Ferrario Aiming At Arc Dream

Fate put them together. Paolo Ferrario didn't even give the horse the name that now, as he lines up for the G2 Grand Prix de Deauville today, seems charged with a specific, personal destiny. Way To Paris (GB) (Champs Elysees) was so registered as a yearling, long before Ferrario assumed ownership. And he only did that after his trainer's original client had disappeared. But if he can run well today, Way To Paris will be eligible to satisfy a lifetime's ambition: to carry Ferrario's yellow and light blue silks, so closely associated with a better epoch for Italian racing, in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.

It is a dream commensurate with the long years of patience, respect and experience that have fed it. Ferrario, at 91, has been migrating from Milan to Deauville every summer for decades, just as his father did before him. He is the last custodian of a stable revered, in his homeland, all the way back to the era of Tesio himself. But Ferrario is still looking forward, even adding a couple of yearlings to his string at Arqana last Monday.

“I've been coming here every summer for many years,” he reflects. “The first time in 1983, I think. Every day I go to the races, whether here or at Clairefontaine. Some days, I'll go and play at the casino. And some years I will buy a horse or two. One I bought here a couple of years ago looks good, he recently won a nice race on his debut at Saint-Cloud.

“So I pass very happy days here, among horses-a passion I owe to my father. I lost my wife 30 years ago. But I still have my children. And my horses.”

His speech is measured but strong; his bearing dignified but charming; and his laughter speaks of a generous spirit. Within the Italian racing community, the prospect of Way To Paris making the Arc is a matter of universal glee.

“Our stable [Scuderia Fert] was founded by my father in 1954,” Ferrario said. “He bought his first horse in France, actually, and with his partners Signor [Nanni] Falck and Signor [Angelo] Tanzi would come here every summer. They had many very good horses. Probably the best was Bacuco, who was bought from the Scuderia Mantova. He won many races, including the Premio del Jockey Club, and he was third in Washington DC International.”

There is a connection to those days in Way To Paris. He is trained by Andrea Marcialis, whose father Antonio has long served the Ferrario cause-and learned his trade under the Scuderia Fert's longstanding master trainer, Mario Benetti. And it was Antonio who found Way To Paris as a yearling, for 50,000gns out of Tattersalls Book 2 in 2014.

He was consigned by Highclere Stud, but had been bred by the Vittadini family (of Grundy fame) from the very accomplished Grey Way (Cozzene), a Group 2 winner in Italy. Her maternal line, seeded by several Classic American influences, traces to the great La Troienne. Grey Way has already produced Distant Way (Distant View), a dual Group 1 winner in Italy.

“I knew it was a lovely family,” Antonio Marcialis explains. “And the horse pleased me with his conformation, too. I knew this would certainly not be a precocious horse, by Champs Elysees, and the mother wanted a distance. Really the only possible owner for this horse was Signor Ferrario. Because these owners of the old school, they never rush their trainers. This gentleman will give the horse time to mature. Today they aren't like that, they don't have the same patience.”

Sure enough, Way To Paris is better than ever at five, finishing very strongly for third in the G2 Grand Prix de Chantilly last time. Andrea Marcialis feels that he has developed mentally as much as physically; that “he was very hot before; now he's asleep.”

Ferrario's string has always had an international flavour. Through agent Paolo Romanelli, he has for many years imported young horses from American sales. Several have returned terrific dividends: Haig Point (Dahar) (purchased for $8,000, won $312,309), Minarello (Blushing John) (an anagram of the agent's surname, cost $4,500, won $245,820) and Roman Forum (Open Forum) (cost $15,000, won $320,074).

But while the problems of Italian racing are well known, Ferrario retains great faith in the competitive worth of the Italian horse, and Italian horsemen. Optimism by no means being a prerogative of youth, he believes that matters in his homeland can improve.

“These days nearly all my horses run in France,” Ferrario said. “Seeing that the son of Signor Marcialis was starting a stable in France, I decided I would have some trained here. But I'm hopeful the situation in Italy will get better soon. The new Minister of Agriculture has already met with horsemen, after only two months in office, while his predecessor never met with them during his five years' tenure.”

“And I still have some horses in training at San Siro, with young Gianluca Verricelli. I bought most of them in the U.S. through Signor Romanelli, my friend and agent for the past 23 years.”

“It's difficult to see how things at home can improve. Once we had many group races at home. Now there is just one Group 1 race left, the Lydia Tesio. But as horsemen we are eternal optimists. The Italian horses that come to race in France can almost always win. That shows that the production is still working, that Italian breeding remains very good.”

A nonagenarian whose greatest virtues are patience and optimism? How wonderful, if Way To Paris could earn this venerable figure the thrill of a lifetime-and what a lifetime!-by contesting the Arc. Ferrario is, after all, a link to a golden age on the Italian Turf. He even remembers Federico Tesio, as “a fine man, and a genius, but a little distant-or shy, rather.”

“There is only me left now, to keep the stable going,” Ferrario said. “The others are all dead. But I have been lucky. Signor Marcialis proposed this horse to me, this beautiful grey, and he saw it all, the way the horse would improve and improve. He was a backward horse, but now he's really thriving.

“He has had a break and the track here probably isn't ideal, so he doesn't have to win this race. I'll be delighted if he can finish second or third. He's not a speedy horse, so the faster the gallop the more his stamina can kick in.”

“I am so pleased. For the first time in my life, I have a horse who could go for the Arc. Signora Vittadini named the horse, not me. But it's a good name, and could become a very apt one. Even if he's not good enough to win, it would delight me so much if he made it to the Arc. Because, at my age, it will surely be my last chance!”