Sea The Stars: An all-time great in a golden era for Irish sprinters

General / Wayne Bailey / 17 August 2009 / Leave a Comment

“So is there any value in a price of 1.37? I’m in this game long enough to realise that there’s no such thing as a banker – but it seems pointless opposing and if I were chalking this one up, I’d have him at 1.25 or lower”

The Cape Cross colt attempts to make it six wins in a row by winning The Juddmonte International stakes at York. Wayne Bailey looks at an amazing 2009 for John Oxx's Derby and Guineas winner...

A few weeks ago, I wrote an article asking if Sea The Stars was one of the greats and that question has been well and truly answered as he's now officially the best horse in the world!

A few years back, Irish hurdlers were enjoying a golden age, but it's now the Flat horses that are raiding all the prizes; and Sea The Stars will take on an all-Irish field in the Juddmonte International at York on Tuesday. As an Irishman, I'm proud of our horses and trainers but it's a shame that there are no British trained horses in the line-up. Indeed, the Irish dominance of the Classic season has been highly pronounced this year - even the Epsom Derby was dominated by horses from the Emerald Isle.

Still, it's refreshing to see Aidan O'Brien challenged now and then, and I remember writing an article some time back discussing the Ballydoyle dominance that prevailed in racing at the time.

The horse came at the right time too for Mick Kinane and he's certainly silenced the doubters. A few years ago, people were telling him he was too old and that he should retire, with some reporters being particularly nasty - but Sea The Stars has given him a 2,000 Guineas and a Derby this year so fair play to Mick for not letting anyone push him out of the game until he's ready himself.

Sea The Stars was last seen taking on the older horses in the Coral Eclipse where he answered any remaining doubts by emulating Nashwan and doing the treble. He ran very strongly as normal, but Rip Van Winkle came very close at one stage and those of us who backed Sea The Stars felt our hearts flutter. As usual, however, Oxx's three-year-old had a few pounds left in him and pulled it out of the bag before it was too late. I wouldn't call it laziness, but he seems to fall asleep a little in front at times and thankfully it hasn't cost him a win as yet. This was one of the best Coral Eclipse renewals in recent years so I'd imagine a bumper crowd will show up to see the colt at York.

The big debate in the lead-up to the Derby was whether he would stay the 1m4f but there were no stamina problems in the end. On balance, the 1m2f in the Juddmonte International looks ideal and he's going to be very hard to beat. Before the Derby of course, there was the 2,000 Guineas and I must admit that the horse had not came under my radar in any serious way beforehand. He went off at [10.47] on Betfair but never traded higher than [9.8] in-running and in retrospect, his win was never really in doubt. Last year, he won at Leopardstown and The Curragh, following his fourth place in his debut maiden race at Irish HQ on 13th of July 2008.

So is there any value in a price of [1.37]? I'm in this game long enough to realise that there's no such thing as a banker - but it seems pointless opposing and if I were chalking this one up, I'd have him at [1.25] or lower. So on that basis; I'd have to say yes, the price is reasonable. There were some ground concerns last week but Oxx is confident that conditions will suit: "I imagine it will be ideal. The track is fair and looks very suitable. He will travel to York on Monday and stay overnight at the racecourse. We will leave tactics to Mick."

Judging by the betting, Mastercraftsman ([3.7])is the only possible challenger following Tartan Bearer's withdrawal - and Set Sail and Georgebernardshaw both trade well above [300.0]. Mastercraftsman is a genuinely good horse but he'll have to put in the performance of a lifetime to reverse the form.

As for the future? Connections have two races planned for later in the year, the first being the Irish Champion Stakes. As we all know, he's ground dependent so I wouldn't go to town with any ante-post bets. Hopefully, his last race of the season will be in the Arc for which he trades at [7.4] on Betfair. That's a fair price considering he's 7/2 with some fixed odds firms. If he does get his two races in, I reckon that will be the end of his career, sadly. That's the trouble with the Flat I suppose, and money has to talk. Oxx has said that they've had 'no discussion' about a stallion career as yet, but he does concede that it's unluckily that we'll see the horse run as a four-year-old.

How much the horse will command is anyone's guess but I'd reckon the figure of 50K per cover wouldn't be too far off. In better economic times, it would have been a good deal higher.

We still have him for now, so roll on Tuesday at York!