The Quinnbet Open National Hunt Flat Race at Uttoxeter on Friday will be the first outing for the Jeremy Clarkson owned racehorse The Hawkstonian.
The son of Jukebox Jury is in training with Ben Pauling after he was bought at the 2023 Goffs Arkle sale for €45,000 by Highflyer Bloodstock and the Naunton Downs handler.
The four-year-old grey is named after a brand of beer owned by Jeremy Clarkson, who has teamed up with Old Gold Racing to make a first venture into the world of racehorse ownership.
The Hawkstonian is one of 11 runners in the two-mile contest which will conclude the card at the Staffordshire venue.
“I spoke with Ben yesterday and he was very optimistic,” said Ed Seyfried, CEO of Old Gold Racing.
“This is the first horse Old Gold Racing has built with Ben, but he’s one of those guys who lets the horses talk and makes them talk the right way, not the other way around.
“But he said he worked with the best horse in the yard and he would do as well as any other horse. He said if we saw half the horses we saw at home we would have a very nice horse on our hands.
“I think we have a very good horse that can do everything well. As Ben said, we’ll prove it on the track rather than at home, but Friday will be interesting.
“When you win a bumper you always think it’s great and you think you’re going to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup, but that doesn’t matter, it’s all about learning.”
Clarkson is not expected to make the trip from Diddly Squat Farm in the Cotswolds, close to Pauling’s stables, to watch the first runners, but Seyfried doesn’t think it will be long before the TV presenter crosses the track.
“Jeremy’s presence is fantastic and we hope to be able to get him on the circuit soon,” he added. “I am very excited. If I hadn’t had the confidence that Ben had, I wouldn’t have been as full.
“I wouldn’t say (Clarkson) is a natural rider, but he is very competitive.I think the better the Hawkstonian is, the more competition he will have with Jeremy Clarkson.
“It puts a lot of pressure on us, but we prefer to compete with ourselves a bit to get people aware of the race and get them out on the road. That’s why we support the practice of owning a racehorse.
“Win, lose or tie, we’re going on a journey. If you put a lot into the race, it really attracts attention. “Everything is good.”
