Humble stable lad to become millionaire if ‘massive Ascot gamble’ with bargain basement horse comes off
A HUMBLE stable lad is on the brink of becoming a millionaire – if his bargain basement horse can land a ‘massive’ gamble at Ascot.
Trainer Dylan Cunha’s four-year-old colt Prague has been one of the stars of the season.
Previously trained by Aidan O’Brien and owned by the all-conquering Coolmore group, his incredible rags-to-riches run has seen him go from handicapper to Group 2 winner in just five runs.
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And his remarkable progress has come while under the ownership of unheralded Amedeo Dal Pos, who bought the son of Galileo for just £10,500.
Dal Pos is head lad to Newmarket-based Cunha.
It’s fair to say he’s hardly living the millionaire lifestyle under the up-and-coming trainer – but he could soon be thanks to his star colt.
Dal Pos, who is listed as the sole owner of Prague, has paid a staggering £70,000 supplementary fee so he can run in Saturday’s Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on Champions Day at Ascot.
He used some of the £114,000 Prague has won so far in his career to cover the cost.
Bookies make Prague an 8-1 chance for the mile race currently headed by 5-4 market leader Charyn.
Victory in the prestigous contest is worth a shade over £655,709.
But, as ever with top Flat horses, it’s the prospect of what they could achieve at stud that the money really starts racking up.
If Prague wins he’ll be in high demand as a stallion, given he would stand as a Group 1 winner proven over a mile at Ascot and Newmarket.
Cunha told The Mirror: “It’s a massive gamble for him, isn’t it?
“If the horse wins he is worth a few million being a Galileo colt, but if he loses the whole £70,000 is gone and the whole horse’s value is gone.
“But Amedeo has confidence in the horse.
“He rides him every day and when he galloped him on Saturday he had the biggest smile on his face. It’s all in the stars now.
“The horse is on the up, he is going to get his ground.
“You may never get the chance in your life again. I think you’ve got to go for it.
“I look at it like this. You pay £10,000 for the horse. You can now say you paid £80,000 for the horse and it’s running in a Group 1. That’s not a bad little purchase.”
Not bad – but it could be about to get so much better on Saturday.
Dal Pos wouldn’t be the first stable lad to strike it rich.
Nicky Henderson’s former yard worker Conor Murphy landed a £3m Cheltenham Festival punt.
Bookies’ max payout rules meant he only actually took home £1m… but it was still enough to quit his job and start a new life in the States.
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