sprinters/shaquille.

​The proliferation of sprint races is the ruination of flat racing. There, that is my opinion. And the lust for speed by breeders needs to be curtailed in any way possible. As controversial as my comments may be, as out-of-step with horse racing around the world, as they may be, I am convinced the sport is being led down a cul-de-sac by breeders who breed speed to speed. As the trend is going, in a decade or two, four-furlongs will be stretching the stamina of many thoroughbreds.
In general, though there will be outliers who provide evidence to suggest I am wrong, after their lives on the racecourse, except mares, of course, and the lucky few colts that have achieved enough on the racecourse to retire to the stallion sheds, ex-sprinters are very difficult to retrain for any other branch of equestrianism. Pony-sized thoroughbred are, I admit, sought after by players of polo, though not so much the older sprinter, of which there are a great many.
Breeders of sprinters, I believe, are giving no consideration to the after- racing care lives of the horses they breed. Yes, it will be heard that sprinters are greatly valued by racehorse owners in other parts of the world, though not so highly appreciated as milers and middle-distance horses, of which there is a smaller pool of availability. 
The sprint-bred ex-racehorse is unlikely to make for a good ride out hunting. And the majority of sprint-bred horses are too ingrained to go as fast as they are able to make a good fist of things show-jumping at any level from junior rider upwards or eventing or point-to-pointing. And they make poor hurdlers and chasers, though the exploits of Red Rum tell a different story. There will be other exceptions but in general I am correct in my comments.
One of the reasons left unsaid by racing professionals to explain the lessening of competition in the major races on the flat is the fascination commercial breeders have for speed at the expense of stamina. Yet: The highlight of the flat season is the Epsom Derby, a race over 1-mile 4-furlongs. Three of the five English and Irish classics are middle-distance races, with St.Legers verging on being described as staying races. The highlight of Royal Ascot, and has been for 200-years, is the 2-mile 4-furlong Ascot Gold Cup. The highlight of summer is the King George & Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot, which is again a middle-distance race. The greatest prize in flat racing in Europe is the 1-mile and 4-furlong Arc de Triomphe. No race around the world over either of the spring distances falls into the category of a ‘classic’.
The French committed the sin of cutting the distance of both their Derby and Oaks by two-furlongs to appease the vogue for speed, throwing stamina out with the bathwater. There is now a call for Ireland to do the same. Soon the same shout will be heard for Epsom to follow suit. Next it will the Guineas classics reduced to 7-furlongs. The rut has begun. It must be halted. How, my first step would be to take prize-money away from Group 1 sprints and put the saving towards the Group 1 middle-distance races. Positive discrimination. At least, that would be a start. Sod the line of travel in the U.S., Australia and beyond. We need to be breeding stamina back into the blood-lines of the European thoroughbred. Speed is not king; it is the devil. The devilment in our sport.
That said.
As you may have gathered, I am no fan of sprint races, especially two-year-old sprints. Though that is a view for another day. Perhaps tomorrow. And I cannot put a name to any sprinter of my lifetime to have excited enthusiasm in me as has Julie Camacho’s Shaquille. He is a constant source of fascination, be it his demeanour in the parade ring, his attitude going down to the start, how he loads into the stalls and, of course, how he leaves the stalls. He is box-office.
His performance at Royal Ascot in the Commonwealth Cup will be engrained in every racing fan’s memory for a lifetime, even mine. It should have been mission impossible to give away 6 to 8-lengths in a fast-run six-furlong race and to win going away. By the way, anyone harbouring the belief that Oisin Murphy isn’t a wonderful horseman and jockey after the cool, confidant ride he gave Shaquille, needs to re-evaluate everything he or she knows about the sport. Along with Tom Marquand’s ride on the King’s horse, it was the ride of the meeting.
Rossa Ryan, a jockey and young man rising in my estimation by the day, deserves less high praise as he was run away with the middle furlongs of the July Cup and should have admitted the fact in the aftermath of the race. The truth is, Shaquille runs his own races. He’s a star now and doesn’t he know it. Be it James Doyle, Oisin Murphy or Rossa Ryan next on board, be aware, Shaquille will do his thing and don’t think your contribution to the race will over-ride the tactics he wishes to employ. As his groom said in response to Sally-Anne Grassick’s request for a slow walk back to the winners’ enclosure. “He doesn’t really do slow.”
And to think he is ridden at home by that same young lady.
I hope Shaquille stays sound and stays in training as a 4 and 5-year-old as he can only get better and faster as he matures. If he matures. And I hope his breeder and his partners in the horse do not fall to the temptation of selling him for big money. Julie Camacho and her husband and staff are doing a spectacular job keeping a lid on Shaquille’s eccentricities and deserve every accolade going for their achievements so far with the horse that is close to a certainty to become flat racehorse of the year.