3 minute read
Trainer Wesley Ward was full of praise for jockey Frankie Dettori after he and five-year-old Undrafted got up near the post to win the Group One Golden Jubilee Stakes.
The winner, a 14/1 shot who scored by half a length and one and three-quarters of a length from the Australian runner and 7/2 joint-favourite Brazen Beau, and 25/1 outsider Astaire, became Ward's fifth Royal Ascot winner, but his first by a horse older than two. Undrafted carried the colours of American football star Wes Welker, who was unable to travel to Britain and was represented by his racing manager, Gatewood Bell.
Ward, who has yards in California and Florida, but has become by far the most frequent international trainer at Royal Ascot, described the victory as the biggest of his career, yet it came after a fraught night spent with his young daughter who was taken ill and admitted to Frimley Hospital. She was not kept in this morning and they both attended the races today.
Ward said: "We were in Frimley hospital all last night. I don't know what happened but my daughter got a touch of the bell's palsy. It's unbelievable and really special for this little girl, she really wanted to come out here and we were all night in the hospital. Fortunately enough, Derrick Smith sent over a wonderful doctor and we are here today to enjoy this special moment. It didn't look like we were going to make it but we did.
"I am just elated. This is the biggest race I've won - I've won Breeders' Cups and races here in the past, but to come here and be presented with a Group One trophy by the Queen was such a fantastic experience.
"The horse has been training unbelievably well and every week has been firing bullets at Keeneland, but I'll tell you what, Frankie is superb. You can have a Porsche against Porsches, but you still gotta have the right guy [at the wheel] and this is a magical guy. He's just a cool sitter and a go-getter as they say.
"It would have been so easy to lay up with this horse, but Frankie just sat back there, got him wide and came home with the rest. It was fantastic.
"Gatewood Bell, a wonderful bloodstock agent, picked the horse out as a yearling and I broke him in. Wes has been a dream owner and a fantastic guy to train for - it was like I owned the horse because I could do anything with him from the time he came to me. One of the reasons for the success is that if I want to give the horse a winter off like I did last year he's happy for that. It's a shame he's not here today.
"He's a tremendous horse at the top of his game. I've been on the phone to Frankie for weeks and weeks, telling him how good the horse is. I felt that given the right ride over the right trip we could get the job done and we did. We're going to sit down and talk about the July Cup [at Newmarket], but no decision has been made."
Undrafted is now 6/1 from 14/1 for the July Cup with Betfred and Paddy Power. Brazen Beau is Paddy Power's 4/1 favourite.
Frankie Dettori continued his outstanding recent run when winning the Diamond Jubilee Stakes aboard the Wesley Ward-trained Undrafted.
"I won this as a Group Three but not as a Group One so it was something that was missing on my CV," said Dettori. "He struggled in the soft ground in the July Cup last year but he flew by me in the Breeders' Cup when I rode No Nay Never.
"He jumped out of the gates like an American horse but I took a pull as I didn't want to get there too early. I was trying to save a bit for the end. I kept an eye on the Australian horse and we kicked on, I knew it would take a good one to get by him. When you sit on a sprinter like that you get a great feeling.
"I didn't want to kick too soon because I was going so well. I kept an eye on the yellow colours but, every time this horse runs, he finishes strong so I saved the last bit for the end and it proved me right. I knew that I had won.
"Wesley is a very, very good friend of mine and a big supporter of mine. Nothing gave me more pleasure than winning this race for him."