This week on your favourite horse racing podcast, The Paddock, we’re joined by Oli Bell, Rishi Persad, Tom Stanley and a post-Cheltenham Dan Skelton.
The panel dives straight into a festival debrief, including Dan’s winners at the festival and UK trainers closing the gap on Ireland.
Dan also takes us through the not so small feat of leading the UK Jumps Trainers Championship, and what it’s like to train horses owned by former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson.
“He’s an open book, I suppose he wasn’t like that when he was younger and working, but he’s an open book and I can ask him loads of different things, and he’s very forthcoming with loads of bits and pieces.
“He’s just a great man. It’s so interesting, people like that just blow my mind, what they can draw on. They’ve been in it all, seen it all, they’ve come back from defeat, they’ve go on winning runs.”
Asked what he has learned from him, Skelton said: “Make a decision. Just make a decision. It doesn’t matter if it’s right or wrong, stand up and make a decision. One thing he always said to me. If you get it wrong, learn why you got it wrong, but never be afraid to make it.
“He also said: ‘If there’s any doubt, there’s no doubt.’ So I might ring him up and say: ‘Look, I’m not sure if I should run this horse here.’ He’d say: ‘Well if there’s any doubt, there’s no doubt.'”
Asked whether Skelton had received one of Fergie’s famous hairdryers, he said: “I’ve come close to getting it! About a month ago. One of the horses had ran, I forget where I was, there was no signal at all, I pressed to ring but it never went through. I thought: ‘He must be busy.’ So I rang him back the next morning, he said: ‘You didn’t ring me yesterday!’ and I said: ‘I did try!’ And he said: ‘Bollocks!’
“I thought I’ve got no chance here. So I said: ‘OK, sorry!’. I thought I’ve got no chance of talking my way out of this! I feel very lucky to have got one!”
Watch the full episode below!
The Paddock is a show hosted by Oli Bell, with weekly episodes with the best tips, news, talking points and special guests from the world of horse racing. Catch The Paddock on YouTube, or listen on podcast – wherever you get your podcasts.
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