Matsunosuke
Encyclopedia
Matsunosuke is a racehorse owned and trained by A B Coogan in Soham
, Cambridgeshire
horse
which won 3 times on flat ground over 5 furlongs. 2 of his wins came in Group 3 races and all of his wins came when ridden by Alan Munro
who has also ridden Matsunosuke. He was owned by H R H Prince Fahd Salman and trained by P F I Cole. His last race was 22 May 1993. He had a best Racing Post Rating of 119.
The dam for Matsunosuke is Lon Isa (born 21 February 1991, died 2005), which ran 17 times over Flat ground and over hurdles. Despite not winning, Lon Isa placed 5 times and earnt £3,795 prize money
. She was owned by H Weeks and trained by B Palling. She had a best racing post rating of 85.
, Cambridgeshire
and was bred by Ryan Coogan, who is the son of the trainer Alan 'Scobie' Coogan, a former successful jumps jockey
.
where he fell around halfway through the 6 furlong
class 4 race. He also brought down Baileys Honour when he fell. His starting odds
were 66/1 and he was ridden by Dean McKeown
. After this he rode once more in 2004 when in October he came 10th in a class 4 maiden stakes at Newmarket.
on 6 April in the class 5 Toytop Maiden Stakes over 6 furlongs at 20/1, one of only 2 wins over 6 furlongs for him. He was ridden by Tony Culhane. He rode 10 more times in 2005 in handicap races under 8 different jockeys, including future joint-champion jockey
Seb Sanders
. During this period he won once more in the 5 furlong
, class 5 Flyers Handicap at Sandown on 11 August under Seb Sanders
. He was 16/1.
, class 4 handicap at Thirsk. He won at 6/1 and was ridden by apprentice jockey
Luke Morris, who has now become the most successful jockey to ride Matsunosuke in terms of prize money and placings. He won once more in 2006 on 13 July at Newmarket in a class 4 handicap over 5 furlongs. He was ridden by Darryll Holland
and won at odds of 16/1. Incidentally the horse that came second on both occasions was Handsome Cross.
He also ran in a Heritage Handicap at Ascot
on 20 July 2006 which was the biggest race by far in terms of stature and prize money he had entered up until that point. However luck was not on his side as he unseated rider Luke Morris after clipping the heels of Lafi. The fact that he took part in the race, however, shows how far he had come and the aspirations of the team behind him and possibly what was to come.
in June. He also went down to his lowest official handicap mark in the summer of 2007 but this did allow him to turn the corner and get his first win of the season in a 5 furlong
class 4 handicap at Sandown Park
on 15 August, where he was ridden by Jimmy Fortune who had ridden him the week before also. Jimmy Fortune would ride him one more time that season gaining a 2nd place in a class 5 handicap 2 races later. This was definitely a turning point however, and came just before he became acquainted with jockey Kerrin McEvoy who rode him in 4 of his final 5 races of the year, gaining 2 wins, a 3rd place and a 4th place. He ended the year rated 96, having touched a career high rating of 97. He also got one of his wins carrying a handicap weight of 9-10, a career high for him that stood all the way until the beginning of 2009.
on 4 May, he didn't place for his next 10 races over the following 2 months. The main reason for this is because he had achieved an official handicap rating so high, touching 100 at one point, that it was difficult to find suitable handicap races for him and he had to run several group races which he found very difficult.
His next placing was a 3rd at Great Leighs
, an all-weather circuit, on 13 September. He was ridden for the first time by French jockey Louis-Philippe Beuzelin and it was followed up by another 3rd place at the same track 2 weeks later. He did run twice more on turf at Bath and Newmarket but those all-weather track performances had helped bring about a change in tactics and he started his attack on the 2008-09 all-weather flat season.
