Team Valor Splitting Staying Colts

The Team Valor International green and red silks have long been a familiar sight on the European turf, and they have been carried in recent years by the likes of Euro Charline (GB) (Myboycharlie {Ire}), Capla Temptress (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}), Panama Hat (GB) (Medicean {GB}) and Devant (Fr) (Showcasing {GB}) as well as Axana (Ger) (Solider Hollow {GB}), a Group 3 winner in Germany last month.

Team Valor's British roster this year also includes a pair of ascending 3-year-old stayers in Spanish Mission (GB) (Noble Mission {GB}) and Technician (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}). While both hold entries for the St Leger, they will be split for their next starts, with Spanish Mission set to head to Belmont Park in New York for the inaugural $1-million Jockey Club Derby on Sept. 7-news first reported by Racing Post on Tuesday–and Technician lining up in the Leger at Doncaster the following weekend.

Team Valor's Barry Irwin said the decision on where to place each colt was straightforward.

“Spanish Mission wants it firm and Technician wants it soft,” he said. “We put them both in the St Leger and I also told [the New York Racing Association's] Martin Panza that I wanted him to keep an eye on both horses and as we got closer to the race we'd make a decision. As things stand now we want to run Spanish Mission in the race at Belmont because he likes it firm, and we're hoping like hell it rains in England so we can have a bit of a shot with Technician in the St Leger.”

Spanish Mission is trained by David Simcock and owned by Team Valor in partnership with fellow American Earle Mack. He was bred by St Elias Stable and was a $125,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase by Barry Lynch before being bought back for 60,000gns at last year's Craven Breeze-Up sale. Team Valor and Mack purchased him privately after he broke his maiden at second asking going 2000 metres at Chelmsford last November. He won the 2600 metre G3 Bahrain Trophy S. at Newmarket on July 11 and was third in the Aug. 1 G3 Gordon S. dropped down a furlong at Goodwood.

Spanish Mission is from the first crop of Noble Mission, and would be looking to provide his sire with a 3-year-old big-race double after Code of Honor won last weekend's GI Travers S. The Jockey Club Derby is the third and final race of NYRA's new Turf Trinity series for 3-year-old colts, with each leg worth $1-million.

“Spanish Mission, the jockey [Jamie Spencer] keeps saying that he's got stamina, the farther he goes the better he'll be, but don't think of him as being distance-limited,” Irwin said. “When he won on him the last time he said if this race was 10 furlongs, he'd have won anyway. He's a pretty versatile horse.”

Technician was bred by Barronstown Stud and bought by Dermot Farrington for €40,000 at Goffs Orby. He made his first two starts for owner David Caddy and trainer Martyn Meade before Team Valor purchased him privately, leaving him with Meade. Technician earned his first black-type win in the Listed Prix Ridgway at ParisLongchamp in June, and after a tame sixth in the Gordon at Goodwood he put it all together to win the G3 Geoffrey Freer S. over a soft 2700 metres at Newbury on Aug. 17.

“Technician has talent, but he's an in-and-outer,” Irwin said. “The in-and-out respect of it is because we tried him on some tracks that didn't suit him and the ground wasn't to his liking. I wouldn't say he's a clumsy or awkward horse, but he needs that confidence in his footing. When he ran at Goodwood [in the Gordon], with the camber of the course, he'd stop, start, stop. The next race was over a relatively flat surface on a galloping track on soft turf and it all came together and he showed what he could do.”

Meade added of Technician, “It was a fantastic run at Newbury, and I was very pleased with how he did it. The second horse [Morando] came to him and there was plenty of opportunity for him to chuck it in, but he really battled on well, which was great to see.”

Of the Leger, for which Technician is around 20-1, Meade added, “It will be a huge ask–he'll need to improve quite a lot from the run at Newbury–but if you're not in you can't win and hopefully there'll be a bit of cut in the ground because that will suit him.”

Irwin admitted he is not one to think too far ahead with racehorses, but said the holy grail for stayers in Australia would be a dream for both horses.

“I'm not one of these long-term strategists, I just think it's very difficult,” he said. “With both of them, though, we feel very lucky because they're horses that look like they're going to get better with age, and the long-range hope for both of them would be the Melbourne Cup.”