WHILE British racing remains in the icy grip of winter, the well-credentialled Pentire may well fly out to the warmth of the Middle East to prepare for the Dubai World Cup at Nad Al Sheba on March 27. Snow, heavy frost and ice have been the norm during the last bitterly cold week in this part of the world; this has made it difficult for trainers to keep their strings of horses on the move. Of course, the jumpers have Cheltenham in their sights, although with the abandonment of last week's important meeting at the headquarters of National Hunt racing, Gold Cup favourite One Man is to go straight to the Festival without a lead-up run.
As far as horses for the Flat are concerned, those of the bread-and-butter variety have been regularly turning out at Lingfield, Southwell and Wolverhampton, the three all-weather tracks, while the very good ones, such as Pentire, have been limbering up, wherever possible, for the first major international race of 1996.
Newmarket trainer Geoff Wragg reported the weather had delayed Pentire's preparation, although matters had not yet reached the serious stage. 'We missed a couple of canters three weeks ago because of the freezing weather, and then about a week ago, we couldn't get him on the gallops.
'But overall, I'm very pleased with him,' the trainer added, safe in the knowledge that with the sun on his back in Dubai, the talented colt who finished runner-up to Lammtarra in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes, will probably start to blossom. 'It's always difficult preparing a horse for any race, but obviously the big problem in Dubai is that the race is on dirt, a surface he has never raced on. He's been working on the all-weather at Newmarket and is progressing very well,' Wragg added.
Pentire carries the famous chocolate and gold braided colours of Moller Racing, first inspired by 'Budgie' Moller and then carried on by Eric Moller. The brothers, who lived and worked in Shanghai and Hong Kong most of their lives, left money for horses to be purchased and raced in their memory. Not only is Pentire the only English-trained runner in the Dubai World Cup, he is one with a realistic winning chance, provided he handles the surface.
He won six of his seven outings last year, the climax being a victory over Freedom Cry in the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown. As part of the invitation to runners, Sheik Mohammed has offered connections one month's free lodging, with training facilities available, to all horses who wish to travel to Dubai early. With parts of Britain under snow, this is an enticing clause in the conditions.
An ounce of luck is worth a ton of judgment, so the saying goes, but Richard Dunwoody could easily boast an ample supply of both. For this reason, the choice of Flashing Steel as his mount in tomorrow's Hennessy Cognac (Irish) Gold Cup at Leopardstown is worthy of note. The champion jockey's name had also been linked to the promising Imperial Call, conqueror of Strong Platinum over two and a quarter miles at the course on January 13.