Michael O’Leary more hands on than he likes to let on

Michael O’Leary doesn’t believe fences are for sitting on. The Ryanair boss has been accused of many things but timidity isn’t one of them. So once his horse Last Instalment became embroiled in the drugs controversy revolving around trainer

Philip Fenton

, O’Leary’s position was outlined quickly, and stuck to – Fenton is innocent until proven guilty.

O’Leary has been steadfast in his support of the beleaguered trainer, stressing he feels “duty-bound” not to jump the gun and is content to wait until the case into charges against Fenton of possession of unlicensed medicines has been through the courts.

It’s the final irony then that so much legal and possibly ethical angst about Last Instalment may be removed by something so mundane as how much ‘squelch’ there may or may not be in a mile and a half stretch of Gloucestershire turf.

A decision on whether or not the horse runs will be left until this morning but the fact that watering is taking place indicates how borderline any call is.

Deeply frustrating
Taking the horse out might be a result for officialdom concerned with image but it will be deeply frustrating for O'Leary whose preferred attitude to fences is that they for jumping, by his steeplechasers, preferably out in front, and ideally in the steeplechase that matters most of all, the Gold Cup.

But even if Lasts Instalment doesn’t run, it’s an illustration of the scale of the businessman’s investment in racing that he has First Lieutenant as a far from no-hope back-up.

War Of Attrition’s famous triumph in 2006, the Iast Irish trained winner of the race, sealed O’Leary’s fascination with the Gold Cup and so much of what Gigginstown do is with the ultimate aim of competing in it.

The benefits of that fascination have been crucial to Irish racing in the last decade with Gigginstown a hugely important cog on so many levels, from buying potential stars on the point-to-point field, up to a high-profile week like this when so many contenders carry the maroon colours.

O'Leary has often said his only financial indulgence is owning racehorses but it is a serious indulgence and certainly not one just for big occasions like Cheltenham.

Eddie O’Leary, a renowned bloodstock expert and owner of Lynn Lodge Stud near Killucan in Co Westmeath, is instrumental in buying horses for his older brother. That expertise has seen the younger man carve out a reputation as a shrewd player of the bloodstock game, including in his own right last year when a two-year-old colt called Great White Eagle, a $120,000 yearling purchase, was sold by Lynn Lodge for a record 760,000 Guineas.

Nevertheless Michael O’Leary is a lot more influential in terms of day-to-day involvement with his horses than he sometimes likes to affect.

"Eddie buys all the horses, does all that. I just write the cheques. We have an appropriate division of labour" O'Leary once said.

Requesting updates
However, trainers tell of regular phone calls requesting updates on his horses and occasional blunt advice as to what should be done with them. O'Leary appears to be a lot more hands-on than is commonly imagined.

“He’s a hard-hitter,” one trainer said this week. “He has an aggressive style in business, and it has worked for him. He can be aggressive to deal with. He knows what he wants: like the riding instructions are always ‘be up in the first four and go as quick as you can.’ But it’s not always as simple as that.”

Trainers have also been known to moan about the logistical headaches involved sometimes in juggling the reported near-150 horses Gigginstown own but there is near unanimous agreement that O'Leary's investment is both vital and good for the sport.

Focus on quality
There is widespread recognition of their focus on quality, something O'Leary alluded to in a run-in with the Turf Club during the winter over the question of non-runners that at one stage saw a routine €200 fine threaten to ignite into a High Court showdown – "You would swear we are some bunch of spivs running around organising betting coups. We don't punt our horses. I have no interest in that."

O’Leary’s readiness for a scrap was obvious then, and any official unease at the circumstances in which one of his horses may line up today will be water off a duck’s back. He’d just like some of that water to get into the ground.