IT’S a big couple of days for us with top runners all over the globe.
Luckily, our horses have been in flying form — and so has our top jock Oisin Murphy.
Oisin Murphy will be racking up the air miles but it could all be worth it with two big wins in New York and France
Flying is very much the operative word as Oisin will be racking up the air miles as he is in New York tonight and then jets back to London before flying to France tomorrow.
Don’t worry about jetlag though as I can assure you he won’t be flying in economy!
He should be able to get a decent amount of sleep on the plane and then, as soon as he is back, we will hop on a flight together to Deauville.
It’s weekend’s like this where Lindy Rees in the office earns her keep because it can be an absolute logistical nightmare.
We have to organise runners in the US and France — and at home we have some at Haydock, Sandown and up at Carlisle.
You really rely on your team at times like this.
But it’s what you do it for, having runners in big races in different countries.
I’m excited to see what THE FOXES can do in New York at Belmont Park tonight. The race is off at 10.49pm so it will be a late one. Even later if he wins!
It’s worth nearly £350,000 to the winner so fingers crossed the cost and time of getting him there will be worth it.
As far as the American turf tracks go, Belmont is one of the more galloping ones, and I have long thought the Belmont Derby over ten furlongs will suit him.
The Foxes was accompanied by professional flying grooms who do it for a living.
He has plenty of fluids before and after the flight to counteract any dehydration.
Maddy O’Meara, who looks after our international runners, travelled ahead and met him at the airport and went with him to the track where he spent two days in quarantine, so the vets can monitor his health before they let him mix with the US horses.
It can be difficult when you are taking on the local horses, because they haven’t had to get on a transatlantic flight and spent 48 hours in isolation, where he is restricted to being led around and not properly exercised.
Usually we would fly a horse over to America three or four days before a race, but because of the way the flights were scheduled he has been over there for nearly a week now.
Mind you, it doesn’t take horses long at all to adapt to a new timezone.
He has been stretching his legs on the dirt training track over the last couple of days and Maddy reported he settled in well and seems in a good place.
I saw a video of him trotting the other morning and he had a little buck and a kick so he is clearly feeling well in himself.
He didn’t lose too much weight on the flight and hasn’t lost his appetite.
He has a terrific temperament so the long journey and new surroundings won’t have fazed him.
We aren’t ideally drawn out in stall 11 but hopefully they go a good pace and Oisin can slot in and pick them off late.
Straight after the race, Oisin will be hopping on a plane and jetting it back home before CHALDEAN runs in the Prix Jean Prat at Deauville tomorrow.
I’ll admit, the Group 1 over seven furlongs is an afterthought.
In everybody’s mind after the Guineas, given the way he finished off his race, we were thinking he was looking to go up in trip if anything . . . but at Ascot it looked like a drop back wouldn’t be a bad idea.
The plan was to go to Goodwood for the Sussex after Ascot.
However he is a horse who has thrived on racing during his career so, while he is healthy and in good form, we are keen to keep him busy.
Too Darn Hot had a very similar season a few years ago, when he went and won the Jean Prat and then went onto the Sussex Stakes, and I think the same sort of campaign will suit Chaldean.
It’s not a gimme by any means.
There are some good horses in there against us, including Hi Royal who pushed us close at Newmarket, but we are very happy with our horse.
I don’t have a dog in the Coral-Eclipse fight at Sandown, but it’s a fascinating race.
I thought Emily Upjohn was top-drawer at Epsom and Paddington looked exceptional when finishing ahead of Chaldean at Ascot.
We would like him to uphold our form, but it just shows you you don’t need a massive field for a good spectacle.
We’d be hopeful of winning a big’un in America or France — both would be very nice indeed — but at home I’d say our best chance of a winner today is NEW BUSINESS (4.50) at Sandown.
It looks like it’s going to be scorchio this weekend so the ground will likely dry out quite a bit.
So long as he handles that I think he has a big chance. He is a lovely, improving horse who could be well handicapped.
