Sea The Stars, The Real Deal
Sea The Stars wins a pat of praise from jockey Michael Kinane
after winning the Eclipse. Getty Images
Fifty-year-old jockey Michael Kinane said he found the reason to keep riding when Irish trainer John Oxx introduced him to Sea The Stars Ire (Cape Cross Ire) two years ago.
Kinane and Oxx both recognized that STS is the horse of their lifetimes. Both feel it a privilege just to be associated with him.
Together the threesome have equaled the 20-year record of the great Nashwan's Triple Crown of a Guineas, Derby and the Coral Eclipse.
Each race is of a different distance: a mile, a mile and a half, and a mile and a quarter (or lm, 1m 4f and 1m 2f respectively).
These are the most desirable distances for a future stallion to win so STS' value has just skyrocketed (see adjacent column written before he won the Triple Crown) as well as that of his brilliant sire Cape Cross Ire (Green Desert USA) who is currently standing at Kildangan Stud Ire for 35,000 Euros.
No doubt Sheikh Mohammed will be even more determined to buy Sea The Stars to join his Darley sire when his racing career is over.
Not only was the Coral Eclipse the final leg of a Triple Crown, but the easy and authoritative way the race was won indicates that no one knows STS' limits least of all his awed trainer.
Unflustered and gentlemanly Oxx admitted that his nonchalant horse was really calm and he himself was only a good actor.
Today STS' critics lost several arguments they made over The Derby. This race was not run to suit his class and speed and he was also properly challenged at the right time by a much-improved fellow three-year-old Rip Van Winkle Ire (Galileo Ire).
The critics will, however, never be satisfied until the horse wins another 1 mile 4 furlong race proving his stamina (as if The Derby was not enough).
Then STS will have to meet all of Aiden O'Brien's best stamina horses on heavy, testing ground and beat them all perhaps at the St Leger distance of 1 mile 6 furlongs.
Oxx recognizes the endless criticism and is considering the King George at Ascot which was also won by Nashwan later this month, but feels it is probably too soon.
"The horse will tell us when he is ready."
His ultimate goal is the Newmarket Champion Stakes in October with at least one race before to keep the horse ticking and he will not be deterred.
He again ruled out the Arc de Triomphe because of its usual heavy ground, but might consider the Irish Champion Stakes.
Otherwise, England's races will get him and England is lucky this time because of its weather--a first.
From the pre-parade ring on, Sea The Stars was a winner with his second Rip Van Winkle his true rival. The others did not impress.
When they all paraded before the stands and galloped off to the starting gates, Sea The Stars who came out second last, passed most of them with his long, effortless, loping canter.
The grace and beauty of his rhythmic canter is what I shall dream when I have trouble falling asleep.
Once the 1 mile 2 furlong Eclipse started, the two pacemakers for Rip and Conduit Ire (Dalakhani Ire) thought they were the battling winners amusing the crowd until the last few furlongs when they faded back leaving Sea The Stars exposed in front too soon with no others joining him.
It is not his favourite position as he tends to only want to win by one or two lengths. It left him vulnerable.
Finally, the valiant Rip came at him with everything he had getting within a half length until Kinane gave STS a reminder tap or two and he glided away winning by a length.
Conduit, the second favourite and a 130 rated four-year old, was 4-1/2 lengths behind Rip.
Rip's connections seemed devastated. I have never seen Aiden O'Brien so downhearted. He did later brighten.
His horse was a promising two-year old, but seemed to lose his way this year until today.
Despite Rip's suffering his third defeat to STS, O'Brien has sorted his problems and brought his horse to his potential.
He did beat all the other horses by 4-1/2 lengths and will win a big race soon if he avoids Sea The Stars.
In fact, many will be avoiding Sea The Stars who earned his owner another £283,850 for a race that seemed to take very little out of him.
Unfortunately, it was all too much for STS' owner Christopher Tsui from Hong Kong who briefly fainted in the heat and excitement. He recovered to accept the trophy.
STS did not need to recover. Oxx said their horse likes to burst out of the stalls and sprint for the first five furlongs.
STS just loves his speed, but Kinane has managed to conserve his energy until the end of his races.
If Kinane can continue to do that, no stamina horse will ever pass him. Sea The Stars will just glide away with that fast, long stride of his--as he did today.
The sky and stars are the only limits on his talent.
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