Hear the full interview
From 13:22 in Wednesday’s episode of Nick Luck Daily. Press play to start at the interview.
George Boughey says Libertango is “stronger and heavier than ever” ahead of Friday’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, and believes stablemate Survie is being overlooked in the Turf.
Boughey arrived at Keeneland on Tuesday night and was delighted with how the Lowther winner had settled in. “She couldn’t have looked any better before she shipped, and everything’s been good since she got here,” he told Nick Luck. “So, game on.”
The draw was kind to her, with the filly in stall three. “It’s something we can’t control, but if we were to pick a post position, we would have probably picked three or four,” Boughey said. “So to be where we wanted to be is huge.”
Despite a long season, Libertango has kept her condition well. “She’s had a relatively decent break between York and Newmarket, and Newmarket to here,” he said. “She’s stronger and heavier than ever and doing more work. So, very happy.”
‘A bit forgotten’ in the Turf
Survie, owned by Michael Tabor, won the Glens Falls and the Grade 1 Christophe Clement Turf at Saratoga this summer, but Boughey feels she has slipped under the radar for Saturday’s Turf. She is drawn wide in 11.
“I think she is a bit forgotten,” he said. “She’s drawn a wide enough gate in 11, but she goes back, and a mile and a half has been the key to her. She’s won a ‘Win and You’re In’ for the Breeders’ Cup Turf, so she certainly deserves her chance here.”
“Fillies have a decent record. The last time it was run at Keeneland, the first two were fillies.”
George Boughey on Survie
“Fillies have a decent record,” he added. “The last time it was run at Keeneland, the first two were fillies. It’s a high-class race and she needs to step forward, but I don’t see any reason why she can’t.”
Prat on both
Flavien Prat rides both of Boughey’s runners, with stable jockey Billy Loughnane unable to make the weight on Libertango. “He could have done the weight on Survie, but Michael Tabor was very keen to keep Flavien on. He likes a local rider and has nothing against Billy at all, but Flavien’s ridden the filly to win a Grade 2 out here, and he’s the top turf rider at Keeneland,” Boughey said.
“It’s a shame for Billy on Libertango, because he’ll actually be riding her out here tomorrow morning. He’s a massive part of the team, but he couldn’t do the weight, so we’ll have to save it for next year.”
Hopewell Rock waits on Melbourne Cup
Boughey also has Ebor runner-up Hopewell Rock in Australia, sitting 24th in the order of entry for the Melbourne Cup, the last place in the field, and waiting to see what penalty the Bendigo Cup winner receives.
“It was always the plan to play chicken a little bit with the bottom end of the handicap to try and keep him unexposed,” he said. “He’s 24th at the moment, and hopefully he stays there. He looks as well as he’s looked all year. He’s a horse who thrives into the autumn, and he looks the best colour he’s looked all year.”
“At the start of every year, you hope you’ll have a horse or two to travel at the end of the year,” Boughey said. “We’ve got two here and one in Australia, and they all seem in good shape.”
