Flaming Rib is set to represent the Liverpool legend’s Manor House Stables team in the G1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize on Sunday [April 30] at Sha Tin
Hong Kong: Ask Michael Owen ‘what gives you goosebumps?’ and the list of possible replies is endless.
A stunning World Cup goal for England against Argentina in Saint-Etienne during France 1998? Maybe that incredible hat-trick against Germany in 2001 or a host of major trophies and global awards during a Hall of Fame career that started with Liverpool and continued in Madrid, Newcastle and the United half of Manchester?
Any one of the above would be unforgettable for most sportsmen – but the striker who proved ice cold amid fierce footballing heat gets a tingle from something very different nowadays.
“I promise you I get goosebumps every morning when I drive into Manor House Stables,” he says. “I know I’m biased as it’s my baby but I’ve not really seen a facility like it for combining brilliant facilities with a great family atmosphere and space to host friends and clients.”
It’s easy to forget that Owen was a baby-faced 18-year-old when he shook up the footballing world in Saint-Etienne and his racing exploits have been hallmarked by similar precocity.
He was 20 when Etienne Lady gave him his first winner as an owner at Newmarket in 2000; he was 21 on that magical night in Munich’s Olympiastadion; and he was “still only 23 or 24” when he signed the lease on a 170-acre Cheshire farm that is now the ultra-modern home of Britain’s Chairman’s Sprint Prize contender Flaming Rib.
“Looking back, I knew even when Etienne Lady won at Newmarket that it was the start of something serious,” he adds. “One horse soon became multiple horses and making Manor House what it is today has become a lifelong project I’m incredibly proud of.”
Globetrotting stayer Brown Panther remains the horse most closely associated with Owen and the memories of a string of big wins including the Irish St Leger and the Dubai Gold Cup of 2014 and 2015 remain vivid.
“I can’t imagine I’ll ever find another who’ll touch my heart like Brown Panther,” he adds. “He took us all over the world but one of the great things about racing is that it encourages you to look forward and Flaming Rib has shown that he belongs in good company.”
Rib rolls on after Dubai disappointment
Trained by Classic-winning handler Hugo Palmer, the Ribchester colt was one of the best of Europe’s three-year-old sprint division in 2022, with a fine second in the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot a highlight, and his four-year-old passport has already been stamped in Qatar and Dubai.
Class prevailed as he defied stall 12 and a wide trip in Doha’s Dukhan Sprint but the draw turned on its head in the Al Quoz Sprint last month, with Hong Kong raider Sight Success and Flaming Rib finding things tough on the near side as Danyah led home a 1-2-3 in the centre of the track drawn five, six and two respectively.
“We were popping the champagne when we were drawn 12 at Meydan as we thought the near side was the place to be but that wasn’t the case,” adds Owen. “Sight Success was the only one who performed from a high draw and Flaming Rib’s rider Oisin Murphy came back with mud on his face, which doesn’t normally happen in the desert.
“It would have been easy to go to our local track Chester for the race he won last year but we were always hoping to get an invite from Hong Kong and we’ve decided to take the brave man’s route because having a good horse and sending him around the world for amazing prize-money is the thing that excites us all.”
Owen feels a vibrant transfer market is every bit as important in racing as football and has lasting memories of Big Time Baby, who scored three times when trained at Manor House in 2016 before adding five more wins and almost HK$13m in prize-money after heading east to join veteran Sha Tin handler Manfred Man.
“I’ve always loved going to Hong Kong as the passion for racing and football is intense and my business very much has one on eye on the connection we have there,” he explains.
“Big Time Baby was owned by my best friend, another friend, my parents and me and we had a great time with him, winning three nice races including the Roses Stakes at York with Frankie Dettori aboard. We sold him well and I want to see those horses continue to shine as it keeps our business in the headlines and encourages people to come back again.”
Big Time beckons as local heroes lie in wait
Owen watched from 6,000 miles away when Big Time Baby came out of the pack to run the exceptional Mr Stunning close at 28-1 in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize of 2020 and Premier League TV commitments with BT Sport will keep him on home soil again this Sunday.
“The hard bit about being an owner is you can’t have any control over the outcome,” he says. “Racing can tame lions and you won’t last long if you don’t have the right mentality but you put your faith in top trainers and riders and in Hugo and Tom Marquand we’re dealing with two of the best.
“But having Flaming Rib in a race like this has so many touch points beyond just being an owner. He’s a flagbearer for Hugo, who is desperate to shine on the big stage. But he’s also a flagbearer for Manor House and taking on the best in Hong Kong is a huge challenge but also a great opportunity to showcase our business.”
Flaming Rib doesn’t have to win to enhance his reputation in Sunday’s HK$20m($2.55m/£2.05m) contest and hard-nosed Hong Kong punters, whose wariness of Euro sprint raiders is based on long experience, will almost certainly shun him in the way they shunned Blue Point before his tame retreat in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize of 2018.
Logic suggests that Sight Success and the gallant Al Quoz Sprint fifth Duke Wai ought to confirm Meydan form, while the looming presence of last year’s champion sprinter Wellington and his probable successor Lucky Sweynesse make this a formidably difficult away fixture.
But Owen and his horses have played a few of those in their time and, 25 years on from that memorable night in Saint-Etienne, he sums up this one by saying “we know Flaming Rib has to improve at this level but he’s still young and we’re excited about what lies ahead.”
It’s a grounded summary from a man who has been a global star for his entire adult life. But, as with those epic footballing occasions, FWD Champions Day is all about dreams. Well, dreams and, who knows? Maybe even a few more goosebump moments …
• Visit the Manor House Stables website and the Hong Kong Jockey Club website
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