I WANT TO BE KING OF THE JUMPS
SAYS LEADING TRAINER DAN SKELTON
IF YOU want an idea how the mind of Dan Skelton works, listen to why he has just installed a round six-furlong deep sand canter track at a stable which would already be the envy of most of his trainer colleagues.
‘The majority of bigger races we have won have been over two miles — a County Hurdle twice at the Festival, the Ladbroke Hurdle and the Scottish Champion Hurdle,’ says the 33-year-old.
‘I don’t want to become known as a two-mile man. I want to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup and Grand National one day. So we’ve put in something which will promote more stamina. I think it is already noticeable. It’s a business strategy.
‘If you run a car outlet and are falling behind on service but your sales are great, eventually your service will affect your sales numbers. We have to recognise we are running a business and we have to provide the full package.’
That ‘full package’ has delivered in spades for Skelton this season, his stable operating as smoothly and effectively as a V8 engine. He leads the trainers’ championship, his 517 runners and 118 wins being double the number of the busiest and most successful of his nearest rivals. And the £ 100 Skelton needs to be the first trainer to reach £ 1million in prize-money this season could be won at Wincanton this afternoon.
Within those figures, there is also a record. When Skelton reached his century for the season with the win of Sam Red at Cheltenham on October 26, he beat the record time for reaching three figures set by Martin Pipe in 2001 by nine days. No wonder Skelton says: ‘I love numbers.’
The son of renowned Olympic gold medal showjumper Nick Skelton concedes the Pipe record of 243 wins in a jumps season is probably beyond him. But another numerical landmark — being only the second British stable to top 200 wins in a season — is within his reach.
Skelton, who has entered Aux Ptits Soins — the Cheltenham Festival winner once trained by Paul Nicholls — at Haydock on Saturday, may keep the talented but fragile gelding for the Ladbrokes Winter Festival at Newbury, which starts a week tomorrow.
‘I know the most winners Martin Pipe had in a season was 243,’ he said. ‘I don’t think it is possible but no other jumps trainer in the UK has got past 200. I would love to do that. The first 100 was done with horses bought to win a number of races. The second 100, if it was done, would be with horses which have big race targets. It will be a lot harder.’
Skelton’s drive is fuelled by the enthusiasm evident since he became pupil assistant to 10- time champion trainer Nicholls, a role he admits was at first better described as ‘gofer’.
To emulate Nicholls is now the aim, winning bigger races and being a championship contender. His wish to accumulate as many successes as possible in the opening months of the season is part of Skelton’s plan to manoeuvre into a position to challenge the current trainer kings of jump racing.
‘Racing very much supports the heir apparent,’ Skelton says. ‘When I was working for Paul and he kept getting beaten by Martin Pipe in the trainers’ table, it was presumed the next man to be champion trainer was Paul Nicholls. That happened. When AP McCoy retired, it was assumed the next man to be champion jockey was Richard Johnson. That happened. You can’t just spring out of the pack. We have to prove ourselves, get ourselves as high up in the table as possible and maybe our time will come.’
While being champion trainer is Skelton’s ambition, making stable jockey brother Harry champion would give him more satisfaction. Remarkably, older brother has supplied younger brother with 110 of his 113 wins this season but Harry still trails reigning champion Johnson by 18.
Dan said: ‘I’d love to get Harry in a position where he could be champion but this year has proven I can’t do it by myself. Despite the fastest 100, Dicky has still got him in his pocket. It is a bit of a wake-up call. What do I do, build another yard?’
Given Dan’s record, you wouldn’t put it past him!