The Pat Smullen Column: Delights of Dubai

[Wandering Eyes]

Nine-time Irish champion jockey Pat Smullen has joined the TDN team as our new weekly columnist to bring us invaluable insight on the racing and breeding scene as he continues his recovery from illness.

I got a lot of enjoyment out of watching the Dubai World Cup meeting on many fronts. It was a great night which showcased Dubai racing very well. When you have proper Group 1 horses like Almond Eye (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}), Blue Point (Ire) (Shamardal) and Cross Counter (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) on the card, you know you have a lot of quality on show.

I was very fortunate to spend many years in Dubai from when I was 16. I was there in the 96/97 season for the first time and have seen it change and grow as a city and as a racing power through the formation of Godolphin. It’s amazing what Sheikh Mohammed and the Maktoum family have achieved for our industry in that time.

I spent most winters in Dubai riding for Dhruba Selvaratnam and Erwan Charpy and there was a great ex-pat community there at the time. Brendan Walsh was one of them, as well as Ted Durcan; we were all great friends and spent probably the best years of our lives there and had a lot of fun. It gave all of us the chance to get our careers up and running and it was very influential for me getting started as a jockey. I spent eight full winters there and I haven’t missed a year since then, either riding at the carnival or on holiday. I even met my wife there, even though she’s Irish as well, so Dubai has a very fond place in my heart, it’s given me an awful lot.

Seeing Brendan Walsh win the UAE Derby with Plus Que Parfait (Point of Entry) was I think the biggest kick I’ve got from a winner without being involved in it since I stopped riding. Brendan is a really likeable fella and hopefully that will attract some good owners, and as we all saw he’s well capable of doing the job.

He has been doing extremely well, he’s built his barn up year on year and he just needed a bit of quality and a win like that. It’s come at a really good time for him. Like all trainers, he’s totally dedicated to the job and is really taking big strides forward now. Saturday was a launching pad for him and I think he has what it takes to make a really successful trainer.

Strength in Depth

The G2 UAE Derby was the highlight of the World Cup night for me but obviously we saw some great horses running. Cross Counter is going to be a formidable horse in the staying division this year. He looks a stayer with pace and if he can stay the two and a half miles of the G1 Ascot Gold Cup he’s going to be very difficult to beat. The way he won the G1 Melbourne Cup from off the pace, and then to get in a real dogfight on Saturday night and come out on top shows he has all the qualities of a good stayer.

Blue Point has been an amazing sprinter all of last year and into this year. He’ll go to Royal Ascot a hot favourite. Whether it’s five or six furlongs, it comes as one to him, and he’s the finished article as a sprinter now. His mind seems to be in the right place, he’s taken everything really well and I think they’ve done really well with him to channel that nervous energy in the right direction.

I think Japan might just have one of their most serious challengers for the Arc if everything goes well before then. Almond Eye looks to be exceptional. She travels through the race with such ease, dropping back in trip was no issue for her and when she gets to the front she doesn’t overdo it either, so conserving all that energy will really help her to get to the Arc in October. I thought there was a lot to take from that performance, and with Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) and Sea Of Class (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) we could have three serious fillies challenging for the Arc.

I must give credit to Thunder Snow (Ire) (Helmet {Aus}), who is an amazing horse the way he adapts from turf to dirt and is competitive on both. To win back-to-back World Cups is an amazing achievement by Saeed bin Suroor and his team. The horse battled extremely well and very few horses can do what he’s done, to be a Group 1 winner on turf and dirt. I think breeders in the future should keep that in mind. It’s good to see a horse that’s adaptable.

Very Much a Case of Team Godolphin

Saeed Bin Suroor and all those very good trainers are in an enviable position of being able to attract really good staff, and what better work rider could you find than [Thunder Snow’s rider] Kieren Fallon? What Kieren has achieved as a jockey, his experience, is well known but what’s become very evident is his affinity and love for horses. For him to say that he got more of a kick out of Thunder Snow winning the World Cup than he did from his own winners tells you how much he enjoys working with horses. It’s a huge advantage to have someone like him preparing a horse.

It also shouldn’t be underestimated what Charlie Appleby has achieved in a short space of time, as well as the importance of it. Obviously Saeed has been consistent over many years but Charlie has really put Godolphin back where they need to be, and that’s competing at the highest level. Whether it’s riders, horses, trainers, you need competition and Godolphin being back as a superpower again, and competing against the other superpowers, is very important for the whole industry. Charlie Appleby’s contribution to that should be recognised and he should be commended for training Group 1 winners in America, Australia, and all over Europe, in a short space of time.

Charlie is ably assisted by Marie Murphy, who I’ve known for a long time, and she’s a fantastic assistant trainer to have, along with all his work riders, many of whom are ex-jockeys. Then he’s backed up by two amazing jockeys in my opinion, in James Doyle and William Buick, who are riding at the peak of their powers. It’s great to see Godolphin back at the level they are, competing worldwide, and that both Saeed and Charlie have contributed to that.

Closer to Home

On the home front, Auxerre (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}) was just different class in the Lincoln. He was given a beautiful ride by James Doyle, who controlled the race from the front, and the horse will probably never run in a handicap again. He was the ultimate group horse in a handicap.

There was a lot to take from Sergei Prokofiev (Scat Daddy)’s run at Navan. It may not have been the strongest of sprints, but I loved the way he settled so well out the back then quickened up and put the race to bed in a matter of strides. Navan is a very stiff finish, the last half-furlong is stiff to the line, so I imagine when he got to the front he just got a bit tired against the hill. I’d say there’s huge improvement in him and I’m sure his first main aim with be the G1 Commonwealth Cup. He’ll go there as a serious challenger.

My Best Wishes to Fran

It’s a real shame to have heard the announcement of Fran Berry’s retirement this week. I was only speaking to him recently and I think he’s had eight fractures to his neck and back in the last few years, so he couldn’t ignore medical advice and I think the decision was taken out of his hands. Fran is a very well respected person and is a very articulate and intelligent guy. Whatever he chooses to do he’ll make a success of it and he’ll be a big asset to any organisation in the future. His retirement reiterates the dangerous nature of jockeys’ lives, but equally Fran is intelligent enough to be able to look back and know that he was very lucky to have been able to walk away. Although it’s hard for him, it’s clearly the right decision.

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