Days before one of the most keenly anticipated runnings of the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes the race’s most famous renewal was remembered at a gathering in London that brought together two old rivals. On Sunday it will be 40 years since Peter Walwyn sent out Grundy under Pat Eddery to win what is still widely known as “the race of the century”, in which two pacemakers did not quite do enough to set things up for Bustino, ridden by Joe Mercer.
Walwyn and Mercer were among the guests savouring afternoon tea among the pink flamingos of Kensington’s Roof Gardens, the latest in a series of imaginative if slightly left-field venues chosen by Ascot for its media events. Mercer suggested he had had no idea when crossing the line in a disappointed second place that he would still be telling the story to the press decades later, having been aboard one of the best remembered runners-up in racing history.
“It was just a day’s work,” recalled the former champion, now 80 and wearing it well. He is proud to have been part of a historic contest but still carries some vestige of regret as he describes the closing stages. “I thought, ‘I’m still going to hold him, I’m still going to hold him.’ Then my horse changed his legs, his tongue came out and he was beat.”
The presence of an exciting Derby winner in the 1975 field was the making of that race and that will be the case again on Saturday, when Golden Horn takes on a clutch of battle-hardened elders. John Gosden, his trainer, said he had been enthralled by Grundy v Bustino, which he watched on television from Warren Place in Newmarket, where he was working for Sir Noel Murless, and spoke of his pleasure at being able to contribute a top-class runner of his own.
“The race did go through a stage where it became one-dimensional. It became a little bit small field, older horses. What grabs me is when the three-year-olds run. That’s what it’s all about.” And indeed Gosden is the only trainer in the past decade to have won the King George with a three-year-old, something he is attempting to do for the third time.
“Bright, cheerful,” was how he described Golden Horn, who has apparently recovered quickly from his fourth win of the year in the Eclipse early this month. “His two favourite habits of eating and sleeping are well to the fore. I’m very happy with the horse.”
Golden Horn is a 1-2 shot with the bookmakers but his trainer spoke at length of his respect for the opposition. “I think they’re a fabulous group. The only one missing is Treve. She doesn’t much like summer ground at Ascot. We found that out last year, so let’s hope all goes well and we can meet her in the autumn.”
That was a reference to the Arc at Longchamp in October, which seems likely to be Golden Horn’s final race before stud. Gosden also anticipates running him in the Juddmonte International at York next month and suggested those may be the only two races his colt has left, with other options like the Champion Stakes as alternatives if anything goes wrong.
Golden Horn having pleased in a breeze up the Al Bahathri gallop on Tuesday, Gosden’s main concern may be arranging jockeys for his other two King George runners. While he would like William Buick for Eagle Top, the second-favourite, Buick is retained by Godolphin, who hope to run Romsdal, also trained by Gosden. It appears some horse-trading has yet to take place on that score.
Even as Gosden talked up his rivals, his rivals were polishing the trophy for him. “To me, Golden Horn should win and the rest of us will fight it out for second place,” said Luca Cumani, who will run Postponed.
Sir Michael Stoute would set a new trainer’s record of six wins if either of his runners were successful on Saturday but said he was just “glad to be in the mix”. He politely declined an invitation to choose the more likely of his pair, Telescope and Snow Sky, but felt Telescope might be excused an unusually poor effort last time at Royal Ascot. “Ryan [Moore] said to forget the race, he just didn’t switch off. It was a muddling pace early on.”
