William Buick happy to dream ahead of Dewhurst Stakes
At an age when most jockeys are still dreaming of the glittering prizes, William Buick can survey the reality of a season in which he has gathered such trophies with the acquisitive nature of a magpie.
When he was appointed first jockey to John Gosden’s yard for the beginning of this season there were some who feared that he could be dazzled by the limelight that such a job would bring. But Buick is a young man with the outlook of a veteran and has stepped into that limelight like a favourite jacket – and a bespoke one at that.
His season could have reached its peak before spring had fully broken when he won the Dubai Sheema Classic for Gosden on Dar Re Mi but that was simply the launch pad for five Group or Grade One victories – in four different countries – that have cemented Buick’s position as the coming force in the jockeys’ room. Yet, amid the level-headed approach, there is still an engaging element of the wide-eyed when he said: “It’s unbelievable. I’m very pleased with the way everything’s gone and it’s been a privilege to ride some of those great horses.”
The victory of Arctic Cosmos remains the most striking memory for the jockey, not only for its importance as an initial Classic victory but also as a vivid testimony to the skills of Gosden. “It was a brilliant training performance by Mr Gosden. He’d always been a good horse but he was very immature and babyish. I think his run in the Gordon, when he was third, made a man of him. And then he showed us in the St Leger what a good horse he is.
“It was a very important win because it was my first British Group One and my first Classic winner as well so there was a lot of pleasure in that,” Buick said.
The pain came when the colt’s season was ended with a leg injury. “Everything went well, he’s in the hospital now and he’s recovered, so we’ll see how he goes and hopefully he’ll be back again next year,” Buick said.
Arctic Cosmos has been scheduled to run in the Grade One Canadian International at Woodbine on Saturday and his absence at least frees Buick to keep the ride on the David Simcock-trained Dream Ahead in the Group One Dubai Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket on the same day. “I think that race could be one of the races of the season,” Buick said, with a decent contender for understatement of the week. “It’s going to be a top-class race – you’ve got Frankel, Dream Ahead and Saamidd taking each other on – an exceptional race and may the horse win.”
If the official handicapper is to be believed – as opposed to the markets – that horse is Dream Ahead. Frankel may have dazzled when he won the Group Two Royal Lodge Stakes by 10 lengths, with a performance that was being likened to that of Arazi in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in 1991, but he still has plenty to find on Dream Ahead.
Frankel is currently rated on 123 but Dream Ahead – already a dual Group One winner and unbeaten in three career starts – is regarded as 5lb superior after his nine-length demolition of his field in the Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket two weeks ago. Given that the next three home - Strong Suit, Approve and Irish Field – were all Group-race winners there is more than confidence-bolstering in Buick’s assessment in the strength of that form.
“The horses behind him were no slouches – they were rated about 110, 115. I said afterwards he was an unbelievable horse and he is. I’ve never sat on a horse that can do what he does,” he said.
“Obviously what Frankel did at Ascot was very impressive and he hasn’t done anything wrong. To the eye he is very impressive.
“There’s been a lot of hype about those two horses but all we can do is wait until Saturday and everyone will find out. Simple as that.”
If the handicapper has got his figures right, Buick could be in for another dream result.
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