Late decision on Workforce for Breeders’ Cup Turf
The Breeders’ Cup Turf has become one of the banker races for European runners at the meeting.
They have won the race 13 times in the last 20 years and the trainer with the best overall record is Sir Michael Stoute.
He has won the race four times already - Pilsudski (1996), Kalanisi (2000) and Conduit (2008, 2009) – but his chances of a fifth victory in the race is still hanging in the balance.
Workforce is still the heavy favourite to complete the unique treble of Derby, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and Turf but Stoute has still to commit the colt because of his anxiety at the ground on the turf course at Churchill Downs.
Stoute will not decide until the morning of the race after sending Workforce out for a morning canter.
The possibility of Workforce missing the race has been simmering since Stoute’s assistant, Stuart Messenger, queried the firmness of the track before the trainer himself arrived in Louisville. Those reservations have been shared by both Stoute and Teddy Grimthorpe, racing manager for owner Prince Khalid Abdullah. “We’ll make our decision in the morning,” Stoute said after watching Workforce work, adding “a big, heavy horse like him, obviously you have concerns,” he said.
The fast ground was one of the reasons given behind Workforce finishing third to Cape Blanco in the Group Two Dante Stakes at York in May and Stoute has done his best to persuade the racecourse to increase the watering of the turf course.
Since racing began last weekend, the turf track has been watered for 10 minutes each night although forecasts of rain have proved to be incorrect. There have been no such worries over Paco Boy as he attempts to finally beat Goldikova at the fourth attempt this year. This is the colt who reduced trainer Richard Hannon to tears of emotions when he won the Group One Lockinge Stakes at Newbury in May.
However, Hannon will be under strict orders to keep himself under control after undergoing a heart bypass operation in Southampton Hospital earlier this week.
Hannon, who was confirmed as champion trainer for the second time in his career this season, is in good spirits and hopes to be able to watch the race from his private ward.
His wife, Jo, speaking on the yard’s website, said: "Everything went well, and, having been restricted to sitting in a chair for the last couple of days, he hopes to be able to leave intensive care today and move into his own room.
"Sylvester [Kirk], our son-in-law, is taking a laptop in today so that he can watch the Breeders Cup races on television, but Richard has quickly got his sense of humour back because he told me that if he is going to die of anything in there it will be boredom.
"Obviously, he has to take things easy, and it will be early next week before we can consider bringing him home, but, more immediately, we must make sure that he does not start jumping up and down if Paco Boy wins the Mile."
Hannon’s son and assistant trainer, Richard Jnr, has been overseeing preparations at Churchill and is hopeful that the stable’s stalwart can end his career on a high note before he is retired to stud. “He’s been in great form. He was on the grass on Thursday, just to stretch his legs,” Hannon said.
“We’re sick of seeing the a**e of Goldikova to be honest. She’s cost us about £800,000 and why can’t we beat her? That’s what we’re for. It’s his last run and he’s a habit of being a real hero, a bit of a gladiator.”
Paco Boy, like many of the European horses, will be running on lasix. “That would help him – he might come up a little bit lighter. If it doesn’t do him any good, it certainly won’t do him any harm.”
A Breeders’ Cup winner would do Hannon Snr no end of good – just as long as he does not get too excited.
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