Teenage jockey Warren Fentiman was able to claim bragging rights over his father Duran when the pair clashed on the track at the Chester May Festival, though neither were able to land the spoils in the CAA Stellar Handicap over five furlongs.
Father and son duos have dominated the world of horse racing over the past few months, namely due to Willie Mullins’ superb season in the National Hunt sphere. The Irish trainer won the Grand National with Nick Rockett, who was ridden to victory by his son Patrick.
But with the Flat now firmly underway, the Fentiman household will be hoping to leave their mark on the sport at the upcoming big meetings. Duran and Warren clashed for the very first time on Thursday when battling it out at Chester.
Speaking to ITV Racing about the prospect of racing against his dad, who rode 9/1 shot Copper Knight for the Tim Easterby yard, Warren said: “This is our first one but people have told me that he likes a good shout so I’m waiting for it, ready for the laughs anyway.”
Warren finished second on Rosenpur, 12/1, behind the fast-finishing Roman Dragon. Copper Knight (9/1) was prominent throughout but faded into fourth in the final furlong.
The two were drawn in stalls two and three, with ITV host Matt Chapman joking that there could be some ‘argy-bargy’ between the pair from the off – but Duran was hopeful that Copper Knight’s desire to go from the front would ensure he was quickly away.
He laughed: “Well hopefully not. I’m on good old Copper so hopefully I’m out and away and I don’t see him. It’s going to be fun.” Asked for his views on how Warren, 16, was developing so quickly, Duran added: “He’s doing really well. I’ve been off recently with my injury and to come back and finally ride with him is a real privilege.”
It was an action-packed day of racing at Chester, with Aidan O’Brien and Ryan Moore continuing to steal the show at the meeting. The pair combined to win the Boodles Raindance Dee Stakes with Mount Kilimanjaro (Evens) before landing the Ormonde Stakes with Illinois (6/5). Elsewhere on the card, Hugo Palmer and Oisin Murphy enjoyed a quickfire double thanks to Roman Dragon and Tricky Tel.