Ribchester to have pacemaker assistance

Trainer Richard Fahey will enlist the help of a pacemaker for Ribchester this season after owners Godolphin transferred five-year-old Toscanini to his Malton yard.

Ribchester made an encouraging return to action on Saturday when finishing third in the Dubai Turf to Japanese star Vivlos by a length. Having hit the front twice during the contest  – which at 1m1f was the furthest he had ever raced – Fahey feels that he must learn to settle better in his races if he is to step up even further in trip this coming QIPCO British Champions Series campaign.

“His problem is that he goes from 0 to 35 mph in four strides at the start of his races,” Fahey told Godolphin.com. “He has been doing it all his life. We will see how helpful it is to have a pacemaker in his races.”

That pacemaker was revealed to be Toscanini, transferred to the yard in December by the owners from the yard of Michael Halford in Ireland. He finished fifth in the 2015 Jersey Stakes at Ascot and had previously landed a Group 3 contest at The Curragh last August.

He will make his debut in his new role at the Al Shaqab Lockinge Stakes on May 20th and the future racing distance of Ribchester could depend on the effectiveness of his new assistance.

“For the time being, the plan is to go for the G1 Lockinge Stakes at Newbury in May, and that will determine whether it is then the G1 Queen Anne Stakes, over one mile at Royal Ascot, or the G1 Prince Of Wales, over a mile and a quarter, in the same week,” Fahey added.

Last year, Ribchester was thrice placed in Champions Series contests, finishing third in both the QIPCO 2000 Guineas and the Qatar Sussex Stakes before being beaten by only Minding on Champions Day in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes.

Picture courtesy of racingfotos.com