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Footballer Michael Owen aims to be a force in racing

Published by charl on August 4, 2009

MANCHESTER UNITED’s new signing Michael Owen, a fanatical supporter of horseracing, is set to expand his interests in the Sport of Kings. Owen, who owns Manor House Stables near Malpas, has signed up-and-coming trainer Tom Dascombe to run his yard.

Betfair’s Co-founder Andrew Clarke, an existing patron in Dascombe’s stable, is said to have brokered the deal, along with a personal investment in Owen’s racing future.

Owen moved quickly to fill the vacancy at his stables following the news which emerged in the week that he had terminated the contract of trainer Nicky Vaughan, who had run the yard since it opened in March 2007.

The news that Dascombe is to be appointed is a strong indicator that Owen is determined to make a success of his racing interests. An ex-jump jockey, Dascombe has made a highly successful start to his training career which he launched in 2006, sending out 42 winners last season. He has already reached 39 so far this campaign.

“Their aim is to take Manor House to the very top,” reported Brough Scott on racingpost.com.

“People don’t realise how into horses I am because they see me as a footballer,” said Owen.

Commenting on his split with Vaughan, Owen said: “This is like premiership soccer. You have to expand, the bigger and the better you get.”

Dascombe, who gives his former boss Mike de Kock recognition for laying the foundations of his career (he worked with the likes of Victory Moon in Dubai and England), said that Owen was a nice man who looked easy to get on with. “We can’t make things happen overnight, but we will aim at achieving big results.”

Owen, who has spent over 4 million pounds in developing Manor House, is likely to pump more cash into the venture as he aims at winning classic races. He wrote in his 2004 biography, ” (racing).. is a world I want to dive into after football.”

Photo: Michael Owen. (guardian.co.uk/ Tim Rooke).