3 minute read

Jamie Kah and Prince Of Arran: a match made in heaven

I guess the biggest piece of news to report this week is that we have finally chosen a jockey for the horse and he will be ridden in all his starts in Australia this year by Jamie Kah. There is a little background story with picking her. Last year when there was a possibility that Prince Of Arran was going to get a run in the Caulfield Cup, Michael Walker was not available to ride him because he was already committed to another horse in the race, thinking we weren’t going to run and we had been shopping around for jockeys last year and Jamie had been top of the list then. However, then at the last minute we didn’t end up getting into the Caulfield Cup and ending up going to the Geelong Cup, which Michael was free for. 

So her name was already on the radar and I have had a lot of advice from a lot of friends in Australia and everyone has spoken incredibly highly of her, she’s a Group 1-winning jockey and I think her riding style will suit the horse and when I spoke to her on the phone I was very impressed. I think they will be match made in heaven. 

Another key factor when I was choosing the jockey was that I wanted a jockey who was available to ride in both the Caulfield and the Melbourne Cup and we had a couple of real high-class jockeys ring up, but they were unlikely to be available for both races and I was keen to get someone booked in who would ride him both races as I do feel it is hugely beneficial to build up a bit of relationship with a horse and get to understand them. 

Prince Of Arran’s touched down in great shape
He has arrived in Australia safe and sound and he took the journey like a pro as you would expect him to. He did his last piece of work over seven furlongs on Tuesday on the round gallop on the Limekilns with Dashing Willoughby. Again we led the gallop because my rider has been around there loads of times, while Dashing Willoughby’s rider didn’t really know where she was going. Leading wouldn’t really have suited Prince Of Arran - he is much better when you work him from behind and he has never really been a flashy work horse at home, but he came through it really well and it would have bought him forward a lot and it was great to get him on the grass. 

He looks tight and fit and two weeks and a gallop or two more in quarantine in Werribee and he will be spot on for the Caulfield Cup. I think Jamie is going to pop over and sit on him and have a canter. She won’t gallop him, because I would rather Aled - who has gone over there to look after him - gallops him just simply because he knows how I like them to be worked and stuff like that. 

Big support
Saeed bel Obaida is Prince Of Arran’s owner and he has been a big supporter of mine and he has had horses with me since day one. Prince Of Arran has been a remarkable story for him and the yard, although he has never actually got to see him run in the Cup, he always calls me incredibly excited. It has been great for them and for them and he is probably one of my longest standing owners and he has been with me from the very beginning, so for this horse to keep producing the goods has been incredible. 

I think one of the main reasons for Prince Of Arran’s success is that Saeed bel Obaida has always let me do what I want to do with him and for him to have that confidence in me is great and it makes my job so much easier, and I’m sure it is a huge part in why he has been such a success. 

Stradivarius looks like Enable’s biggest Danger
I really didn’t think Enable would win her third Arc, but the more I think about it the more I think she can do it. The race has no Love now and that is a huge plus for Enable and I am struggling to find anything else in the race that can serve it up to her. She has got so much class and I think she will handle the horrible ground. 

I guess the biggest danger comes from her stablemate Stradivarius. I think a mile and a half on very soft ground, he could be very dangerous. He stays all day and proven on the ground and he proved at the beginning of the year that he has the class for a mile and a half. He has drawn 14 and I can see Olivier Peslier doing the same thing that Frankie did on Golden Horn, where he stayed wide and slots in towards the front. 

I actually don’t think Stradivarius has had the credit he deserves, I think he is an absolute wonder horse and when he gets beaten, which is rarely, he seems to have a good excuse. Frankie’s biggest worry most certainly comes from his stablemate.