This would be the first time Matsunosuke had run during the winter months and despite finishing October with a 7th place at Great Leighs
, he followed it with a 4th, two 3rd's and two 2nd's on all-weather tracks before getting his first win of the all-weather season at Great Leighs in a 6 furlong
, class 3 handicap on 21 December 2008. He finished the calendar year with a 3rd place but his assault on the all-weather season was only just getting started.
on 1 January on what was a slow track, coming last in a class 2 handicap. However he won 4 out of his next 6 rides, including 3 wins in a row, to put him as the top rated all-weather horse
in the UK and also top of the prize money leaderboard the 2nd of his hat-trick of wins came with him having 9 stone 13 pounds on board (a personal best). However another 2 bad results at the end of the all-weather flat winter season saw him finish second to Scintillo in terms of prize money. In terms of rating he finished the all-weather winter season with an official rating of 112 (another personal best) which made him 2nd overall, but his Racing Post Rating (a reliable industry indicator) was 117 and that was the best of the season. These figures make him one of the best all-weather horses of all time, in what was a very competitive season.
over his preferred 5 furlong Good-Firm trip, a race he came 4th in the previous year. Luke Morris was in the saddle for another poor run 1 month later at Lingfield on the All-Weather track over 6 furlongs. 1 Month later, he got his first place finish since his win on the 21st February 6 races ago at Lingfield on the all-weather track (and first top 3 finish on grass for over a year). This result came in a class 2 handicap at Windsor
on his favoured good-firm ground over 6 furlongs. His official rating at this point had gone below 100 (99) for the first time since January 2009 and was at 98 for his next race which saw him come 4th in the Group 3 King George Stakes at Goodwood
over 5 furlongs. A week later at Ascot
on 11 June however saw him finish 7 of 9 runners in a class 2 handicap over 5 furlongs with Royston Ffrench as jockey for the first time on Matsunosuke (The last 3 races having had Luke Morris on board). His rating for the race was back at 104 and despite high profile wins on the all-weather, he has never won on turf with a rating of more than 75, and that was during his last win on Turf which was in September 2007.
with Matsunosuke in terms of both finishes and prize money, although he has ridden him more than any other jockey. Kerrin McEvoy has the next best success rate and has ridden him the second most amount of times. In total Matsunosuke has been ridden by 24 Different jockeys, although Luke Morris and Kerrin McEvoy have accounted for over a third of all his rides, showing that when things are going well don't change!
He is thought to favour Good-Firm ground and his most successful trip has been over 5 furlongs. He also had a very successful all-weather season 2008-09.
Soham
Soham is a small town in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It lies just off the A142 between Ely and Newmarket . Its population is 9,102 , and it is within the district of East Cambridgeshire.-Archaeology:...
, Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
Famous Living Racehorse
Matsunosuke is a flat racing racehorse in the UK who has won in class 1 listed company and competed in Group 3 races. He was also the number 2 ranked sprinter during the all-weather season 2008-09. He is known for a hold-up style and remarkable final furlong burst of speed, where he can complete it in less than 10.5 secs ('Racing Post').Pedigree
The sire to Matsunosuke is Magic Ring (born 11 February 1989), an IrishIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
which won 3 times on flat ground over 5 furlongs. 2 of his wins came in Group 3 races and all of his wins came when ridden by Alan Munro
Alan Munro (jockey)
Alan Munro is a top English flat racing jockey and considered one of the most successful English jockeys in the history of the sport.He has won many major races including the Epsom Derby and Irish Derby in 1991...
who has also ridden Matsunosuke. He was owned by H R H Prince Fahd Salman and trained by P F I Cole. His last race was 22 May 1993. He had a best Racing Post Rating of 119.
The dam for Matsunosuke is Lon Isa (born 21 February 1991, died 2005), which ran 17 times over Flat ground and over hurdles. Despite not winning, Lon Isa placed 5 times and earnt £3,795 prize money
Prize money
Prize money has a distinct meaning in warfare, especially naval warfare, where it was a monetary reward paid out to the crew of a ship for capturing an enemy vessel...
