Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup
“Trawlerman”
There have been plenty of stars in the Staying division and each of them have had that one season where they were simply unbeatable. For Trawlerman, that season has come in 2025. Whilst many will point to the fact that this performance on Saturday was perhaps below his best, the fact that he was able to end his 2025 campaign with an unbeaten record feels right. Despite the small field, this race produced the fastest winning time in this race since it switched to Champions Day in 2011, allowing for the fact that the 2023 race, also won by Trawlerman, was run on the inner track over a shorter distance. A finishing speed of 98.7% from the winner does confirm that this was run at an even gallop and having spent the majority of the race on the leaders quarters, Trawlerman was ideally placed by William Buick to get the first run when the pace lifted.
Trawlerman recorded a time of 12.07s for the 12th furlong, the fastest individual split from any horse in the latter half of the race and once sent to the front, he was quickly able to assert. Some of the post race data metrics might point to the fact that Sweet William was closing all the way to the line and to a certain degree, that’s true. At 39.53 mph, he recorded the fastest top speed figure in the race and over the final quarter of a mile, he was 0.61s quicker than Trawlerman as he closed with “race best” furlongs of 12.52 and 13.06s. However, an examination of the stride length data shows that Trawlerman was able to maintain an average stride length of 7.06m over the final quarter of a mile, compared to a drop from 7.26 to 7.21m averages from Sweet William over the final 2 furlongs. Trawlerman looked to be holding his rival, as he did when Sweet William ran the fastest 14th and 15th furlongs in the Lonsdale Cup at York in August. On both occasions, Sweet William has run faster penultimate furlong than his stablemate, only for Trawlerman to pull out more and record the best run-out speed figures in the field. There’s no suggestion that he was idling, it may simply be that he was asked for a significant effort as they approached the home straight and as such, he had less in reserve than the more patiently ridden runner-up. However, one thing that cannot be questioned is the depth of Trawlerman’s stamina and he has been able to use those reserves to dominate the stayers division in 2025.
John Gosden’s post race interview with Sky Sports Racing implied that the plan for 2026 will be an identical copy of this year’s campaign, using the Henry II Stakes at Sandown in May as his starting point for a return to the Gold Cup in June. Next season, he may face a different set of challengers, perhaps most interestingly the St Leger winner Scandinavia, but right now, Trawlerman is at the peak of his powers and if he returns in the same form in 2026, he will be the horse that sets the standard in this division. It has been a pleasure to write about Trawlerman this year.