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Godolphin hopefuls remain longshots
By Ed McNamara
Special to ESPN.com
|  | | Trainer Saeed bin Suroor was shut out last year on Derby Day. |
The severe-looking Arab and his son stood on the packed, wet sand near the barns at Churchill Downs, waiting for their colt to be led from his stall. It was less than an hour before last year's Kentucky Derby, and
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum was checking out the scene.
The Minister of Defense for Dubai had come from half a world away to see if he could win his first attempt at America's Race. The founder and boss of the all-conquering Godolphin Stable paid a reported $5 million the
previous summer for Worldly Manner, who spent the winter in the Middle East
and tried to take the Derby off only one trial race against stablemates at
Nad al Sheba Racecourse.
The colt's unorthodox preparation drew ridicule from the American media, but his impressive appearance on Derby Day made some doubters wonder. When he drew even for the lead at the quarter pole, it looked as if North
American racing's most coveted trophy might be bound for the land of sand on
the shores of the Persian Gulf. Then the Arab challenge melted away as
Worldly Manner faded to seventh behind Charismatic.
Sheikh Mohammed was disappointed but not discouraged. His reaction: Wait 'til next year.
Even the mastermind behind the greatest dynasty in thoroughbred history is not immune to Derby Fever. The man who has won virtually every important race in the world has targeted the Run for the Roses. Welcome to
the club, Sheikh. The Holy Grail of American racing has another seeker.
"We went to the Kentucky Derby for the first time last year," he said at a news conference leading up to the March 25 Dubai World Cup. "I enjoyed myself very much and I saw how the people loved racing. The Kentucky
Derby is very important. It is now on the top of my list. It is one of the
most difficult races to win and it is a challenge to us."
Godolphin's head trainer, Saeed bin Suroor, is back in Kentucky with
China Visit and Curule, who arrived last week from Dubai. China Visit, undefeated and
unchallenged in two official starts in France and Dubai, is one of the
future-book Derby favorites in Great Britain's betting shops, so he's
intriguing. Curule is a son of 1994 Derby winner Go for
Gin, but he has no chance of emulating his father.
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The Kentucky Derby
is very important. It is now on the top of my list. It is one of the most difficult races to
win and it is a challenge to us. ” |
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— Sheikh Mohammed |
Chief Seattle, the runner-up in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, also was on the plane
but was ruled out of the Derby when he came down with a fever.
Sheikh Mohammed is an extreme longshot to celebrate beneath the Twin Spires late on the afternoon of May 6, but no matter what, he plans many return trips. Which is where Eoin (pronounced Owen) Harty fits in.
Harty, a transplanted Irishman, was assistant trainer, exercise rider and hands-on guy for Bob Baffert when he won the Derby in 1997 (Silver Charm) and 1998 (Real Quiet). Harty now works in Dubai for Sheikh Mohammed, who
gave him an ultimatum: develop a Kentucky Derby winner.
"You need to be there in the final week before the race to appreciate its unique place in American sport," Harty told the London Sunday Times in March. "I have never known anything like it. I guess Sheikh
Mohammed got a taste and decided he had to win it. I don't think there is
any illusion about his desire to win the Derby, and it is crucial for him to
do it with a horse prepared in Dubai during the winter."
Harty will spend the next five or six months in Southern California, where he will train 32 of Sheikh Mohammed's regally bred
2-year-olds and get them accustomed to American racing conditions. In late
autumn, Harty will bring them back to Dubai. Next spring, some of them will
be shipped to England and some will be put on the Derby trail, to be trained
by Suroor.
"Eoin needs to identify and produce a Kentucky Derby winner for us," Sheikh Mohammed said. "The idea is that you are constantly seeking that elusive golden nugget."
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