. She was owned by H Weeks and trained by B Palling. She had a best racing post rating of 85.
Foaling
Matsunosuke was foaled on 25 February 2002 in SohamSoham
Soham is a small town in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It lies just off the A142 between Ely and Newmarket . Its population is 9,102 , and it is within the district of East Cambridgeshire.-Archaeology:...
, Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
and was bred by Ryan Coogan, who is the son of the trainer Alan 'Scobie' Coogan, a former successful jumps jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
.
2004
Matsunosuke had his debut in 23 September 2004 in the European Breeders Fund Poppin Lane Maiden Stakes at PontefractPontefract
Pontefract is an historic market town in West Yorkshire, England. Traditionally in the West Riding, near the A1 , the M62 motorway and Castleford. It is one of the five towns in the metropolitan borough of the City of Wakefield and has a population of 28,250...
where he fell around halfway through the 6 furlong
Furlong
A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and U.S. customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to 220 yards, 660 feet, 40 rods, or 10 chains. The exact value of the furlong varies slightly among English-speaking countries....
class 4 race. He also brought down Baileys Honour when he fell. His starting odds
Odds
The odds in favor of an event or a proposition are expressed as the ratio of a pair of integers, which is the ratio of the probability that an event will happen to the probability that it will not happen...
were 66/1 and he was ridden by Dean McKeown
Dean McKeown
Dean Russell McKeown is a currently bannedBritish Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. He embarked on his professional career as a teenager, earning his first win in 1977. While never a Champion jockey, McKeown has won a number of important Conditions races in the United Kingdom including three...
. After this he rode once more in 2004 when in October he came 10th in a class 4 maiden stakes at Newmarket.
2005
In 2005 he started his first full flat racing season with a win at CatterickCatterick, North Yorkshire
Catterick , sometimes Catterick Village, to distinguish it from the nearby Catterick Garrison, is a village and civil parish in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England...
on 6 April in the class 5 Toytop Maiden Stakes over 6 furlongs at 20/1, one of only 2 wins over 6 furlongs for him. He was ridden by Tony Culhane. He rode 10 more times in 2005 in handicap races under 8 different jockeys, including future joint-champion jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
Seb Sanders
Seb Sanders
Seb Sanders is a flat race jockey.He came into racing by getting a job with trainer Bryan McMahon, and it was for McMahon that Sanders rode his first winner on 12 June 1990 on Band On The Run....
. During this period he won once more in the 5 furlong
Furlong
A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and U.S. customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to 220 yards, 660 feet, 40 rods, or 10 chains. The exact value of the furlong varies slightly among English-speaking countries....
, class 5 Flyers Handicap at Sandown on 11 August under Seb Sanders
Seb Sanders
Seb Sanders is a flat race jockey.He came into racing by getting a job with trainer Bryan McMahon, and it was for McMahon that Sanders rode his first winner on 12 June 1990 on Band On The Run....
. He was 16/1.
2006
He ran another 12 times in 2006, winning on his second appearance of the season on 6 May in a 5-furlongFurlong
A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and U.S. customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to 220 yards, 660 feet, 40 rods, or 10 chains. The exact value of the furlong varies slightly among English-speaking countries....
, class 4 handicap at Thirsk. He won at 6/1 and was ridden by apprentice jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
Luke Morris, who has now become the most successful jockey to ride Matsunosuke in terms of prize money and placings. He won once more in 2006 on 13 July at Newmarket in a class 4 handicap over 5 furlongs. He was ridden by Darryll Holland
Darryll Holland
Darryll Paul Holland is a United Kingdom flat racing jockey who has ridden for trainers such as Luca Cumani, Geoff Wragg, and Mark Johnston....
and won at odds of 16/1. Incidentally the horse that came second on both occasions was Handsome Cross.
