Australian sprinters may have a tall reputation throughout the world but if there is one racetrack where their explosive power lacks a certain je ne sais quoi it is along the straight 1,200 metres of the July Course at Newmarket.
Since the hulking form of Choisir acted as the pathfinder for Australian horses in 2003 when he went down fighting to Oasis Dream in the July Cup, there have been a further 11 Australian-trained horses to fail in the Group One sprint.
Looking at the accompanying box it is quite a cast, especially when you consider Choisir, Takeover Target and Scenic Blast had all won at Royal Ascot a few weeks before they lost at Newmarket.
When you add in that Star Witness had put in two good runs at Royal Ascot before he finished a laboured tenth in 2011 and Brazen Beau looks to have it all to do on Saturday night if he is to become the first winner of the Global Sprint Challenge contest to carry the Godolphin blue silks.
Godolphin have tried before to bring Australian sprinters to Europe, with Sepoy running poorly for Mahmood Al Zarooni in 2012 after he ran down the field in the Dubai Golden Shaheen.
The only trainer to succeed with an Australian horse is Aidan O’Brien, who made the shrewd decision of bringing subsequent 2010 winner Starspangledbanner to his Ballydoyle facility as early as March of that year.
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The record certainly concerns trainer Chris Waller, who arrived from Australia to watch Brazen Beau go through his paces in a racecourse gallop on Monday under Saturday’s rider James Doyle.
Waller has an acute understanding of what it takes to travel thoroughbred racehorses across hemispheres. Part of his remarkable rise to the apex of Australian racing has been based on taking horses from England to Australia.
On a frequent basis the Sydney-based champion trainer has raided the autumn horses in training sale at nearby Tattersalls and turned mediocre British horses in to Group 1 winners down under.
For instance, Beaten Up, who was sixth in the 2012 Dubai Sheema Classic for William Haggas was transformed into a Doomben Cup winner a year later by Waller. Kingdom Of Fife was a handicapper just under Group class when with Sir Michael Stoute. Just 60,000gns later and Waller saddled him to win the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick in 2011.
And it is the lack of acclimatisation that he believes makes life tough for Australian horses post Royal Ascot, which makes you wonder how last minute a decision it was to run in the Darley-sponsored race.
“I know how hard it is to get English horses to acclimatise in Australia,” Waller said. “It is only logical that it is going to be the same going the other way.
“You see them get off the plane in great condition and then all of a sudden the shock of being in a different hemisphere when a horse’s body is set around seasons, or weather, or hormones, and it changes their body completely.
“They grow more hair and they get confused. I think it can take six to 18 months to fully acclimatise.
“I think it is why Australian horses have traditionally struggled after Royal Ascot, which coincides with the July Cup.
“Before I arrived I kept asking, ‘how is his coat, how is his coat’ and kept wishing the race was tomorrow.”
The race has now arrived and after Brazen Beau’s second in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes he looks to have a major chance should his shiny black coat look as remarkable as it did at Ascot three weeks ago. As he is still a three-year-old there must be any amounts of improvement to come.
Brazen Beau faces 16 rivals, four of whom he beat last time. Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid’s Muhaarar, who won the inaugural Group 1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot, is the biggest danger under Paul Hanagan, while Frankie Dettori could be involved on underrated challenger Danzeno.
Brazen Beau has been lodged at Saeed bin Suroor’s Newmarket stables since his arrival in Britain and the Godolphin trainer feels the dual Australian Group 1 winner is the right type to succeed.
“Some handle the travelling and some don’t,” he said. “You need a tough horse that tries hard. I have some horses that travel from England to France and back, out to Hong Kong or Dubai and come back and they handle it.
“You have others who just go on one trip and they just melt and you are looking after them for weeks. I have seen this horse most mornings and he looks in great condition. He ran well last time and they are right to have a go and I wish them the best of luck.”
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