Aberama Gold defies downpour to take Stewards' Cup under Hong Kong-bound Andrea Atzeni success
One thing Andrea Atzeni is unlikely to miss when he relocates to Hong Kong are conditions as challenging as he encountered when landing the Stewards' Cup.
The historic handicap was run on heavy ground following a sudden downpour bordering on biblical, but that did not seem to inconvenience 18-1 shot Aberama Gold, who powered through the mud to follow up his success at York last week.
His Classic-winning jockey is swapping Britain for warmer climes at the end of the month after being granted a six-month contract to ride in Hong Kong. It was a decision driven by his struggles to find good rides since turning freelance this year, although by less exacting standards he has still had a productive season with a number of Group successes.
"I sat down with a few people and came to the conclusion it was the right time in my career," said Atzeni. "Since freelancing, things have not been easy. They've not gone badly but unless you're a leading rider or riding big winners every week it's very hard to make money riding in this country."
The Stewards' Cup is not the biggest race Atzeni has won but it will remain among his more memorable given the conditions. Before the race, trainers tried to time their runs to the saddling boxes to avoid the worst of the rain, while some of the jockeys seemed a little reluctant to leave the warmth of the weighing room.
This £250,000 contest was inaugurated a year after the Grand National and it ended up being run on ground better suited to three-mile chasers than sprinters, but the David O'Meara-trained Aberama Gold relished the test and narrowly denied Apollo One.
"We didn't think the ground would be an issue," said Atzeni. "He won quite nicely at York. He travelled well into the race and I tried to hold on to him as long as I could. It was very testing and it felt like a long final half-furlong. I felt comfortable but you never know how much they'll find on this ground – when you're riding for David in this race you've always got a big chance."
'We're going to miss Keith'
The race has always set a high bar for punters with a habit of producing big-priced winners and this year was no different. There are any number of variables to consider when trying to find the winner but they often come from familiar sources, and O'Meara scored in 2020 with Summerghand, who was withdrawn down at the stalls this time.
O'Meara was quick to deflect praise to Aberama Gold's former trainer Keith Dalgleish, who earlier this year announced he was quitting the sport to spend more time with his family.
"I've inherited a very good horse off Keith Dalgleish," said the trainer. "It's his third start for me now – I can't take a great deal of credit for him. His owner Evan Sutherland and former trainer know him far better than I do.
"We're going to miss Keith. He'll be a loss to Scottish racing and it could just have easily been him standing here."
Aberama Gold scored by three-quarters of a length and crossed the line alongside the loose horse Rumstar, who unseated his jockey at the start.
"The loose horse was a bit of a concern early doors but late on he might have helped," said O'Meara. "For a big heritage handicap like that Andrea described it as going pretty smoothly. The last half-furlong felt like a long way but he travelled beautifully when those around him came off the bridle.
"The Ayr Gold Cup will be a good target and between now and then I'm not certain as there's a bit of time. I'll speak to Evan, who is good at figuring out where he likes to campaign horses. He's not a mudlark but wouldn't want it rattling fast."
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