Jockeys Russell Baze, Jorge Ricardo and and Halis Karatas are all eagerly
anticipating making their Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup and British debuts at
Ascot on Saturday.
Ricardo, who is the most winning-jockey in the world with more than 10,000
victories to his name, was delighted when he got the call to ride for the Rest
of the World Team in the six-race event and is looking forward to competing
alongside some of the best riders in the world.
“It was a great and pleasant surprise for me to be invited to participate in
an event of such magnitude,” Ricardo said. “My hope is that everything will go
well and that we will be victorious.”
The Brazilian is particularly looking forward to riding with legendary jockey
Russell Baze, who is also making his British debut at Ascot on Saturday. Baze is
the only current jockey to compare with Ricardo in terms of victories, having
recently become the second rider to reach 10,000 winners.
“I had a fierce desire to meet and get to know Mr. Baze, who is an
outstanding jockey,” Ricardo admitted. “It’s a real pleasure for me to meet
someone like him who has had so many victories and it is an honor for me to be
on the same team.
“I have known about Mr. Baze for a number of years because I was told when I
was approaching a certain amount of winners that someone else was also near the
same figure in the U.S., but he was just behind me.
“I never imagined that I would achieve 10,000 victories. For me, every
victory is different — a different joy and a different feeling. The turf is my
home.”
Ricardo is also in no doubt about the importance of the Dubai Duty Free
Shergar Cup and is anticipating plenty of interest in the competition from South
America.
“In both Brazil and Argentina, but especially in Argentina, people take a
great interest in racing and particularly the duel between myself and Mr. Baze,”
he explained. “I am absolutely sure that the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup will
enjoy considerable coverage in the media.”
Baze is also excited about riding in the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup and has
nothing but admiration for his South American counterpart.
“It’s fantastic to be at Ascot!” Baze said. “It’s such a wonderful facility
and one of the greatest racetracks in the world. Like Jorge, you can never
forecast winning so many races when you start your career and I am just happy
with the way my career has gone and happy to be on the same team as a person who
has achieved more than I have. I know how much it takes to get to 10,000 winners
and full dues to him for being able to do it.
“It takes a lot of hard work and dedication. I don’t know what it is like in
Brazil and Argentina, but in the U.S., you’ve got to be out there working horses
and staying in contact with trainers so that you can ride the good horses and
ride everyday that you are able to.
“I became aware of Jorge when I was approaching 8,000 winners, when someone
brought it to my attention that there was another jockey who was also
approaching the same mark. So I have been aware of him for about five and a half
years now.
“There’s a website I go on that shows me how many winners I have in relation
to Jorge which I check once or twice a month, but it doesn’t affect the way I
ride and I go out there and ride the same as I would if I wasn’t involved in
this race. I have no real targets with riding and I would quite like to catch up
with Jorge first of all! Right now I am having such a good time and riding such
good horses that there is not even a blot in the back of my mind of quitting.
“We have a year-round circuit and it’s not that hard for me to stay enthused
about the job. I love it and nothing pleases me more than winning while I am
doing it.”
Baze, who has spent his entire career racing around the tight tracks of North
America, is looking forward to taking on the unique challenges of Ascot and
enlisted the help of a former National Hunt champion trainer to aid his
preparation.
“I had Michael Dickinson coaching me a little bit about Ascot,” Baze
revealed. “He put in Tapeta at Golden Gate Fields and he helped me by sending me
a copy of last year’s Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup.
“I don’t anticipate having that much problem with the course. I think that
the horses are probably going to be used to going right-handed, and I am going to
take a little walk around the racetrack and get used to it. It’s such a
departure form what I normally do that I am really looking forward to it. I have
ridden in two-mile races before and it’s like any other race in the fact that it
is down to the horse that’s underneath you that is important. The farthest I
have gone on a straight course is quarter of a mile, but I don’t anticipate
riding over a mile over a straight being such a great problem.”
Turkey’s greatest jockey Halis Karatas, who will be representing the European
team in the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup, is also excited about the prospect of
racing against the two winning-most jockeys in the world and is hoping to do his
country proud in his British bow.
“I would like to express my gratitude for being invited here and to be able
to race at Ascot for the European team,” Karatas said. “I have been racing in
Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia and Dubai, and I have also raced in France. The first
time I got the news that I was going to be racing here, it made a big impression
in Turkey. I am very happy to be here and race against some very nice and very
well-known jockeys.
“In Turkey, we don’t have any races on straight courses, but I don’t see any
problems with riding over a straight mile at Ascot.”