Fahey Reflects On Lincoln Successes

One man who will certainly notice the absence of the Lincoln H. at what was supposed to be Doncaster's curtain-raising flat meeting on Saturday is Richard Fahey, the trainer having plundered two of the last seven renewals of the one-mile contest with runners owned by Marwan Koukash.

First up was the 6-year-old gelding Brae Hill (Ire) (Fath) in 2012, followed by Gabrial (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) three years later. Fahey noted that the popular contest has become more difficult to win.

“The Lincoln has got a lot tougher to win in the last five years, but Gabrial was a decent horse,” said Fahey. “He was a group horse in a handicap really, whereas Brae Hill was a good, hardy handicapper, the type that used to do well in it.

“Our horses are always very fit when they run in it. Brae Hill had been second the year before, then he won it, and two years after that he went and won the Spring Mile [the Lincoln consolation race]. The last one was funny, because I reckon we must have had five different jockeys on him at one stage–nobody wanted to ride him, because he worked terribly the week before.

“David Nolan ended up being the lucky man, but at the time he thought he was unlucky. He was only four pounds lower when he won the Spring Mile compared to when he won the Lincoln, yet that year he couldn't get in it, which just shows how tough it is.”

Fahey reveals how he pulled a fast one on Koukash to get Marwan into the race.

“The funny thing about Gabrial winning it was that Marwan wanted to turn him into a [G1] Melbourne Cup horse, but Gabrial wasn't having anything of it,” said Fahey. “He'd been running over all sorts of trips–he ran in the Ebor and over a mile and a half a couple of times–but he didn't stay. His last run of the season was at Leicester, but the funny thing was we didn't tell Marwan he was running because it was over a mile and not part of his plan.

“When I rang Marwan five minutes after he'd won Marwan's exact words were 'I didn't even know he was running'–because I'd told the girls in the office not to tell him.”

Gabrial remained in Fahey's yard until his retirement last year at the age of 10, and while he did not make it to Melbourne he was a remarkable animal, running 93 times and earning in excess of £225,000.

“To be fair we were under a bit of pressure, because [Koukash] bought a few yearlings that year and he told me to pick the best one as it was to be named after his first-born son. So it was a brave call. Marwan's gone on to have plenty of other Gabrials. But he was the first, and so far the best.”