Having this year joined forces with his legendary father Nigel, trainer Willy Twiston-Davies discusses his horses to follow for the new season including Beauport, their targets for the season and how hands-on training is with his father declaring that four eyes will always be better than two!
Speaking exclusively to BOYLE Sports, the former jockey also speaks candidly about the struggles in British Racing and whether rising costs are driving people away from the sport, but declares that bargain buys in the horse ring are still possible, just look at Potters Charm!
Horses To Follow
Six To Follow
WTD: Master Chewy: He came in looking the best we've seen him. His work has been probably his best ever. He’s been strengthening up each year.
Potters Charm: He’s done very little wrong in his career. He'll start off in the West Yorkshire next week.
Un Sens A La Vie: He’s very exciting and one of several of those horses you dream about who will step up to be a graded horse.
Masked Man: He was very impressive at Chepstow. He looks very good and could stay further. He could develop into a very smart horse.
Tread Carefully: He’s nearly 17 hands; he was second in his Bumper. He just didn't know what he was doing at Chepstow. It wasn't the ideal starting point; it was just more of a fact that the ground was safe.
Moon Over America: He has worked really well. He was second in his Bumper. He'll be out soon and should win his Novice Hurdle first time.
Beauport
Beauport’s entered in the Sefton and in the Becher. He just pulled too hard in the Grand National, did too much a bit too early. Both of those races will come under consideration.
If we get soft, heavy ground, he wasn't beaten far in the Grade 1 Long Walk at Ascot, so we'll always have an eye towards those three miles staying hurdles because they can cut up a bit.
Targets
Our Targets
I think consistency is the most important thing, like last year. If the horses run well all year through and they stay happy and healthy, that's the most important thing. As I say, we won't set targets numerically or prize money-wise.
Obviously, we'd love to break the million-pound mark. We usually do. That is something we want to do. But it's a very hard season to weigh up, as we've got so many three-, four- and five-year-olds who won't be going to the well too often. We usually have 10 to 15 three-mile handicap chases that you can spread them around in those hundred grand races every weekend. We don't have them this year.
That's why it's sad to lose the likes of The Kniphand, and Broadway Boy, because they’d have been Welsh National horses. Broadway Boy was second in the Hennessy. The Kniphand was nearly favourite for the Scottish National and was second in the Sky Bet Yorkshire. All of a sudden, those two are collecting a lot of prize money without even being recognised.
Training Realities
Hands-On Training
A lot of our owners want to go racing and enjoy it. We haven't got an owner who's got more than five or six horses in the yard. They want to enjoy their racing, and they come to enjoy myself and Dad's company. They like Sam to be on the horse, and they like the lads. They like to come up to the yard. We haven't got an owner who's got 15 hordes and limitless money who say you can go and buy what you want.
We're very lucky to have the support of Simon Munir and Isaac Suede. They have been very good to us. We're probably their current only trainer in England, and they've sent us some lovely horses like Masked Man. They're very big owners, but on the whole, a lot of our owners are just with us and want to have a good time.
Our owners don’t speak to a PA or an assistant. You'll always have me or Nigel on the phone. I think that's why they quite enjoy it. We're quite hands-on, and you'll always have one of us.
On Training Team: “Four Eyes >Two Eyes”
Well, four eyes are better than two! My communication skills are quite good. I'd like to think I've brought in a lot of new owners. I've been brought up around this yard and these gallops. I think I know them better than anyone else. I can spot a change in the horse, as can Dad, very quickly. If one didn't quite shine on a Friday, I might tell Dad to back it off.
We've just got a very, very good team. We've got a sensational bunch of staff that are very helpful, and they're not afraid to come to us and say if they have a worry about one of their horses, which I think is good. Being approachable is a big thing.
British Racing Struggles
British Racing Struggles
There's a lot of people brighter than me that are pulling their hair out! It’s concerning. We need prize money to be sustainable. If we're going out and buying a hundred-thousand-pound pointer, and it's running for £3k at Worcester, it's very hard to say keep coming and reinvesting when you're not getting any sort of money back.
A £3,000 race at Worcester does not cover your training fees for a month. So that is not sustainable to the normal owner who has one hobby horse.
The first thing that goes after a budget when people get taxed more is the hobby. We're very lucky because we're very stable around numbers. We've always been around this number. But from what I'm hearing, some big trainers and yards will probably be down 10 or 15 horses from what they have been.
Are Rising Costs Driving People Away?
Well, you see it no end with Flat racing. A lot of long-standing trainers are packing in and selling up their properties, more so in Newmarket, where the cost of having a horse is a lot. It’s going to be a lot harder for young trainers unless they've got financial backing.
We're so lucky we own the land we work on, but if you're having to rent and then add on feed, hay, straw keeps going up. The price of feed doesn't seem to be dropping. Most horses seem to have ulcers nowadays, so a lot of horses on medication can cost a lot of money a month.
Then the cost of staff is rising the whole time. National insurance is rising the whole time. The price of everything is going up, and the prize money is staying low.
Bargain Horses Still Possible
I'd like to think we can! Potters Charm, you have to consider a bargain. He cost £100,000 and he won £110,000 last year. So, you can find a bargain. But on the whole, it's very hard to buy those top-end horses and will continue to be like that. The store's prices at Goffs Arkle sale, we didn't even attend. But the average was massive. You'll be paying £50,0000 or £60,000 for an unraced three-year-old.
I was only reading an article the other day, Harry Derham's got two horses that were £360,000 and £400,000 each. There is the demand for certain owners. It's just the lower to middle-end owners who only have one or two horses. They probably can't afford them anymore.
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