The HK$14 million Champions Mile at Sha Tin on Sunday marks a milestone moment for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum’s leviathan Godolphin operation when two gallopers prepared on opposite sides of the planet line up in the familiar royal blue colours.
The Champions Mile will mark the first time that Godolphin Australia, headed by trainer John O’Shea, tackles the “bigger brothers” from the northern hemisphere, with England-based Charlie Appleby sending out Safety Check against ex-Appleby trainee Bow Creek, now with O’Shea.
And Godolphin’s Australian boss Henry Plumptre says the royal blue silks are likely to be seen in more international races as their presence expands down under.
“Sheikh Mohammed wants to be involved in these big races across the world,” he said. “The December meeting is fantastic, the prize money in Hong Kong is superb and we are thrilled to be here.”
“Our first intention was to send Safety Check across, but after Bow Creek’s run in the Doncaster where he made up a lot of ground against the pattern of the day we thought we would send him over too. If you stack him up against Safety Check, he probably isn’t quite as good but Bow Creek looks a definite place chance.”
Bow Creek was sent to Australia after the Group Two winner disappointed at his first two runs as a four-year-old in England, and he has continued his inconsistent form in six runs for O’Shea. But the trainer says it is just a case of finding the right conditions for the son of Shamardal to show his best.
“He’s a bit of a quirky horse, he needs everything to go his way,” O’Shea said. “He needs a firm track, he needs pace on and he just needs a suck up into the race. The only run this preparation where he has had conditions to suit was in the Peter Young, and he showed an electric turn of foot that day. But Flemington for the Australian Cup, they went slow up in front, while he struck a wet track behind Winx in the Doncaster Mile.”
“I’m told there’s not much pace on paper in the Champions Mile, but that was also meant to be the case last weekend too in the QE II Cup. And I was a bit worried about the track but John Size told me it should be rock hard as long as there is no more rain before Sunday.”
The Australian handler, who became Godolphin’s trainer down under in 2014, has travelled to Hong Kong before, bringing Racing To Win for the 2009 Hong Kong Mile and Sea Siren for the Hong Kong Sprint in 2012, but this is his first overseas assignment as part of the “boys in blue”.
“We have a great team in place, particularly my assistant Johann Gerard-Dubord and the work rider Richard Cronin. They have the horse spot on, you only needed to see his gallop on Thursday,” he said, while confidently predicting barrier 11 of 12 will not be the horses’ downfall. “The barrier is no concern, he has a habit of being a little slow away anyway and he will be going back in the field.”
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Bow Creek is among Royal Ascot entries, and while O’Shea confirmed the horse will head to England after the Champions Mile, he is no certainty to race during the European summer.
Check out Damien Oliver weaving amongst runners along the rail on Bow Creek. Great riding on a talented horse! pic.twitter.com/rD4HsDS292
— Oddschecker Au (@OddscheckerAu) February 27, 2016
“He is entered for the Queen Anne, but there’s every chance he will just go to England, winter there and not race before returning to Australia for the spring carnival,” O’Shea said, using recently retired Group One winner Contributer as a case study. “Bow Creek is a five-year-old entire, six by Australian standards, and what we’ve found with horses like Contributer is that it is very hard to keep them fit if they go for a spell. In Australia, the only option would have been to put him in a paddock, and like we were with Contributer last spring we would have been playing catch-up just trying to keep him fit.
“This way, he can winter in England, we can keep him ticking over, he can act as a companion for our sprinter Holler who is heading to Royal Ascot and hopefully he can return to Australia in peak condition for the spring.”
The Australian operation’s retained rider James McDonald has been booked for Safety Check over Bow Creek (Zac Purton), but the handler said it was a matter of circumstance.
“Safety Check was the first to get invited, and with William Buick and James Doyle always required in England this weekend, James was booked straight away,” he said. “Once Bow Creek got a run, though, it was decided to keep James on Safety Check and find a new rider for Bow Creek – and Zac is a pretty handy replacement to have, particularly at Sha Tin.”
Purton has ridden a number of his Champions Mile rivals this season, including Beauty Flame, Gun Pit, Dundonnell and Packing Pins, and believes Bow Creek deserves his spot among them.
“He isn’t coming up without a chance, dry ground in particular could see him improve out of sight,” Purton said. “It’s the first time I have had the opportunity to ride in the Godolphin blue, and it’s something I’ve always dreamed about. I think every jockey dreams to ride in these colours. It’s going to be special and hopefully the first of many opportunities in the royal blue.”
Appleby will remain in England this weekend, with assistant trainer Sophie Chretien overseeing his preparation. She says that, unlike Bow Creek, Safety Check is hoping for a slowly run race to offset stamina concerns, although she was happy with his final solid turf gallop on Friday morning.
“He is coming from Dubai, which has become his garden the last three years, but he has settled into the unfamiliar surroundings well and coming in fresh should suit,” she said. “Obviously, he arrives in good form, there is no doubt some question about a strong mile but we couldn’t have him any better.”
