‘I don’t look back’: Pride Of Jenni’s leading man on the ride of his life

When everyone knows what you are going to do, it can hardly be called a secret, but for Declan Bates on Pride Of Jenni, there is a secret world he finds himself against the best horses in the country.

The reigning horse of the year breaks hearts with a relentless front-running style that sets tongues wagging and crowds humming.

Declan Bates celebrates as Pride of Jenni wins the Queen Elizabeth Stakes win.Credit: Getty

Who can forget the 100m lead she set up in her Queen Elizabeth Stakes victory in April in what was hailed as the most amazing performance seen at Randwick in 190 years. She still had 6½ lengths to spare on the line.

The lead might not stretch out to that in the King Charles III Stakes (1600m) on Saturday, but Bates is only worried about keeping her happy.

“Sometimes we are that far in front of the rest of the field, I can’t hear them,” Bates said.

“It is like a track gallop, really. I’m just concentrating on her and keeping her happy. We are in our own world, I’m listening to her breath, and making sure she is in her rhythm.

“I don’t have to worry about anything else with her because if I get that right, she will do the rest.”

The 36-year-old Irishman and former jumps jockey is a latecomer to “the flat”, as he calls it, but has become a crucial part of Pride Of Jenni’s rise. After the past year, he knows Pride Of Jenni is defining his career.

They have won the Empire Rose Stakes, the Champions Mile, the All-Star Mile and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes together since Bates has been in the saddle, using a brazen race plan that dares the opposition to run her down. Most of the time, they don’t get anywhere near her, as was again the case in their last-start win in the group 2 Feehan Stakes (1600m) at Moonee Valley.

“She is the horse that everyone will want to talk about when I finish my career,” Bates said. “She is unique.

“I just know every time I get on her I have to get it right, because everyone is watching.

“You only get one of Pride Of Jenni, so every race is absolutely special.

“When I started my flat apprentice in my 20s I didn’t think I would get a horse like her, and I’m enjoying every ride.”

Pride Of Jenni creates a different atmosphere heading into her races because she becomes the topic of discussion for other trainers and jockeys.

“For me, a horse like Pride Of Jenni shows you have to have a very fit horse to beat her,” Chris Waller offered.

Godolphin’s James Cummings: “She is the horse we have to beat and we have to find a way to do it.”

It is perhaps her biggest advantage because Pride Of Jenni’s tactics play on some of racing’s best minds. Bates’ approach to the Randwick mile on the $2 favourite remains the same on Saturday: his focus is only Pride Of Jenni.

“I don’t have to think about anything other than her,” Bates said. “There is a pressure related to her, but once the barriers open I know what we are going to do.

“I’m not worried about where the rest of the field is, and I don’t look back.

“If she is rolling and I’m happy, that is all that counts”

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