Curlin May Tackle World Cup Again
Thursday, 7 August 2008: “Of course!” Jackson exclaimed when asked during an American media teleconference on Tuesday whether he would consider an engagement in the 2009 Dubai World cup for Curlin, who currently is the top-ranked horse in the world as well as America's reigning Horse of the Year.
In announcing that Curlin's next start will be the prestigious Woodward Stakes (Gr.1) over the main dirt track at Saratoga Race Course on August 30, Jackson left the door open to the possibility that Curlin could continue racing next year as a five-year-old and that more international racing could be in his future even before then.
“We've been invited to Japan, we've been invited to Hong Kong, we've been invited to other venues here in North America. We're just going to keep all of our options open,” Jackson said, explaining that the Japanese possibilities include both the Japan Cup (Gr.1) on grass and the Japan Cup Dirt (Gr.1).
While indicating he has decided against sending Curlin to France for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (Gr.1) this year, Jackson expressed his admiration for Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum and his contributions to horse racing as a contributing factor to the chance he and Curlin could return to the UAE in 2009.
Whether Curlin will race next year will depend on his physical condition and also on whether Jackson is successful in working with American racing authorities and other owners in establishing a new competitive league of races for older horses. Such a venture would demand higher purses in order to persuade owners to keep their older horses in training rather than retiring them for breeding and also would require the participation of racetracks in the racing centers of New York and California, he said.
“Right now, the model has to be reversed,” Jackson said, pointing to the lack of attractive purses for older runners and to the declining condition of some American racetracks while off-track betting operators profit. “Thoroughbred owners have to stand up and say, 'Why does the lion's share go to betting parlors?' ”
However, in discussing the possibility of Curlin racing next year, Jackson cautioned that the chances are “pretty slim…but not foreclosed.” He said he also has a keen interest in standing Curlin at stud in America to provide a source of stamina and soundness for a breed that seems to need both attributes.
Jackson downplayed the chances of Curlin defending his win in last year's Breeders' Cup Classic (Gr.1), primarily because the host track this year, Santa Anita Park, is installing a new synthetic surface, the Australian product Pro-Ride, to replace its problematic Cushion Track.
“That's an untested surface and I'm uncertain about it,” Jackson said, adding that more study must be done regarding synthetic racing surfaces and how they are maintained in order to make the tracks more consistent and safer for horses.
In other comments, Jackson maintained that he believes Curlin also could be a champion on turf as well as dirt. He considered the Irish Champion Stakes (Gr.1) as a possible next start for Curlin, along with an American grass race, the Arlington Million Stakes (Gr.1), and the Pacific Classic Stakes (Gr.1) on Del Mar's Polytrack, but said he and trainer Steve Asmussen believed they did not have enough time this year to properly train Curlin for effective grass racing.
Curlin finished second in the Man o' War Stakes (Gr.1)on July 12 at Belmont Park to 2006 Breeders' Cup Turf (Gr.1) winner Red Rocks in his first effort on turf, defeating, among others, 2004 Breeders' Cup Turf winner Better Talk Now.
Jackson also said he would like his champion to run against this year's dual classic winner Big Brown. When asked about recent comments by Rick Dutrow, Big Brown's controversial trainer who contended his colt was superior to Curlin, Jackson said “to run down another guy's horse … it demeans the industry.”
“Curlin couldn't win the (Kentucky) Derby (Gr.1); we could. Curlin couldn't win (the Haskell Invitational Stakes [Gr.1]); we could,” Dutrow told reporters after the Haskell victory on August 3. “Curlin got beat (by) a filly. We haven't. Our horse is undefeated on the grass. Curlin isn't. I don't know why people think Curlin is such a good horse. We're way better than Curlin.”
Plans for Big Brown—which, as stated by his connections to date, include only two more races maximum, with the main goal the Breeders' Cup Classic—apparently will have him sent off to retirement at Three Chimneys Farm in Kentucky before he can run against Curlin, although Jackson said he will be open to listening to proposals from racetrack officials who might want to host a special meeting between the pair.
In the meantime, Jackson said the top factor in deciding Curlin's next race was what he felt was ideal for the horse, and that will remain his criterion for deciding the rest of Curlin's future.
“He's very fit here (at Saratoga Race Course), and more important, he's very happy here,” Jackson said. “What's best for the horse is the best thing to do.”
- Dubai Racing Club News Wire
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