All is forgiven as Gosden and Dettori land Ebor

Molly Hunter
August 20, 2022 5:00 pm

Ascot seems a distant memory after Trawlerman wins.

At Royal Ascot there was a falling out between two of racing’s leading figures, John Gosden had taken issue with Frankie Dettori’s Gold Cup ride aboard Stradivarius and had not been reticent in sharing those thoughts.

Trawlerman, meanwhile, was in the midst of a conflict of his own, his adversary an inanimate one as he had taken a distinct and enduring dislike to the starting stalls.

At Glorious Goodwood the gelding was victorious twice within the space of a few minutes, firstly in his run-in with the stalls and secondly in the Coral Summer Handicap, which he won by length under 5lb claimer Benoit De La Sayette.

The former episode earnt him a BHA-mandated stalls test before he could run again, and in the Sky Bet Ebor Handicap at York he was permitted to head to the start before the rest of the field in an attempt to keep the toys inside the pram.

Drawn in stall 20 and reunited with Dettori, himself reunited with Gosden, the bay started from a wide berth and stayed there for five furlongs, a lone figure until the first bend came and he eased across and settled into the lead.

Frankie Dettori riding in after victory aboard Trawlerman (Mike Egerton/PA)

Paddy Twomey’s Earl Of Tyrone, well-fancied at 5-1, waited in his slipstream and Global Storm was well-placed on the rail, but as the race unfolded it was Alfred Boucher, a winner on the same track just three days ago, who weaved his way through the field to challenge.

The grey looked poised to land an impressive Knavesmire double when leading at the furlong pole, but inch by inch Dettori ate into his lead until it was left to the judge to count the pixels in a photo finish.

Trawlerman’s fist was lifted, a short-head success that evoked memories of his sire Golden Horn’s bold, wide-running victory under the same jockey in the 2015 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

“We did in 2015 in the Arc, we did it with Muntahaa here in 2018 with Jim Crowley, winning the Ebor,” Gosden said.

“Once the draw came out, Frankie and I looked at each other. We didn’t have to say anything, we knew what we were going to do.

“He rode him beautifully, he did look rather solitary out there but it’s not a bad tactic – you’ll see about eight of them do it next year.”

It was well-deserved praise for the Italian, a more harmonious post-race review after tensions earlier in the season that have not quite become old news.

“The only reason it ever happened is because I couldn’t get his attention, I couldn’t get him to concentrate – that’s all,” Gosden said of the fall out.

“In the end it required a bit of a public warning, that’s the way it is. He was left on the bench, if you were a football manager.

“Look how he’s just ridden two fantastic races today, he’s won the hugely valuable City of York Stakes and this.

Trawlerman (centre) on his way to an Ebor win (Mike Egerton/PA)

“When our man’s in the zone, he’s absolutely top class. When he’s not in the zone he’s a menace!”

Less menacing on the Knavesmire was Trawlerman, who gave the starting stalls some respite and now has a global array of options with regards to his next run.

“They let us go to the start early because if he loses it and gets a temper on, he can destroy any starting gate, let alone anyone around it,” said Gosden.

“He’s quite a challenge, our boy, we’ve always liked him a lot and I thought he might make a Leger horse but it didn’t quite come to be.

“I’ll have to talk to the horse, see what he wants to do next.”