Just what does it mean to ‘improve’ a racehorse? We as members of the racing fraternity understand what improvement looks like, we can see it clearly almost each week as former gallopers from one stable pop up somewhere else under the care of a new stable and turn around their former rogue ways.
So just what is it that takes place in the transfer from trainer A to trainer B that can produce form reversals often outside market expectations?
Notwithstanding the fact that many transferred don’t find any change, some no doubt keep sliding backwards, it’s the Bobans of this world that require further investigation.
A transfer from the stables of Anthony Freedman sometime after last year’s spring carnival to the booming stables of Chris Waller has seen this four-year-old son of Bernardini cut a swathe through the ranks of so many others who, up until 12 months prior, he appeared limited beside.
This horse now stands on the brink of being a worthy contender for Horse of the Year, but still all we hear from the wily trainer is he looks to create a ‘happy’ horse, and he likes to give them time.
The logical conclusion to draw from this is that things were rushed at the stables of Anthony Freedman, and contentment of the horse was insufficient to get his best.
Yet we who follow the sport have to assume that alone couldn’t be true, as the Freedman name stands in rarefied company when it comes to this caper.
Time to fess up Mr Waller – more information please! How do you do it? All trainers will be searching to add a little Waller polish to their stables, if the knew what it was, because at the moment the yawning gap is equivalent to the winged keel.
Editor’s note: Boban was also gelded between runs for the Freedman and Waller stables.
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