He also ran in a Heritage Handicap at Ascot
Ascot Racecourse
Ascot Racecourse is a famous English racecourse, located in the small town of Ascot, Berkshire, used for thoroughbred horse racing. It is one of the leading racecourses in the United Kingdom, hosting 9 of the UK's 32 annual Group 1 races...
on 20 July 2006 which was the biggest race by far in terms of stature and prize money he had entered up until that point. However luck was not on his side as he unseated rider Luke Morris after clipping the heels of Lafi. The fact that he took part in the race, however, shows how far he had come and the aspirations of the team behind him and possibly what was to come.
2007
Matsunosuke ran 19 times in 2007, all in the summer flat season. However the season didn't start so well for him and he didn't place in any of his first 8 starts, although he did qualify for, and run in, a group 2 race at AscotAscot Racecourse
Ascot Racecourse is a famous English racecourse, located in the small town of Ascot, Berkshire, used for thoroughbred horse racing. It is one of the leading racecourses in the United Kingdom, hosting 9 of the UK's 32 annual Group 1 races...
in June. He also went down to his lowest official handicap mark in the summer of 2007 but this did allow him to turn the corner and get his first win of the season in a 5 furlong
Furlong
A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and U.S. customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to 220 yards, 660 feet, 40 rods, or 10 chains. The exact value of the furlong varies slightly among English-speaking countries....
class 4 handicap at Sandown Park
Sandown Park
Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse racing during afternoons, evenings and on weekends, and also hosts many non racing events such as trade...
on 15 August, where he was ridden by Jimmy Fortune who had ridden him the week before also. Jimmy Fortune would ride him one more time that season gaining a 2nd place in a class 5 handicap 2 races later. This was definitely a turning point however, and came just before he became acquainted with jockey Kerrin McEvoy who rode him in 4 of his final 5 races of the year, gaining 2 wins, a 3rd place and a 4th place. He ended the year rated 96, having touched a career high rating of 97. He also got one of his wins carrying a handicap weight of 9-10, a career high for him that stood all the way until the beginning of 2009.
2008
Matsunosuke started 2008 with a very good 2nd in a class 1 listed race at Lingfield on 15 March although things didn't go to smoothly afterwards. Despite coming a very respectable 4th in his next outing at Newmarket in the Group 3 Stan James Palace House StakesPalace House Stakes
The Palace House Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 5 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in late April or early May.The event is named after...
on 4 May, he didn't place for his next 10 races over the following 2 months. The main reason for this is because he had achieved an official handicap rating so high, touching 100 at one point, that it was difficult to find suitable handicap races for him and he had to run several group races which he found very difficult.
His next placing was a 3rd at Great Leighs
Great Leighs
Great Leighs is a village in Essex, England, half way between Chelmsford and Braintree. In 2008 Great Leighs became home to the first new racecourse in 80 years, when the nearby Essex County Showground was converted into a state-of-the-art horse-racing venue...
, an all-weather circuit, on 13 September. He was ridden for the first time by French jockey Louis-Philippe Beuzelin and it was followed up by another 3rd place at the same track 2 weeks later. He did run twice more on turf at Bath and Newmarket but those all-weather track performances had helped bring about a change in tactics and he started his attack on the 2008-09 all-weather flat season.
This would be the first time Matsunosuke had run during the winter months and despite finishing October with a 7th place at Great Leighs
Great Leighs
Great Leighs is a village in Essex, England, half way between Chelmsford and Braintree. In 2008 Great Leighs became home to the first new racecourse in 80 years, when the nearby Essex County Showground was converted into a state-of-the-art horse-racing venue...
, he followed it with a 4th, two 3rd's and two 2nd's on all-weather tracks before getting his first win of the all-weather season at Great Leighs in a 6 furlong
Furlong
A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and U.S. customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to 220 yards, 660 feet, 40 rods, or 10 chains. The exact value of the furlong varies slightly among English-speaking countries....
, class 3 handicap on 21 December 2008. He finished the calendar year with a 3rd place but his assault on the all-weather season was only just getting started.
