The Hawkstonian out to hit top gear for Clarkson

The Hawkstonian will make his long-awaited debut in the Quinnbet Open National Hunt Flat Race at Uttoxeter on Friday.

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 did speak to Ben yesterday and he is really bullish,” Ed Seyfried, chief executive of Old Gold Racing, said.

“This is the first horse that Old Gold Racing has had with Ben, but he’s one of those people who talks a horse down and does well rather than the other way round.

“But he said to me that he’s worked with some of the best horses in the yard and he goes as well as any of them. If we see half of the horse we see at home then we might have a very good horse on our hands.

“I think we have a very good horse on our hands, he just does all the right things. Also as Ben says, you prove it on the track and not at home but Friday is going to be interesting.

“I think if you win a bumper, you always think you are brilliant and are going to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup. But it doesn’t matter, it’s all about learning.”

Clarkson is not expected to make the trip from Diddly Squat Farm in the Cotswolds, which is situated near Pauling’s stables, to watch his first ever runner, but Seyfried does not believe it will be long before the TV presenter will be trackside.

“The fact that Jeremy has got involved is fantastic, he gets it, and hopefully we will get him on the racecourse soon,” he added. “I’m really excited, I wouldn’t be excited if I didn’t have the confidence that Ben’s got.

“I wouldn’t say he (Clarkson) is a natural equestrian, however he is very competitive. I think the better The Hawkstonian does, the more the competitive streak of Jeremy Clarkson is going to come out.

“It does put a lot of pressure on, but we’d rather champ at the bit ourselves to give the chance to teach people about racing and take people on the journey. That’s why we champion the experience of owning a racehorse.

“Win, lose or draw, we will be on a journey. Putting a lot back into racing, it’s going to be very eye-catching. Everything is good about it.”