Alan King is rapidly becoming a man for the big occasion on the flat as well as over the Jumps. There aren't many trainers who can boast a Champion Hurdle and a Goodwood Cup on their CV. And this year's Glorious Goodwood must surely be right up there with Royal Ascot 2020 after the most versatile trainer in the UK added the Group II Richmond Stakes over 6f to Trueshan's victory in the Goodwood Cup earlier in the week.
Consider a trainer that can win a Bet365 Gold Cup over 3m6f, a Champion Hurdle over 2m, One of the holy trinity of Group I staying races in the Goodwood Cup with Trueshan over 2m, and a Group II juvenile sprint over 6f. And for good measure, whilst Asymmetric was winning one of the top 2 year old races of the season to date, Tom Cannon was booting home juvenile hurdler Caramelised at Stratford's Jumps fixture the same day.
But whilst Caramelised fairly trotted up at Stratford, it was a different story in the Unibet Richmond Stakes, where 1/2l separated Asymmetric from rivals Khunan and a nose to Gubass from the neighboroughing Hannon yard.
Alan told Sportinglife.com, “I hoped and thought he would run very well today, but I wasn’t thinking he had to win this.
“He has a pretty lethal turn of foot when he does go, they looked to go pretty steady early and we always take a lead and then drop back and they probably weren’t going strong enough. Martin was very happy with him, he said he was always going to drop in and have one crack at him, which we’ve done.
“He’s not the biggest, I think he’s just that little bit sharper for the July Stakes.
“He does nothing at home, he eats and sleeps and you just have to give him the odd squeeze in a morning to make sure all is good. He does go on soft, but we’ve always said he’s a much better horse on top of the ground.”
On plans, King said: “He’s in the Gimcrack, he is entered in the Group One (Prix Morny) in France, we’ll see what the team want to do.”
The stable's emphasis has changed perceptibly over recent seasons, and King is frank about the reasons. Over obstacles, his owners cannot compete with the high prices the market commands for the best bred horses. It is easier to find a reasonably - priced horse to run on the flat. It's a truism in life that business is cyclical, and at present, it's more than expedient to focus on the summer sport. This is reflected in the fact that King's stable earnings on the flat so far this season, with over 3 months still to go, are now only £100k shy of last season's Jumps total.
So far, the Barbury success story has only extended to big races in the UK. But it seems only a matter of time before "trained, A King, Barbury" is appended to major races further afield.
Alan King is rapidly becoming a man for the big occasion on the flat as well as over the Jumps. There aren't many trainers who can boast a Champion Hurdle and a Goodwood Cup on their CV. And this year's Glorious Goodwood must surely be right up there with Royal Ascot 2020 after the most versatile trainer in the UK added the Group II Richmond Stakes over 6f to Trueshan's victory in the Goodwood Cup earlier in the week.
Consider a trainer that can win a Bet365 Gold Cup over 3m6f, a Champion Hurdle over 2m, One of the holy trinity of Group I staying races in the Goodwood Cup with Trueshan over 2m, and a Group II juvenile sprint over 6f. And for good measure, whilst Asymmetric was winning one of the top 2 year old races of the season to date, Tom Cannon was booting home juvenile hurdler Caramelised at Stratford's Jumps fixture the same day.
But whilst Caramelised fairly trotted up at Stratford, it was a different story in the Unibet Richmond Stakes, where 1/2l separated Asymmetric from rivals Khunan and a nose to Gubass from the neighboroughing Hannon yard.
Alan told Sportinglife.com, “I hoped and thought he would run very well today, but I wasn’t thinking he had to win this.
“He has a pretty lethal turn of foot when he does go, they looked to go pretty steady early and we always take a lead and then drop back and they probably weren’t going strong enough. Martin was very happy with him, he said he was always going to drop in and have one crack at him, which we’ve done.
“He’s not the biggest, I think he’s just that little bit sharper for the July Stakes.
“He does nothing at home, he eats and sleeps and you just have to give him the odd squeeze in a morning to make sure all is good. He does go on soft, but we’ve always said he’s a much better horse on top of the ground.”
On plans, King said: “He’s in the Gimcrack, he is entered in the Group One (Prix Morny) in France, we’ll see what the team want to do.”
The stable's emphasis has changed perceptibly over recent seasons, and King is frank about the reasons. Over obstacles, his owners cannot compete with the high prices the market commands for the best bred horses. It is easier to find a reasonably - priced horse to run on the flat. It's a truism in life that business is cyclical, and at present, it's more than expedient to focus on the summer sport. This is reflected in the fact that King's stable earnings on the flat so far this season, with over 3 months still to go, are now only £100k shy of last season's Jumps total.
So far, the Barbury success story has only extended to big races in the UK. But it seems only a matter of time before "trained, A King, Barbury" is appended to major races further afield.
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