 

 

Linwood, along with traveling assistant Chris Connett and several other members of the Appleby team, flew into JFK Airport with El Cordobes and Nations Pride a little over a week before the Sword Dancer. After quarantining for a few days, the crew moved in to Greentree Stable, Godolphin's private facility that sits adjacent to the backside of Saratoga's main track.

Linwood said that while the experience of training on the busy main track of Saratoga was new to El Cordobes, who was making his U.S. debut, the 4-year-old took it all in stride, hinting that big things were to come.

Linwood and El Cordobes take to the main track at Saratoga ahead of the Sword Dancer | Sarah Andrew

“He took to it like a fish to water, really,” said Linwood. “He was happy and covering ground well. He's been to Dubai, so he's had a small experience getting away, but American racing is a completely different ball game with the way the track works [in the morning]. Horses are going left and right, fast and slow, but he took to it well. Nothing bothered him.”

Bred by Bjorn Nielsen, El Cordobes was a 2 million guineas purchase for Richard Knight Bloodstock on behalf of Godolphin back at Book 1 of the 2022 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale. A maiden winner at three, the son of Frankel has gradually upped his game this year. He earned two stakes placings and won the G2 Princess of Wales's Stakes at Newmarket on July 10, setting the stage for the Sword Dancer victory that secured an automatic entry in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Turf at Del Mar this fall.

The day after El Cordobes's big win in Saratoga, Linwood and his charge spent a quiet morning at Greentree, with the team set to head home in a few days. El Cordobes enjoyed a pick of grass, but lifted his head every so often to gaze toward the far side of the training track. Linwood explained that early in their stay, they'd spotted a few deer in that direction. Ever since then, El Cordobes had been watching for their return.

That quiet intelligence, Linwood believes, has been a key ingredient in El Cordobes's success.

Linwood and El Cordobes celebrate the Sword Dancer win | Sara Gordon

“He's just a lovely animal,” Linwood described. “He's sweet-natured. There's no malice in him and he's very easy to handle. He's a great ride. He covers the ground beautifully and does everything you want in a nice horse. He wears a hood because he can have a few moments. He's still got that in his locker, but on the whole he's just a very good ride. I had a few sits on him when he was a 2-year-old and he's had a few different riders in between. Roy Carter rides him and he's done an amazing job with him. I've just been fortunate to pick up the ride now.”

Though Linwood is now a key member of the Appleby team with over two decades of racing experience, his journey in racing started with a simple decision to give the sport a try.

Linwood's father had once been an amateur jockey in England, so horse racing was always on the television during his childhood. But growing up in Enfield, a North London suburb, Linwood had little exposure to live horses. When his family later moved to Royston, about 30 minutes from Newmarket, his interest in racing started to grow.

At 16, he decided to apply to the British Racing School despite having never ridden a horse.

“I didn't have many plans after school and when I heard about the racing school, I decided to give it a go,” he said. “I loved every minute of it. I've been very sporty my whole life, played football and all different sports at school. This was just another aspect of sports.”

What drew him most, though, was the connections he formed with the horses he rode.

“You've had dogs and cats, but horses are a different nature,” he noted. “They're amazing creatures and if you get to click with a horse, there's nothing better.”

His first job after graduating from the program was with renowned trainer Sir Mark Prescott.

“I literally started on my seventeenth birthday,” Linwood recalled. “I was away from home, living on my own and it was all new for me, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. [Prescott] is one of the oldest-serving trainers in Newmarket now and it was a very hard job, but I learned a lot.”

After four years with Prescott, Linwood moved on to work for Michael Jarvis. When Jarvis passed away, he stayed with the stable under Jarvis's assistant Roger Varian. As his experience in the industry grew, Linwood felt ready for a change. He moved to Australia and worked there for 10 years before returning to Varian's as head lad.

Two and a half years ago, an opportunity arose for him to join Appleby's team. He jumped at the chance.

During his time with Appleby, Linwood has had the opportunity to work with several big-name horses. He has only ridden Rebel's Romance (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) a handful of times, but describes the two-time Breeders' Cup Turf winner as “an icon.”

Linwood with Cinderella's Dream after her win in the 2024 GI Belmont Oaks Invitational | Walter Wlodarczyk

One of his all-time favorite mounts is Cinderella's Dream (GB) (Shamardal). He has worked with the star filly since she was a yearling and while he was not on hand for her runner-up performance in last year's Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf, he accompanied the Godolphin homebred to New York for her wins in the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational Stakes and GII Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes. This year, the 4-year-old has claimed two wins including the G1 Falmouth Stakes in her most recent start and is pointing for a return to the Breeders' Cup.

“She is, shall we say, spicy,” Linwood said with a laugh. “Everyone loves her in the yard, but no one wants to deal with her. I know her like the back of my hand. I know when she wants to be brushed and when she doesn't. When she wants to be handled and when she doesn't. She's quite a character.”

Back home in Newmarket, Linwood is focused on helping prepare a strong roster of Godolphin horses for a trip to the Breeders' Cup. The group includes Cinderella's Dream, El Cordobes and Rebel's Romance, who is seeking a three-peat in the Turf after securing his eighth career Group 1 on Aug. 10. Appleby has recorded 11 victories at the Breeders' Cup, adding extra significance to the challenge.

Whether or not he travels to Del Mar, Linwood knows he'll be cheering every step of the way. Watching the horses he's helped prepare compete at the highest level is the reward he cherishes most.

“It's my life,” he said. “I've done it for 20-odd years now. It's given me a career and I've gotten to see the world. I've been to Australia, Hong Kong, all over Europe, and now America. It's an amazing job and it's amazing to deal with these animals day in and day out.”

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