Fallon bows out with sparkling Diamond
Kieren Fallon relinquished his jockeys’ title today but he still ended the season in great style when winning the last big race of the Flat campaign at Doncaster.
He landed the Enter The £1m (€1.43m) totetentofollow November Handicap on the Brian Ellison-trained Carte Diamond, who went off at 12-1.
Fallon drove Carte Diamond into the lead over two furlongs out and kept him going in typically determined fashion to beat the new champion Frankie Dettori on Distant Prospect by two and a half lengths.
The win vindicated Ellison’s shrewd judgement as he bought Carte Diamond out of the Mark Johnston stable for 105,000 gns at Doncaster Sales only two weeks ago.
The Malton handler, who also saddled sixth-placed Artistic Style, said of the winner: “He cost a lot of money, but I knew he was a good horse. I spoke to Mark and he said that too.
“I went to the start with Artistic Style and spoke to Kieren down there and he said that Carte Diamond had given him the feel of a good horse. He was always going to win once he hit the front.”
Ellison, who had previously won the race with Batswing in the same colours, was going to have the three-year-old gelded, but he added: “Kieren said we shouldn’t as he is such a good horse, so we won’t!
“We were going to run him over hurdles, but I don’t think we will now and next year we will train him for the Ebor at York.”
He was delighted with the run of Artistic Style, who shouldered top weight, and went on: “They put him up 15lb for Ayr. That was a lot, and but for that he would have been in the first three today. I love that horse.”
Fallon said: “Carte Diamond travelled really well and I think he will improve and be a nice horse next year. I did not know it was Frankie behind me, but my horse would have picked up again if anything had come to us.
“It is nice for Brian – nearly everything he puts me on wins. It has been a good end to the season for me, winning at the Breeders’ Cup and having a few winners back home this week, including this big one today.”
Toby Balding’s hopes of ending his great training career with a big winner were dashed with Turbo finishing only 12th, never having been capable of getting in a serious blow.
