Brentford Hope has been retired after a disappointing run at Newbury on Saturday.
The nine-year-old was beaten 25 lengths into fourth, coming off the bridle early and failing to pick up. His 39 raced career has seen him amass £233,632 across multiple owners, with him initially stabled at Richard Hughes’. After winning on the bridle under Jamie Spencer on flat debut, he’s often flattered to deceive. Just two further victories occurred, though he placed on three occasions in graded company.
When switched to Harry Derham, he once again won firmly on the bridle before comfortably beating Impose Toi at Huntingdon. Brentford Hope earned over £140,000 for his new connections, including three places in graded company. He was third to The New Lion on his penultimate run, but Derham has decided to “call it a day.”
“His body isn’t getting any better” – Harry Derham
Derham told stable sponsor OLGB, via Racing TV, “After speaking to his owners on Saturday at Newbury, we decided to call it a day with him.
“It was the first time I’ve ever seen him not want to jump off. Now, he ran fine and gave a stone away to the first three,” continued Derham.
“He’s nine. His body isn’t getting any better. You know, he’s always had a sort of flat horse trot, but it’s getting progressively worse. After all he’s done for us, I’d like him to have a retirement while he’s still sound.
“He has just been absolutely magnificent for us. You sort of get to a stage where, if he went back down to 130, he might be able to win again.
“But the body’s not getting any better. I’ve watched him in a lot of races now, obviously, and at the start on Saturday I’ve never, ever seen him look reluctant before. Meg was having to boot him round and kick him to get him going. she pushed him away from the start. I thought that was probably him telling us he’s done enough.”
Brentford Hope was the first horse that Harry Derham had ever trained to win four races. The Camelot gelding was purchased for 90,000gns in 2023, and has certainly repaid connections.
He had held an entry in the County Hurdle next week, and a mark of 136 looked workable. However, having rewarded connections with some unforgettable days out, his reluctance to run his usual race on Saturday has ultimately led Derham to call quits on what has certainly been a successful career spanning six years across both codes.