DUBAI WORLD CUP - MESSARA'S MIDAS TOUCH

By Graham Potter | Saturday, March 30, 2013

Late last year John Messara expressed an interest in purchasing the 2011 Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom, primarily as a stallion to stand at Arrowfield Stud.

Barry Irwin, the CEO of Team Valor entertained the idea and ultimately a seventy-five percent interest in the prospective stallion was sold to Messara.

The details of the change of ownership included an undertaking that Animal Kingdom would start his stud career in Australia in September 2013 and that he would shuttle to the northern hemisphere during its breeding season to a country of Messara’s choice.

To say that Messara has a midas touch in such matters would probably be an understatement.

His intuition has brought him success and wealth in a world where a whole range of pitfalls wait to trip up the less fortunate and, with Animal Kingdom, yet again, Messara’s instinct has done him no harm with the colt’s win in last night’s $10 million Dubai World Cup already substantially boosting the horse’s value as a stallion.

Animal Kingdom not only added the Dubai World Cup to his list of victories, but he did so in an emphatic manner that underlined his class.

Held wide early in a sedate pace, jockey Joel Rosario was patient enough in gradually angling his mount across to settle off the hells of the front-running Royal Delta.

The leaders held station until approaching the home turn where Rosario gave Animal Kingdom more rein.

The response was immediate and Animal Kingdom sailed past the early leader and quickly put a comfortable gap between himself and the chasing pack.

The race was won there and then.

Red Cadeaux, a Melbourne Cup runner-up, did find a turn of foot of his own after being allowed to loaf early and he chased hard over the concluding stages, coming from well back, but he had to settle for second best on the day as Animal Kingdom’s race and his grip on the outcome remained as firm to the line as it had been when he first set sail for home.

The win was a credit to trainer Graham Motion and his supportive owners who showed what a bit of patience and perseverance can achieve.

Life hasn’t been all razzle-dazzle for Animal Kingdom.

All went well until the final race in the Triple Crown. After the Kentucky Derby win at only his fifth start Animal Kingdom finished second in the Preakness and then was unplaced in Belmont Stakes.

Immediately after the Belmont injury reared its ugly head and threatened Animal Kingdom’s career on the track.

Nuclear bone scans indicated that something was amiss with the colt's left hock. Further examination discovered a small fissure on the tip of the cannon bone where it joins the lower part of the hock.

A small bone defect below the previously observed fissure on his left hock was diagnosed as a slab fracture resulting in Animal Kingdom not racing again for the remainder of the 2011 season.

The injury was thought to have occurred at the start of the Belmont Stakes when Animal Kingdom was bumped by another horse, after which he clipped heels and stumbled badly and nearly unseated his jockey.

Motion and Team Valor weighed up the options and decided on recovery rather than retirement for Animal Kingdom.

Animal Kingdom did recover from his injury but his return to race action in early 2012 was short-lived as a stress fracture in his pelvis again confined him to the sidelines.

While these setbacks took its toll on Animal Kingdom’s racing career at the time, they in no way diminished Motion’s high regard for the horse or his owner’s enthusiasm for their cause.

Even so, when his connections sat down to plan Animal Kingdom’s next preparation following his aborted return, the fact that they came up with a schedule designed to establish the horse as one of the best thoroughbred in the world emphasised their unwavering belief in his ability.

This schedule included a start in the Breeder’s Cup Mile and the Dubai World Cup.

Motion believed he had an exceptional racehorse in his care and was keen to turn that into a worldwide view by taking on and beating the best.

Following a long layoff, Animal Kingdom announced his return to well-being and confirmed that all of his ability was intact in no uncertain terms by finishing a highly creditable second to Wise Dan in the Breeder’s Cup mile.

The show was back on the road.

The Dubai World Cup was now firmly in focus and it was now that Messara and his Arrowfield Stud entered the picture. It was to prove good timing.

On February 9 this year Animal Kingdom finished second to Point Of Entry in Gulfstream Park Handicap in his warm-up for the world’s richest race and, as they say, the rest is history.

“A lot of people might have told me that I was crazy,” Motion said when commenting on the lofty Breeder’s Cup / Dubai World Cup mission, “but in his training he did things that I’ve never seen a horse do. That’s what gave me confidence.

“It was fantastic. He's just an extraordinary animal. He reminded me very much of the Derby, the way he won. It was the same kind of run he made, turning for home. He just seemed so confident and so full of running."

The next move has yet to unfold. Royal Ascot would be the next option if Animal Kingdom, now a five-year-old, is to continue his career but Messara has confirmed that he would have discussions with Team Valor and trainer Graham Motion before any firm decision is made on the horse’s racing future.

"We came into this horse basically as a stallion proposition," Messara said. "It's been great to win this race and certainly underpinned his stallion value.

"It would be one step further if he went to England and won at Royal Ascot. But there are risks and logistics involved."

For now though, the confidence that Motion spoke about, the willingness of Team Valor to back their trainer’s judgement and the instinct of a Messara has put the name of Animal Kingdom in the history books on a prominent page where his trainer always thought he should be.

For all of us down under, when Advance Australia Fair, the national anthem of the majority owner of Animal Kingdom was played at the trophy presentation ceremony, it created a memorable moment for the racing industry in Australia.

Racing events don’t get much better than this and the exposure gathered from this wonderful night of racing at Meydan and the world-wide coverage the event receives will have done the cause of Australian racing the world of good.

That’s good enough reason for us to celebrate the win with the Animal Kingdom team!

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