Cover image courtesy of Ascot Racecourse
Englishman Nick Smith is the director of racing and public affairs at Ascot Racecourse, a post he has held for close to 24 years. In that time, he’s seen a lot at Royal Ascot.
He was there when Choisir turned the international tides, and he was there when Frankel (GB) wowed the world yet again. But if you ask him, he’ll tell you his three favourite moments, at least from an international perspective, were Black Caviar (Bel Esprit) in 2012, Tepin (USA) (Bernstein {USA}) in 2016 and Nature Strip (Nicconi) this time last year.
Black Caviar | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“Those individual victories just meant so much,” Smith said, speaking to TDN AusNZ. “Tepin was ground breaking and Black Caviar, quite frankly, was a relief. Still to this day, she is the best horse ever to travel outside of its own country by an absolute country mile.”
When we catch up with Smith, it’s a week out from the Royal meeting. The Australians are starting to arrive, as are the Americans and the Hong Kong contingent cheering Wellington (All Too Hard).
Since Choisir in 2003, a total of 202 horses from outside Europe have competed at Royal Ascot from nine different jurisdictions, and it’s fair to say that Smith doesn’t have to try so hard these days to get top horses to travel… Royal Ascot is where they want to be in June.
Still, prying the likes of Black Caviar, Tepin and Nature Strip from their headquarters is months, sometimes years, of hard work, and this year, Smith has done particularly well. From Australia, he’s lured Coolangatta (Written Tycoon) and Cannonball (Capitalist), a returning Artorius (Flying Artie) and The Astrologist (Zoustar).
“There is no doubt that Nature Strip coming and winning, 10 years after Black Caviar, was a really important moment in reinforcing the fact that Royal Ascot is a doable option for Australian horses,” Smith said. “And Nature Strip came after a long period of less runners and less success, in turn after a decade of incredible success from Choisir to Black Caviar.
“So I think Nature Strip’s participation and win was helpful, but there are also other factors at play this year when it comes to the Australians.”
“There is no doubt that Nature Strip coming and winning, 10 years after Black Caviar, was a really important moment in reinforcing the fact that Royal Ascot is a doable option for Australian horses.” - Nick Smith
Smith said that co-trainer David Eustace is likely to have had an influence over the decision to travel Coolangatta. Eustace is an English ex-pat, a man that grew up around the brilliance of the Royal meeting. In this respect, Smith said he’s certain that Annabel Neasham will send runners too, eventually.
“There are so many factors at play in terms of when it is right to send a horse,” Smith said. “If you look at Chris Waller, for example, it was a long time between Brazen Beau (who was second in the Diamond Jubilee in 2015) and Nature Strip.
“Chris was always adamant that it had to be the right time and it had to be the right one, and while he was obviously considering Winx, Nature Strip and Home Affairs came at the right time.”
The Australian lineup this year is probably the most interesting of any in the past, and Smith agrees as such.
Coolangatta is the brilliant filly of her generation, a Lightning S. winner which has proved so strong a Royal Ascot pointer, while Cannonball is more of an unknown on obvious form. Artorius is back for a second bite, and The Astrologist has been on the move since March, racing at Meydan, York and Haydock ahead of his Royal Ascot ambitions.
“Numerically, it’s a very strong lineup with four of them,” Smith said. “In terms of the range of their CVs, it’s very interesting. Coolangatta is a conventional candidate as a Lightning S. winner, and we all know that Lightning S. winners routinely win the King’s Stand S.
“Artorius is top class and there’s no doubt that he’s better than last year. His form when fourth to Anamoe is pretty hot, and he’s absolutely made for the Ascot track. They know what went right last year and what went wrong, even though his third place (in the Platinum Jubilee) was amazing, and they have a plan this year.
“Cannonball, then, is a bit of a curve ball. He’s got less Group 1 form but we looked at his tapes and he’s an interesting horse. He clearly hasn’t had the best luck in running, and he’s coming to form at the right time. There is quiet optimism about him and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he was quite well-backed in the run-up to the race.”
“Cannonball, then, is a bit of a curve ball.... There is quiet optimism about him and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he was quite well-backed in the run-up to the race.” - Nick Smith
Regarding The Astrologist, whom Leon and Troy Corstens have had on the move for much of the year, Smith said the horse was peaking into Royal Ascot. The 6-year-old gelding was third in the G1 Al Quoz Sprint in March, then seventh on his English debut at York and second on June 10 at Haydock in the G3 John Of Gaunt S.
“He blew up a bit in the Duke of York S., which can happen, but he was much, much better at Haydock,” Smith said. “The seven furlongs at Haydock was what he needed, confirming himself for the stiff six furlongs at Ascot.
“Connections before that race were saying it’s all about the Jubilee, with plans for the horse to progress and peak at his third run. I think that was astute commentary by the connections because that’s what seems to be happening.”
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Smith said all four of the Australians come with solid chances. Coolangatta, deservedly, is red hot, and she will likely be joint-favourite for the King’s Stand S. with Highfield Princess (Fr) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}). Artorius, also, is favourite for the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee S.
“We think he might be just over Wellington in favouritism, Wellington bringing Lucky Sweynesse form into the race,” Smith said. “There aren’t many horses in the world who can get as close to Lucky Sweynesse as Wellington has managed.”
They need to be able to stay
The Australian horses this year have travelled to Ascot on what is largely a tried and tested formula regarding the routes, stabling and regimens. There is no quarantine requirement into Britain for Australian-based horses, making things straightforward.
