SOMETIN SPECIAL
Queally back in big time as Fanshawe star shows his mettle
THE TIN MAN came out on top in the Group 1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes – and delivered jockey Tom Queally his biggest victory since the glory days of Frankel.
Queally’s place in racing folklore is secure thanks to the exploits of the superstar colt, who won all his 14 races – including two at Royal Ascot – for the late Sir Henry Cecil.
By his own admission, the Irishman has found pickings slimmer following Frankel’s retirement in October 2012.
But James Fanshawe-trained 9-2 chance The Tin Man, a top-level scorer on Ascot’s glittering Champions Day card last October, returned Queally to the limelight as he took a neck victory over Tasleet, with 2-1 favourite Limato threequarters of a length back in third.
“You’re only as good as the horse you’re on, and it’s nice to have a horse of this calibre to come to the big meetings with,” said Queally, whose mount was allowed to keep the race – the jockey received a two-day careless riding ban after a 15-minute stewards’ inquiry.
“This is what it’s all about. It’s hard to get rides at meetings like this, and it’s even harder to have winners, so it’s fantastic.
“He’s a great horse and exceptional in this division – he stamped his authority on them.” The Tin Man gets his name from tragic jockey Fred Archer who dominated British racing in the late 19th century – he rode 12 winners at Royal Ascot in 1878 – before shooting himself aged 29 in 1886.
Archer, nicknamed ‘the tin man’ because of his fondness for money, built Fanshawe’s Pegasus Stables in Newmarket – and, legend has it, still haunts it. The teetotal trainer laughed: “When I used to drink, I used to meet up with Fred quite a lot in the evenings! I don’t see him much now – he doesn’t like coffee!”
The Tin Man is notoriously lazy on the gallops, and Fanshawe added: “That was a huge relief – he shows you absolutely nothing at home, but he loves Ascot.”
Yesterday’s winner is on course for a clash with Commonwealth Cup hero Caravaggio in the July Cup at Newmarket on July 15.
OUT DO outdid his 26 rivals to lift the final big betting handicap of royal week, the Wokingham Stakes, at 25-1.