January - March
2009 began with a poor result at SouthwellSouthwell Racecourse
Southwell Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located near Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, England. It is one of only five racecourses in the UK to have an all-weather track...
on 1 January on what was a slow track, coming last in a class 2 handicap. However he won 4 out of his next 6 rides, including 3 wins in a row, to put him as the top rated all-weather horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
in the UK and also top of the prize money leaderboard the 2nd of his hat-trick of wins came with him having 9 stone 13 pounds on board (a personal best). However another 2 bad results at the end of the all-weather flat winter season saw him finish second to Scintillo in terms of prize money. In terms of rating he finished the all-weather winter season with an official rating of 112 (another personal best) which made him 2nd overall, but his Racing Post Rating (a reliable industry indicator) was 117 and that was the best of the season. These figures make him one of the best all-weather horses of all time, in what was a very competitive season.
April -
After such a rewarding all-weather season, Matsunosuke started his turf season ridden by Luke Morris at Newmarket on the 16th April in a Class 1 Listed Stakes at the Craven Meeting. The going was Good-Firm and the trip was 6 furlongs but Matsunosuke looked tired and came 9th at 25/1. It was, however, a strong race with Tax Free coming 1st (and later going on to win a Group 2 in May). He then came 12th out of 16 runners under Jimmy Fortune (breaking Luke Morris' 7 race / 4 month racing streak on the horse) in the Group 3 Palace House StakesPalace House Stakes
The Palace House Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 5 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in late April or early May.The event is named after...
over his preferred 5 furlong Good-Firm trip, a race he came 4th in the previous year. Luke Morris was in the saddle for another poor run 1 month later at Lingfield on the All-Weather track over 6 furlongs. 1 Month later, he got his first place finish since his win on the 21st February 6 races ago at Lingfield on the all-weather track (and first top 3 finish on grass for over a year). This result came in a class 2 handicap at Windsor
Windsor Racecourse
Windsor Racecourse, also known as Royal Windsor Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Windsor, Berkshire, England. It is one of only two figure-of-eight courses in the United Kingdom, the other being at Fontwell Park. It abandoned National Hunt jump racing in December 1998,...
on his favoured good-firm ground over 6 furlongs. His official rating at this point had gone below 100 (99) for the first time since January 2009 and was at 98 for his next race which saw him come 4th in the Group 3 King George Stakes at Goodwood
Goodwood Racecourse
Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House...
over 5 furlongs. A week later at Ascot
Ascot Racecourse
Ascot Racecourse is a famous English racecourse, located in the small town of Ascot, Berkshire, used for thoroughbred horse racing. It is one of the leading racecourses in the United Kingdom, hosting 9 of the UK's 32 annual Group 1 races...
on 11 June however saw him finish 7 of 9 runners in a class 2 handicap over 5 furlongs with Royston Ffrench as jockey for the first time on Matsunosuke (The last 3 races having had Luke Morris on board). His rating for the race was back at 104 and despite high profile wins on the all-weather, he has never won on turf with a rating of more than 75, and that was during his last win on Turf which was in September 2007.
Riding Style
Matsunosuke has often had problems with big fields due to his 'hold-up' riding style, whereby he likes to be near the rear of the field until the last furlong or 2 where he will sprint past the other, more tired, horses. He is one of the quickest final furlong sprinters of all time and, providing he can get through, often leads to an exciting ride. Some jockeys haven't been able to ride him how he particularly likes, however with the correct jockey he takes some beating. Luke Morris is the most successful jockeyJockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
with Matsunosuke in terms of both finishes and prize money, although he has ridden him more than any other jockey. Kerrin McEvoy has the next best success rate and has ridden him the second most amount of times. In total Matsunosuke has been ridden by 24 Different jockeys, although Luke Morris and Kerrin McEvoy have accounted for over a third of all his rides, showing that when things are going well don't change!
He is thought to favour Good-Firm ground and his most successful trip has been over 5 furlongs. He also had a very successful all-weather season 2008-09.