Last year, Nature Strip was accommodated at Charlie Hills' yard at Lambourn, which is where Coolangatta headed earlier this week, and Cannonball and Artorius have gone to Charlie Fellowes at Newmarket. The Astrologist is with Marco Botti, also at Newmarket.
Smith and his team try to avoid suggesting where international horses should be accommodated. Smith finds that most of the Australian trainers already have alliances in the UK leading up to the Royal meeting.
“We try not to advise them directly because every trainer has different views about their horses,” Smith said. “It used to be the case that everyone almost always went to Newmarket, and successfully too, but trainers have their connections and they use them for various reasons.”
“It used to be the case that everyone almost always went to Newmarket, and successfully too, but trainers have their connections and they use them for various reasons.” - Nick Smith
As a good example of this, Wellington has gone to Brian Meehan, who trains out of the historic grounds of Manton Estate in Marlborough, east of Bath. Wellington’s trainer, the English ex-pat Richard Gibson, who recently announced he would be retiring from Hong Kong training at the conclusion of this season, obviously had his own alliances.
“Rather than advise, we try to provide a menu of options to choose from, relative to what they think will suit the preparation of the horse best,” Smith said.
This year, each of the Australian brigade will tackle the five- or -six-furlong Ascot straight, which everyone knows is a stiff, uphill effort in the dying stages of every race. Some have opinions as to whether it almost brought Black Caviar undone, but Smith believes the past efforts of the Australians are now standing the current Australians in good stead.
“You have to be able to stay at Ascot,” he said. “You absolutely have to be able to stay, and that’s the reason why we’ve had so many international King’s Stand winners as against the six-furlong Jubilee winners. Black Caviar, for instance, ran in the seven-furlong CF Orr S. before she came, and that was to see if the six furlongs at Ascot wouldn’t be a problem.
“As a general rule of thumb, we would say to 90 per cent of trainers sending sprinters to Royal Ascot that they should aim for the 1000-metre race (the King’s Stand S.). Only if they’re proven in Australia over the seven furlongs should they run in the Jubilee.”
“As a general rule of thumb, we would say to 90 per cent of trainers sending sprinters to Royal Ascot that they should aim for the 1000-metre race (the King’s Stand S.). Only if they’re proven in Australia over the seven furlongs should they run in the Jubilee.” - Nick Smith
Coolangatta and Cannonball will both tackle the King’s Stand S. on Tuesday next week, while Artorius, Wellington and The Astrologist will each take their chances in the Jubilee.
Wellington has won over 1400 metres during his career, while Artorius has existing form through the race. The Astrologist was a Group 3 winner over the distance in Perth this year ahead of his export.
Who is next?
Later this year, Smith will board a flight to Melbourne for the spring carnival. The relationship between the Victoria Racing Club (VRC) and Royal Ascot is strong, even stronger with the emergence of Champions Day at Flemington last year.
Smith is constantly on the scout for potential travellers, and it isn’t surprising to learn that he already has a few Australians in mind for next year.
“The key horse, effectively, is the Golden Slipper winner for Chris Waller,” Smith said. “Shinzo, I would imagine, will run in the Coolmore at Flemington in the spring, and then be geared up for Royal Ascot if all goes well.
Royal Ascot on the cards for G1 Golden Slipper winner Shinzo? | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“Otherwise, I would love to have I Wish I Win run here. I was at the TJ Smith because I was interested in his Coolangatta form (through the Lightning S.). I Wish I Win is a six-furlong horse and Peter Moody knows exactly what it takes to win a six-furlong race at Royal Ascot.”
Moody has stated that The Everest is this year part of the grand plan for I Wish I Win (NZ) (Savabeel), but Smith said there is a good chance that conversations will occur about taking the then 5-year-old gelding to England.
“I would also love to see Giga Kick run here,” Smith said. “He’s doing all he can in Australia very successfully, and I wouldn’t say we’ve had indications that Royal Ascot is a possible for him, but he is in the mould of the sort of horse you’d be travelling.”
“I would also love to see Giga Kick run here.... I wouldn’t say we’ve had indications that Royal Ascot is a possible for him, but he is in the mould of the sort of horse you’d be travelling.” - Nick Smith
Smith mentioned Alligator Blood (All Too Hard) too, despite retirement potentially looming for the 6-year-old gelding, but he added that most things become clear by the running of the Lightning S. each February.
“The Lightning S. is when it all starts to come together,” he said. “Normally, after that race, I can have 15 to 20 horses as possibles, but it always ebbs away. Horses lose form and other races become more appealing for individual owners.
“We thought we could get Anamoe this year, and we probably would have had he won the Queen Elizabeth at Randwick.”
Nick Smith is keen to see Giga Kick run at Royal Ascot | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Relationships are the key to this part of Smith’s job. For close to 25 years, he has built up friendships with Australia’s trainers and owners in the hopes that top horses will make the long trip to England for glory.
In that time, he’s watched generational shifts. When once he was communicating with David Hayes, now it’s with Ben Hayes, not to mention the new leviathans like Ciaron Maher and Annabel Neasham who have muscled into territory once firmly held by Chris Waller and Gai Waterhouse.
“My job is more about the people than the horses,” Smith said. “The horses will come and go, often sticking around for two to three years, but the people are there for a long time, so it’s about them knowing they will always be welcome at this meeting.”