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| Staff Writer |
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Golden Rules owner Gareth Cheshire has his sights set on the Ebor for his star stayer despite having doubts that his horse will make the cut for the prestigious York handicap. Trained by Deborah Faulkner, the former John and Thady Gosden runner made a winning start for his new connections at Kempton in March after a long lay-off. He then went on to come close to justifying the team’s supreme confidence ahead of the Northumberland Plate when he won a silver medal in the Gosforth Park marathon.
The Ebor has been the ambition for the 97-rated gelding ever since, however, the fragile 6YO is not guaranteed a place in the £500,000 contest which has a maximum field of 22, even though he has been as short as 12-1 for the one-mile-six-furlong showpiece in August.
Golden Rules' Quest For Glory: The Ebor Handicap
There is no doubt that the Ebor is one of the most prestigious handicaps in the racing calendar, and it is no surprise that Golden Rules' connections are eager to see him compete. The race is held annually at York Racecourse and has been run since 1843, making it one of the oldest and most iconic races in the world. The handicap is open to horses aged three and older and is run over a distance of one mile, five furlongs, and 188 yards.
The Ebor is one of the richest handicaps in Europe, with a total prize fund of £500,000. The race has a maximum field of 22 runners, and horses are allocated a weight based on their official rating. The top-rated horse is given the most weight, with the others being assigned weights in descending order.
It is not surprising that Golden Rules' connections are eager to see him compete in this prestigious race. However, with the maximum field of 22, there is no guarantee that he will make the cut. Regardless, the team remains hopeful that Golden Rules will be able to secure a place and compete against the best horses in the world.
“He’s the love of my life and the stuff of dreams,” said Cheshire.
“He’s been fine since Newcastle and he’s been tipping away. I leave everything to Deborah and Tom (Faulkner) and our vet and as I’ve said before, you just have to mind him. We take each day as it comes and we are doing what we normally do. We take it day by day with him and he is a superb horse.
“I don’t think we’ll get in the Ebor. We will make any further plans after the Ebor is out of the way because he is qualified for the all-weather final at Kempton, but I don’t really know. We’ll get the Ebor out of the way, whether he’s in or out, and go from there.
In the days before the Northumberland Plate, Cheshire gained attention for confidently asserting his horse's potential. Golden Rules almost proved him correct, coming close to finishing ahead of the winner, Calling The Wind, after facing unfortunate obstacles along the Newcastle home stretch.
However, he explains he had plenty of reason for the confidence and said: “I don’t spend as much time at the yard as I would like to, but I was convinced he would be in the first three.
“Having lived on and off with him for two years and the way he won at Kempton and the feedback from Oisin Murphy had me really confident.
“Oisin Murphy, one of the leading riders in the world, was really happy to come and sit on him at home which tells you something and the last piece of work he did, Oisin said to us ‘just get him to the Plate, that will do’.”
Cheshire's admiration for Golden Rules knows no bounds. According to him, the horse is the best he has ever been involved with. Despite being purchased for 6,000 guineas in the autumn of 2021, the owner showed remarkable patience and perseverance in getting his charge to the racecourse after a long layoff of 638 days. Cheshire credits his training team based in South Wales and his vet for their tireless efforts in nursing Golden Rules back to peak condition.
He added, “The reason I got him for 6,000 was because he had a problem and my vet and the training team have done amazingly. He’s done more miles in the pool than Mark Spitz and they have done a magnificent job. Every day with the horse is a bonus.
“He’s like one of these superstars who will sign autographs and have selfies done, Golden Rules is a complete gentleman. They say never meet your heroes, but he is like meeting your hero and they turn out to be a nice bloke as well.
“I’m very lucky to have him and every time I see him, I tell him he’s Grandad’s favourite and feed him his apples. I’ve had racehorses since I was five years old and you wait a lifetime for a horse like him. I don’t think I will find another one.”