He has won more Gold Cups than any owner in Barbados and anyone interested in taking the 2014 edition from Hopefield Stable had better be well prepared and bring quality equines.
That’s because despite having lost the 2012 Sandy Lane Gold Cup winner Dancing David racing tycoon Sir David Seale is looking to add next year’s prize to his mantle.
MIDWEEK?NATION has been told by operations manager at Hopefield, Richard Seale that Sir David will reinforce his troops by nominating the British-based Dashing David for the March 8 event.
Dashing David, a four-year-old bay colt, is the son of Lemon Drop Kid out of Nyarhini and will be leaving the Britain shortly to travel to the United States.
Previously under the care of Richard Hannon, he has earnings of £15 809 from 13 career starts decorated by three wins, one second and one third place finish, having first landed the class five – E.B.F. Play Totequadpot at Totepool.com Maiden Stakes race on June 6, 2012.
His next success came a year later when he recorded back to back successes in July first taking the class four Discount Tyres Handicap over seven furlongs at Chepstow followed 15 days later by another class four six-furlong triumph at Salisbury via the Bathwick Tyres Handicap.
This Irish bred horse has raced from five furlongs up to a mile at various tracks. What I find eye-catching in the last issue of the 2012 timeform is that he had a rating of 98 which is better than former Gold Cup winner Sanford Prince, who came to these shores back in 1988 with a rating of 96.
Before shipping to Barbados he will compete at Gulfstream Park under trainer Saffie Joseph Jnr who handles Sir David’s horses in America. Bubba, as he is affectionately called in these quarters, has won two races for the red and black silks of Sir David, namely Town Of Towns and Decisive David.
In his first three years of training in the United States he has won 38 races from 192 starts and continues to show improvement each year. for this year he has landed 15 wins from 77 starters. Let’s not forget Hopefield’s major weapon is the defending Gold Cup champion Aristodemus who will defend his title.
Hopefield Stable has won the Gold Cup with Sanford Prince (3), Bentom, Chou Chou Royale, Dancin David and Aristodemus the move to add Dashing David will most definitely lift the flagging standard of what for years has been undoubtedly been the Caribbean’s most prestigious horse race.
Hopefully the other powerhouses in this sport will invest in some real high quality horse power to help lift and upkeep the standard of the Gold Cup. The best six on the ground at the moment are Aristodemus, Shared Adventure, Daga, Areutalkintome, Meteorite and Kendal Moon.
I’m eagerly anticipating the Gold Cup hype to return or surpass that of 2010 when racing magnates Gay Smith and Eugene Melnyk’s charges Bribon and Sterwins created euphoria around haorse racing.
This is what the Gold Cup needs, and let’s not forget the countries which contributed to the prestige associated with the earlier races – Martinique, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago also St Kitts and Nevis.
