Emmson (11 February 1985 – after 1996) was an Irish-bred British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" a ...

. He was one of the best staying two-year-olds in Britain in 1987 when he won four of his five races including the

Washington Singer Stakes The Denford Stakes is a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Newbury over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is scheduled to take place eac ...

and the

William Hill Futurity The Vertem Futurity Trophy is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) ...

. He failed to win as a three-year-old but did finish third in the

Prix du Jockey Club The Prix du Jockey Club, sometimes referred to as the French Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly over ...

and ran prominently in the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

. He remained in training for two more seasons, recording his only subsequent win in the 1989

Prix Gontaut-Biron The Prix Gontaut-Biron is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled to ...

. After his retirement from racing he had some success as a sire of winners in Brazil.

Background

Emmson was a bay horse with no white markings bred in Ireland by the

Ballymacoll Stud Ballymacoll Stud is a Thoroughbred stud farm of 300 acres in County Meath, Ireland. It is located in the townland of Ballymacoll, approximately two miles from the village of Dunboyne and four miles (6 km) from the town of Maynooth. Under th ...

. He was sired by

Ela-Mana-Mou Ela-Mana-Mou (1976–2008) was a British Thoroughbred race horse and sire. In a career which lasted from 1978 until October 1980, he ran sixteen times and won ten races. He was one of the best British two-year-olds of 1978, when he defeated T ...

an outstanding middle distance performer whose wins included the

Eclipse Stakes The Eclipse Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Sandown P ...

and the

King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes The King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot o ...

in 1980. His other progeny included Double Trigger,

Snurge Snurge (12 March 1987 – November 2006), was an Irish-bred British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career which lasted from September 1989 until September 1994, he ran thirty-four times and won seven races. He recorded his most im ...

and

Almaarad Almaarad is a notable Thoroughbred race horse owned by Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who won a number of stakes races both in Europe and Australia. Trained in Australia by Colin Hayes, he is best known for his win in the 1989 Cox Plate ...

. Emmson's dam Happy Kin won three races from thirty-three starts in North America between 1977 and 1980. She was descended from Great Niece, a full-sister to

Great Nephew Great Nephew was a British thoroughbred who became a champion miler in France. He also became a very successful sire, producing two Derby Stakes winners.Swain. Emmson raced in the colours of Ballymacoll's owners

Michael Sobell Sir Michael Sobell (1 November 1892 – 1 September 1993) was a British businessman, a major philanthropist, and a prominent owner/breeder of thoroughbred racehorses. Family and childhood Sobel (from 1946, Sobell"Sobell, Sir Michael (1892– ...

and Arnold Weinstock. He was trained by

Dick Hern William Richard Hern (20 January 1921 – 22 May 2002) was an English Thoroughbred racehorse trainer and winner of sixteen British Classic Races between 1962 and 1995, and was Champion Trainer on four occasions. Following his early career ...

West Ilsley West Ilsley is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. The population of the village at the 2011 Census was 332. Location and amenities It is situated in West Berkshire, north of Newbury on the Berkshire Downs. The companion village ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

Racing career

1987: two-year-old season

On what was scheduled to be his racecourse debut, Emmson was withdrawn at the start of a race at

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

after his jockey reported him to be "wrong behind". Five days later he appeared to be completely sound when winning a maiden race over seven

furlongs A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

Newbury Racecourse Newbury Racecourse is a racecourse and events venue in the civil parish of Greenham, adjoining the town of Newbury in Berkshire, England. It has courses for flat races and over jumps. It hosts one of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat ...

. In July, over the same course and distance, he won the Donnington Castle Stakes, beating the John Dunlop-trained favourite Alwuhush by three quarters of a

length Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Interna ...

. The Washington Singer Stakes in August, again over seven furlongs at Newbury, saw the colt moving up in class and winning by three quarters of a length from Zelphi. He was then stepped up in class and distance for the Group Two

Royal Lodge Stakes The Royal Lodge Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and geldings. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) ...

over one mile at

Ascot Racecourse Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and ...

in September and started the 13/2 fourth choice in the betting. Ridden as usual by

Willie Carson William Fisher Hunter Carson, OBE (born 16 November 1942) is a retired jockey in thoroughbred horse racing. Life and career Best known as "Willie", Carson was born in Stirling, Scotland in 1942. He was apprenticed ...

he was slightly hampered in the straight before staying on to finish fourth behind Sanquirico, Undercut and Alwuhush. On 24 October Emmson was one of six colts to contest the Group One William Hill Futurity. He was made the 7/1 third favourite behind the undefeated Salse (winner of the

Somerville Tattersall Stakes The Somerville Tattersall Stakes, currently run as the Tattersalls Stakes, is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and geldings. It is run on the Rowley Mile at N ...

