Buick from Eiksmarka wins the world’s biggest race

It was Buick and trainer Charlie Appleby’s first win in racing at the Epsom track outside London.

Masar is owned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum’s Godolphin stable and won ahead of Dee Ex Bee and with Roaring Lion in third.

This was Buic’s biggest win. It was a derby dream come true.

– I often wondered if this would be my turn. I’ve had that dream since I started out as a jockey. It’s “huge, huge,” said Eiksmarka’s William Buick after his English Derby win at Epsom Downs outside London on Saturday afternoon.

This is the 239th edition of the major race which is considered the most important and biggest running race in the world.

The first prize is NOK 9.2 million. Ten percent of this goes to the winning jockey. That’s a nice payday of one million kroner for Buick. He also won one of the frame races on Saturday.

Article continues below advertisementArticle continues below advertisement

Prestige and history

But as he himself said many times; “Money means nothing in such a day, what matters is prestige and history”.

The winning horse Masar is owned by Stall Godolphin, the world’s largest horse owner and employer of William Buick.

The man in the back; Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, Vice President of the Emirates and “Ruler of Dubai”.

This was Godolphin’s first win in the English Derby.

Starting out as a pony rider in Øvrevoll

– He settled down in the distance and ran beautifully all the way, William Buick told Sky Sports after winning a race in which big favourite Saxon Warrior was fourth. Buick settled his horse in the middle of the field and looked a likely winner from the start when the attacks were launched.

Of the twelve horses, Masar ranked fifth with 16 times the money in play.

William, 29, who was born and raised in Bærum, started his career as a pony rider at Øvrevoll. He is the son of Walter Buick, who with his 844 Øvrevoll wins tops the all-time statistics. William, who left for England when he was 16, has so far won 48 races in 2018 and collected NOK 70 million for his horse owners. He has won sprint races in 17 different countries, but never in Norway and at Øvrevoll where his career began.

Lance Heptinstall

"Hardcore zombie fan. Incurable internet advocate. Subtly charming problem solver. Freelance twitter ninja."

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *