The Ballydoyle of British Racing? Andrew Balding’s Dream, 29 Years On - Cornelius Lysaght
Let me take you back to August 1997 and a pub in Thirsk, North Yorkshire where I was having a drink with a locally-based assistant trainer, who was full of chat about big ambitions for the future.
Soon to finish working under the tutelage of Lynda Ramsden – Mrs JR Ramsden, Sandhutton on the racecard – and her husband Jack, their number two was returning south to his family’s stables ahead of taking over the reins.
At the time, the Ramsdens were amongst the best-known racing figures in the country, renowned partly for the quality of the way their horses were prepared and how they looked (Lynda’s side of things), but much more for the shrewdness of their operation including regular gambles landed (down to Jack).
In fact, the following year the couple – parents of Anthony, the power behind the ownership banner Valmont, and TV presenter Emma – were central to a libel case at the High Court in London when accused by the Sporting Life newspaper of skullduggery with Top Cees, their best horse, which was twice successful in the Chester Cup and also a Cheltenham Festival winner.
After an at times dramatic and headline-grabbing, nineteen-day trial, the jury found for the Ramsdens and jockey Kieran Fallon, and the now defunct paper was ordered to pay damages and costs.
So, it’s reasonable to think that anyone paying attention at the Ramsdens’ Breckenbrough House base should have learnt plenty, and this assistant clearly did, as, nearly thirty years on, he is right up there, probably the largest and certainly the most prolific trainer in Britain – Andrew Balding.
Sitting in Thirsk’s Golden Fleece pub – the models, respectively, for the town of Darrowby and its Drovers’ watering hole in the James Herriot books – Andrew, who himself has enough good stories from working in Yorkshire (some more publishable than others) for several novels, was enthusing about his return home.
He talked about one day challenging the leading trainers, not least Aidan O’Brien – who by 1997 had already established himself at Ballydoyle – and a dream of making the magnificent Kingsclere training establishment the “Ballydoyle of British racing”.
It was in 2003 that Andrew took over from his father Ian, famously notching up a first Classic victory that year, when Casual Look narrowly held off O’Brien’s Irish 1000 Guineas winner Yesterday in a breathless finish to the Oaks at Epsom. Subsequently he has saddled at least 100 winners in eleven out of twenty-four seasons.
Were the trainers’ championship judged on races-won, he’d already be a champion – a first double-century is on the cards for this year – but it’s done on prizemoney-accrued so that summit is yet to be scaled, until, perhaps now, if, that is, you-know-who – yes, O’Brien, of course – can be overcome.
The title race continues until December 31, though October is a crucial month because over £6m is up for grabs at the Future Champions Festival, Newmarket (9th and 10th) and at Ascot’s Qatar Racing British Champions Day (17th); at the time of writing, as race-commentators might say, Balding and his Tipperary rival are “disputing the lead”.
And, on Future Champions’ Friday, Opulence owners, who have been pleased to do their bit in recent years for the ever-growing success story, aim to play a further part as Scommessa Sicura lines up in the bet365 Fillies Mile, a Group One-race worth to the winner a potentially pretty significant £283,550 (before late entries).
Running in the silks of James and Opulence Thoroughbreds, the filly broke her maiden at the July meeting and has been impressively consistent in other runs, twice finishing clear runner-up behind Godolphin’s really exciting 2027 Classic hope Musical Times.
Good luck to her – and good luck to all members of Team Kingsclere. Andrew Balding, champion trainer – yes, it does definitely have a ring to it.