) and Alwuhush, with the best fancied of the other three runners being

Sheriff's Star Sheriff's Star (27 April 1985 – after 1995) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. As a two-year-old he won his first two races before establishing himself as one of the best British colts of his generation with a close second in ...

. After racing in third place behind the outsiders Top Class and Ilishpour he moved to the front two furlongs out and held off the late challenge of Sheriff's Star, with Salse two lengths back in third.

1988: three-year-old season

Emmson began his second season in the

Dante Stakes The Dante Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 56 yards () at ...

(a major trial race for The Derby) over ten and a half furlongs at

York Racecourse York Racecourse is a horse racing venue in York, North Yorkshire, England. It is the third biggest racecourse in Britain in terms of total prize money offered, and second behind Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It attracts around 350 ...

in May. He led for most of the way but was overtaken in the last quarter mile and finished fourth of the seven runners behind Red Glow. He bypassed the Derby in favour of the

Chantilly Racecourse Chantilly Racecourse (In French: "Hippodrome de Chantilly") is a Thoroughbred turf racecourse for flat racing in Chantilly, Oise, France, about north of the centre of the city of Paris. Chantilly Racecourse is located in the country's main ...

and finished third beaten a short head and three quarters of a length by

Hours After ''Hours After'' is an album by American composer, bandleader and keyboardist Sun Ra recorded in 1986 in Italy and released on the Black Saint label in 1989.

and Ghost Buster's. After a lengthy break he returned to France in October for the

Longchamp Racecourse The Longchamp Racecourse (french: Hippodrome de Longchamp) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for its variety of interlaced ...

. Ridden by Tony Ives he took the lead approaching the straight and maintained his advantage until 200 metres from the finish, but then faded quickly and finished eighth of the twenty-four runners behind

Tony Bin Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

. On his fourth and final appearance of the year he was dropped in class and started odds-on favourite for the Group Three St Simon Stakes at Newbury but ran poorly and finished seventh, more than twenty lengths behind the winner Upend.

1989: four-year-old season

Emmson made his first appearance in the

Gordon Richards Stakes The Gordon Richards Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 1 furlong and 209 yards () ...

Sandown Park Racecourse Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse rac ...

on 29 April and finished a remote sixth behind

Indian Skimmer The Indian skimmer or Indian scissors-bill (''Rynchops albicollis'') is one of the three species that belong to the skimmer genus ''Rynchops'' in the family Laridae. They are somewhat tern-like but like other skimmers, have a short upper mandibl ...

. In the

Hardwicke Stakes The Hardwicke Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards (2,406 metres), and ...

Royal Ascot Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and ...

in June he led until the final quarter mile before finishing third behind Assatis and Top Class. He was then dropped to Listed class for the Fred Archer Stakes at

Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...

on 1 July and finished second to the four-year-old Apache. On 12 August the colt made his third appearance in France when he contested the Group Three Prix Gontaut-Biron over 2000 metres at

Deauville Racecourse Hippodrome Deauville-La Touques is a race track for thoroughbred horse racing located in Deauville in the Calvados département, in the Normandy ''région'' of France. Originally called Hippodrome de la Touques, it was named for the Touques River ...

. With Carson in the saddle, he tracked the leader Hello Calder before taking the lead in the last 200 metres and stayed on well to win by three quarters of a length from Sweet Chesne. Carson received a four-day ban (later overturned) for causing interference but the result was allowed to stand.

1990: five-year-old season

Emmson remained in training as a five-year-old and was ridden in all three of his races by Alain Lequeux. He failed to recover his best form, finishing fifth in the

Prix d'Harcourt The Prix d'Harcourt is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles) at Longchamp in Apr ...

, last of ten in the

Prix Ganay The Prix Ganay is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furlongs) at Long ...

and eighth in La Coupe in his final race on 23 June.

Assessment

In the official International Classification of two-year-olds for 1987, Emmson was given a rating of 118, seven pounds behind the top-rated pair Ravinella and Warning, making him the fifth best British juvenile colt. The independent Timeform organisation rated him on 123, four pounds inferior to Warning, who was their best two-year-old of the season. In their annual ''Racehorses of 1987'' Timeform described him as a "very genuine" stayer who was likely to develop into a

St Leger The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a ...

contender.

Stud record

At the end of his racing career, Emmson was exported to become a breeding stallion in Brazil. His last foals were born in 1997. His best runners included the filly Verruma and the colt Mr Pleasentfar, both of whom won Grade One races in Brazil before transferring to the United States: Verruma won the Athenia Stakes whilst Mr Pleasentfar won the Red Smith Handicap.

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist 1985 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 14-c