I MUST admit I have mixed emotions as we head into Ebor week on the Knavesmire.
It’s a brilliant meeting at one of the best tracks in the world.
There are superb horses going for the biggest races — I can’t wait to get started.
But it means my retirement from the saddle is coming ever closer so I want to make the most of every moment.
I’ve always loved riding at the Ebor meeting. It’s the Royal Ascot of the north.
The folk here are so knowledgable. They love their horses . . . or ’Osses’ as they call them!
And I’ve been lucky to win the race the Festival is named after a couple of times.
It took me until 2012 to break my duck though on Willing Foe for Saeed Bin Suroor and, of course, I was lucky enough to be on Trawlerman for the gaffer John Gosden last year.
The team have a big chance of more Ebor success on Saturday with Sweet William this time but Rab Havlin has struck up a great partnership with him and he deserves to keep the ride.
York in August has always been close to my heart. I’ve had some of my biggest highs here.
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It’s almost 30 years since I was lucky enough to ride real greats like Halling and Singspiel to win the Juddmonte International.
Then there was Sakhee in 2001 and another giant in Authorized who won it for me in 2007.
The funny thing was I remember I was sick as a dog with flu on the day of that race — but I still managed to do my flying dismount.
Winning the race was better than any medicine!
The Juddmonte has always been special to me because I remember watching my dad win it on Wollow way back in 1976 when I was a little bambino!
And, of course, I’ll never forget my greatest equine love of all — Enable — who destroyed them when winning the Yorkshire Oaks back in 2019.
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Stradivarius may be best known for his Royal Ascot exploits but don’t forget he hoovered up three Yorkshire Cups at the Dante meeting and a trio of Lonsdale Cups at this Ebor Festival. What a horse he was.
I’ve even won a St Leger here too! That was on Sixties Icon whilst the stands were being rebuilt at Doncaster.
The good thing about York is that it’s a fair track.
You don’t really get that many hard-luck stories as you see at trickier tracks like Epsom or Goodwood.
I come into the week on a high. Confidence is key and I’m full of it after some nice wins.
I had a super trip to Deauville the weekend before last to win the Jacques Le Marois with Inspiral and then I had a good day at Newbury with Arrest last Saturday.
Fair play to John and Thady for rolling the dice with Inspiral so soon after that heavy defeat at Goodwood. It was a great training performance.
She could go to Ireland next or maybe the Sun Chariot at Newmarket, but her main target will be the Breeders’ Cup.
As for Arrest, he’s booked his ticket to Doncaster for the St Leger next month, a race that is also the target of GREGORY (3.00) who runs in the Great Voltigeur.
He comes here off the back of a good win in the Queen’s Vase at Ascot — that was an important win for me at the Royal meeting and he did the business for me in great style.
He didn’t race as a two-year-old but I think that’s often a good thing as it really gives a colt time to mature.
He’s a real cool character but it’s so hard to know what kind of form he’s in as he does zero in the mornings.
As soon as the alarm goes I’m a bundle of energy but Gregory is so laid back I don’t even think bombs would move him!
I’d like to think that he’ll improve again for that run at Ascot, which was only his third start, but we only know as much as anyone else that’s seen him race.
I can’t tell you he’s burning up the gallops, but let’s hope he can turn it on again on the track.
Then the comes the big one. If I can win the Juddmonte International I will pass my hero Lester Piggott for most wins in the race.
All the talk is about Paddington and, for sure, he is the best three-year-old around.
However my ride MOSTAHDAF (3.35) is rated 3lb higher after his sensational performance to win the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Mind you, that is tempered by the fact we have to give Paddington 7lb in weight for age.
That won’t be an easy task.
I rode Mostahdaf the other day and he’s beautiful.
A really strong, powerful horse, which is what you’d want to see in a five-year-old.
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Paddington is entitled to be a short-price favourite, but Mostahdaf has stepped it up this season and we’ll give it our best shot as we always do!
Frankie was speaking in association with World Pool
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