Under The Radar: Michael Grassick's three horses to follow

Truth Be Told looks like value now. Easy in hindsight, of course, but Michael Grassick picked him up for 35,000 guineas at the Horses In Training Sale at Tattersalls last October, and that looks like money very well spent.

“You could tell that he was just starting to come to himself for Dermot (Weld),” says the trainer. “He finished off his race well at Gowran on his penultimate run for him, and then he won well at Thurles. Kris (Weld) would be a good friend of mine, and he recommended him to me, so I was delighted to get him.”

Truth Be Told was in good form going into Sunday’s race at Leopardstown. They knew that he was going well at home but, even so, it was still a fact-finding mission. First run for his new trainer, first run since he won that handicap at Thurles in October, switch him off, ride a race.

He was last early on, but that was fine.  He was detached out the back as they left the back straight, all ten rivals still in front of him, and two lengths behind the tenth one. Still last as they turned for home, rider Billy Lee allowed him make his ground among rivals. He had passed two by the time the two-furlong marker went past, and he started to chart his path through, resisted the temptation to wheel to the outside.  

“We expected him to run well,” says his trainer, “and I was happy when he started passing horses. I thought at first that he would run a nice race, maybe run into the places, and we would have been very happy with that. He had to wait for a gap inside the furlong marker, but when it arrived, he picked up well, he hit the line strongly.”

The RaceiQ data on the race is revealing. They didn’t go overly fast up front. Truth Be Told wasn’t the beneficiary of a pace collapse. He had to go and win his race, he had to go and pick up rivals who weren’t stopping. The rivals who finished second, third and fourth behind him occupied the first three positions from flagfall until deep inside the final furlong. Truth Be Told was ninth passing the two-furlong pole, and he was still only seventh with a furlong to run. He covered the final two furlongs exactly a second faster than his fastest rival.

“It was a lovely ride by Billy,” says Grassick, “and it was a nice win for the team at home. Niall McCullagh is in with us four days a week, it’s great to have him and he has done a lot of work with this horse. I was delighted for the owner too, Ken Campbell. He used to have horses with Dad, he was out of the game for a little while, this is his first horse with me and it’s great that he has a nice horse on his hands.” 

Plans are now being drawn up. By Too Darn Hot out of the Street Cry mare Princess Highway, who won the Ribblesdale Stakes for Dermot Weld and Moyglare Stud, as her own dam Irresistible Jewel did before her, he has now won over ten furlongs and over a mile and a half, and he seems to be equally effective over both distances. He could go further, too. An 8lb hike takes him up to a mark of 88, and that looks like a workable mark.

“There’s a 10-furlong premier handicap at The Curragh on Irish Guineas weekend,” says Grassick, “so we might have a look at that. We’ll have a look at Royal Ascot, too, although he might not get in, and the ground might be just too fast for him there, anyway. There’s also a 12-furlong premier handicap at The Curragh on Irish Derby weekend, the Ragusa, and that’s a race that could suit him well.”

Ask Grassick if he was always going to be a trainer, and he laughs. Son of trainer Michael, grandson of trainer Christy, there was an inevitability about his career path. His pedigree runs deep.

His dad trained San Sebastian to win twice at Royal Ascot; the Ascot Stakes in 1998 and the Queen Alexandra the following year. The Niniski gelding was beaten by a neck in the Group 1 Prix du Cadran later that year on his final run for Michael Grassick.

Michael Grassick senior won the Moyglare Stud Stakes with Preseli, he won the Railway Stakes with Flame Of Athens, he won the Harvest Stakes and the Give Thanks Stakes with My Renee.  Young Michael graduated from the world-renowned Irish National Stud course in 2005, and he spent time working in Melbourne before coming back to join his dad as assistant trainer.  In 2013, he took over the licence himself.

The horses are going well now too.  Abletai was only just beaten by Carry The Flag in a maiden at Naas on Saturday.

“He let me down on his racecourse debut at Navan.  He got a bump early on and that lit him up, he didn’t run his race.  He’s the first foal out of Elanora, so it was nice to see him run as well as he did on Saturday.”

The evergreen Verhoyen ran well again to finish fourth in a handicap at Gowran Park last Tuesday.  He is 11 now and, remarkably, that was his 99th race, but he still retains all his enthusiasm.  He could have his 100th race in a 0-80 handicap at The Curragh on Irish Guineas weekend.  

Glory To Be won nicely at Leopardstown, and you can forgive her her run at Gowran last time as she just didn’t handle the track.  She could go for the one-mile handicap at Naas on Sunday.  Last year’s Joe McGrath Handicap winner Gazelle D’Or didn’t get a real run at it in the Listed Woodlands Stakes at Naas last time, and she could take her chance in the Listed Sole Power Stakes at Naas on Sunday. A drop of rain between now and then wouldn't go amiss, though.

“We have a really nice group of horses at the moment,” says Grassick.  “We’re lucky too that we have great staff, and a really good, loyal group of owners. We’re looking forward to the rest of the season now.”

"We were obviously delighted with his win at Leopardstown on Sunday.  He has come out of the race really well.  We’ll have a look at Royal Ascot, but it might be too fast for him there.  He doesn't want extremes of ground.  The Ragusa Handicap at The Curragh on Irish Derby weekend might be a good race for him and, looking further ahead, if he continues to progress, he could be a horse for the Ebor."

"Nothing went right for him on his racecourse debut, so it was great to see him run as well as he did at Naas on Saturday.  I thought that we had Carry The Flag beaten.  It was only when the filly came up on the outside, that seemed to push him forward. We might let him take his chance on Sunday in a winners’ race."

"She won two premier handicaps for us last year.  Things didn’t go her way at Naas on Sunday, she hit a few ridges and she got shuffled back to last.  Then she didn’t have a lot of room when she was trying to make ground on the near side.  She’s in the Sole Power at Naas on Sunday, and we’re hoping for a few showers for her between now and then."