Inside Track: The O’Brien's: Like father, like son
Inside Track with Joe Carroll
One of the highlights of the trip myself, a daughter and a grandson took to Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle stable at the beginning of the year was meeting the guv’nor himself.
There were about 50 in the party, and he had a handshake for everyone. I wrote about the outing here, and said I had asked O’Brien for one to follow.
That wasn’t true, but I’m now sorry I didn’t pick his brain. Goodness knows, it would have been very difficult for him not to come up with a winner.
As in many other seasons, the Ballydoyle colours are being carried to victory, many of the big races going to horses bred, fed and trained to perfection in the County Tipperary countryside.
Several of this year’s Classic winners in this country, the one next to it and France have had ‘A P O’Brien’ after their name, and it’s almost certain there’ll be more to come before the season is out.
English Flat racing’s pride and joy, the five-day Royal Ascot meeting, was staged last week, and again O’Brien was prominent among the winners. When he wasn’t picking up the prizes, his son, Joseph, was among the other trainers who were.
You don’t really need to have an interest in racing to appreciate what the O’Briens are achieving. Dad presides over the world’s greatest winner-factory, and you wouldn’t get big odds on junior, who has a separate base, succeeding him.
O’Brien senior has now accumulated a scarcely believable 100 Royal Ascot winners. You can be sure that when interviewed after most of them, he wasn’t slow to spread the credit, giving recognition to those back home, the lads and lassies who ride out the horses each morning, and feed and groom them.
If that doesn’t sometimes sit well with the interviewer, you can be sure it doesn’t bother O’Brien. He’s going to do it anyway, knowing how much it would mean to those who are named. And it could be that he enjoys it.
Once again, O’Brien finished top trainer at the meeting. In second place, beaten in a photo-finish was Joseph. Talk about keeping it in the family.
And the British racing establishment and the racegoers in the 70,000-plus present each day at Ascot? Those around the winners’ circle didn’t exactly clear their throats when an O’Brien winner made its way back, but were in full voice when it was one of their own.
The big British meetings, the National Hunt and the Flat, have an Ireland v England element to them. Now, and over the past number of years, the spoils have gone for export, Aidan O’Brien doing the business when there are no jumps to be taken, and Willie Mullins when they are.
Mullins, however, must have found some favour. He was in one of the carriages for Thursday’s Royal Parade, looking completely at home in his topper and tails.
But then he is royalty in National Hunt racing on both sides of the Irish Sea, and is not out of place among winning trainers at the Breeders’ Cup, America’s top Flat meeting.
Expect Aidan O’Brien getting the same recognition – but not anytime soon. Devoting his time on raceday to saddling horses and instructing jockeys remains his preference.