Racing
Further trials
Jeffrey Bernard
It was just after "Lucky Sovereign won the Mecca Dante Trial Stakes at York that we television punters, who for some reason or other couldn't get to the course, heard what must have been the most interesting comment made during an inter-race interview for a month of Sundays. When it was suggested to the old master Harry Wragg, the trainer of Lucky Sovereign arid ex-pilot of three Derby winners; that Lucky Sovereign wouldn't stay the mile and a half of the Derby, he said, 'Any-horse will stay if it's settled properly.' Bold words, dogmatic and a tremendous generalisation.
Last Saturday at Newbury, I quoted the
quote to that genuine expert John Hislop and, slightly to my surprise, he disagreed. 'So how come Hard Ridden won the Derby,' I asked him, 'since it was by Hard Sauce, a seven-furlong horse?' Ah,' said Mr Hislop, 'Hard Sauce may have been a seven-furlong horse, but theoretically, he' should have stayed.' We were beginning, or at least he was beginning, to get into the complicated realms of throwbacks. When I mentioned that another Derby winner, the great Sir Ivor, was also thought not to be able to last the Derby distance Hislop again went into a fairly complicated spiel explaining that there again Sir Ivor was so stoutly bred on the darn's side two generations back that the question of his stamina never arose as seriously as it does with this year's favourite Blushing Groom.
I ventured the opinion to Hislop that the 1977 Derby alight be won by a rank outsider like Pearl Diver, Never Say Die or Psidium. Surprise, surprise, he agreed that it was likely. So, everything points to one hell of a pickle. It's like a three-week chess problem as far as I'm concerned and I'm not hot on chess. To reiterate my views on value, you must be bonkers to back Blushing Groom at 9-4, but the Prix Lupin, run last Sunday, still points to that horse. You can keep it.
Just as important as getting value about a horse, and this one in particular, is the fact that owner Aga Khan still hasn't finalised syndication plans for the 'Groom' for the future. They're bandying sums around the £3 million mark at the moment and, as you can imagine, they'd look pretty silly if Blushing Groom got beaten in the Derby before all was signed and sealed. However ardent a 'Groom' fan you are, then, you should keep your powder dry yet awhile in case the great horse doesn't even get a run.
Escaping Derby problems for a couple of days. I fled to Newbury last weekend and treated myself to Friday's card as well as Saturday's. I backed three winners on each day, paid for the weekend's expenses and still had a few bob left over. Relkino ran a magnificent race in the Lockinge Stakes and I grabbed the early morning 5-1 offered about it by Ladbroke's. Not a bad price for a horse that finished second to Empery in last year's Derby! Richard Hannon was kind enough to advise me to have a bet on his horse Alanrod on which I nicked anothel 5-I and Robert McAlpine forced some champagne down my throat, which seemed rather odd ten minutes after one of his foremen on the motorway navvying gang had bought me a bottle of plonk.
On Sunday, I had a cursory glance around Major Dick Hem's yard and had a reallY good look at those three stars Relkino, Boldboy and the possible Millionaire. FM not an expert judge on looks, but if Millionaire wins the Derby then I'm the Flying Dutchman. By the time this column appears in print, Millionaire will have run in the last of the Derby trials, WednesdaY's Goodwood Predominate Stakes, but he II want to have won it hands down to be cool' derecl for the big one. Relkino is a magnificient-looking horse, Boldboy too but a fairly temperamental and danger0115 one too. There's another Classic prospect lurking in the yard as well and that's the Queen's Oaks hope, Dunfermline. The way she won at Newmarket last time has convinced me that she's got one hell of a chance.
Tomorrow I'm off to Wolverhampton again to see my horse, Deciduous, run for the second time in her career. The rain that's coursing down my windows at this very moment makes it almost depressinglY certain that she won't be in the shakeup. Never mind, it's still more fun than watching someone else's animal get beat. Then there's always tea and five card draw poker with the bookmakers on the train back.
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