William Buick motors on at Epsom
William Buick already carries the boy wonder tag in the jockeys’ room and will trying to become the first rider to win the Derby at his initial attempt, since Walter Swinburn on Shergar in 1981, when he rides Azmeel in the Investec Derby.
The pressure of big-race rides does not faze Buick and he already shows composure beyond his 21 years, both in and out of the saddle. He underlined his strength and tactical awareness when Bushman won the Group Three Investec Diomed Stakes at Epsom.
The track can be a bewildering test of a jockey’s skills for the unwary, but Buick already rides the roller-coaster downland slopes with the confidence of a veteran. He was sharp enough to keep Bushman close to Ordnance Row’s early pace to match the increase of speed from the leader with two furlongs to run.
Bushman led with less than a furlong to run and then battled gamely to hold the late challenges of Alexandros and Mabait, to beat Alexandros by a neck and Buick paid his tribute to his partner when he said: “He pulled out all the stops. Everything came to him and he stuck his head out. I could feel them coming from a furlong out, but he always kept finding.”
Trainer David Simcock, saddling his 25th winner of the season, bought Bushman at the Horses In Training Sale at Newmarket in October 2007 for just 15,000gns. “We’ve been pretty patient with him over the years, I think that’s paying off now,” Simcock said. “He was unraced at two and three. He only started racing at four and he’s relatively lightly-raced.
“We’ve been very careful with him. Obviously, you don’t pick up an unraced horse at the sale and not have issues. These have been ironed out and now we’re more confident with him.
“We’re probably a little bit braver too with him as regards which ground we run him on. We’re more confident,” added Simcock, who had no immediate plans for the horse. “We had thought about going to France next Sunday, if it had been too quick here, but obviously that’s not going to happen now. There’s nothing for him at Ascot - he’s not good enough for a Queen Anne and there are no other mile races apart from the Royal Hunt Cup. We’ll just take it one race at a time.”
Kieren Fallon is still the modern-day master of Epsom and the man they call “the Assassin” landed the killer blow in the final stride on Tartan Gigha in the Investec Mile Handicap. Jimmy Fortune appeared to have delivered a text-book ride on Set The Trend, who took the lead from Sunnyside Tom at the furlong marker, but was simply outstayed by Tartan Gigha and the persistence of Fallon.
Tartan Gigha was winning the race for the second year in succession but there is a poignant edge to the success with the death of the horse’s owner, Isobel Bird, a stalwart of the Mark Johnston stable earlier this year. “He’s been in good form all season and even at the end of last year, very close in the Cambridgeshire, he’s improving all the time,” the trainer said.” Sadly his owner died earlier in the year. It’s heart-breaking really that’s she’s been such a loyal owner and stuck with it through lots of bad horses and, now everything’s come good, which is so sad.”
Fallon made it a double on the card when he won the Investec Challenge Handicap on Fiery Lad, who had not won for 18 months.
http://www.senore.com/Snow-Fairy-weaves-her-magic-in-Oaks-a12092
http://www.senore.com/Murtagh-claims-the-fame-and-glory-in-Coronation-Cup-a12086
Tags: