Byron Takes Friends On A Great Ride

BYRON TAKES FRIENDS ON A GREAT RIDE 
Irish sprinter Gordon Lord Byron (Ire) (Byron {GB}) has already seen much of the world, having competed in Ireland, England, France, Hong Kong and Dubai, and the 6-year-old recently added another stamp to his passport when jetting to Australia for a series of lucrative races. The dual Group 1 winner will make his debut Down Under in Saturday's G1 George Ryder S. going 1500 meters at Rosehill Gardens ahead of either the A$3 million G1 Doncaster Mile or the A$2.5 million G1 T.J. Smith S., both Apr. 12 at Royal Randwick's The Championships. 
Gordon Lord Byron has taken owner Morgan Cahalan and trainer Tom Hogan, lifelong friends from Co. Tipperary, on quite the journey. 
“We knew each other as kids. We knew the same girls and we drank in the same pub–we didn't marry the same woman,” Cahalan quipped. 
Perhaps the pair's greatest adventure began when Cahalan picked up Gordon Lord Byron for just €2,000 as a weanling at Goffs November. Reoffered as a Goffs yearling, Gordon Lord Byron failed to meet his reserve when led out at €5,000. Today, Gordon Lord Byron has earned more than $1 million. 
“I knew he was good,” Cahalan said. “We had a few quid on him at 100-1 one day and he finished second. The weather turned bad and we kept asking him to win races in heavy ground until we went to the all-weather track and there he really came good. I knew I had a Group 1 horse on my hands, but we didn't know he was a Group 1 horse until a little bit later.” 
Gordon Lord Byron's first success at the highest level came in the 2012 Prix de la Foret at Longchamp, and he followed up last year with a victory in the G1 Haydock Sprint Cup. Only supermare Moonlight Cloud (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) stood between him and a Prix de la Foret title defense last year. Gordon Lord Byron was last seen finishing fourth, beaten two lengths, in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Mile Dec. 8. 
“A lot depends on the pace of the races,” Cahalan said. “If they're run at a good, fast pace on a level track, he can win over six and seven furlongs. He was staying on at the end of the mile in Hong Kong after a bit of an interrupted passage. He's a bit unique as he's effective at a number of different distances.” 
While Gordon Lord Byron has certainly earned back his price tag and more, he's also given Cahalan some priceless memories. 
“It's such a huge privilege, to own one horse, I have to pinch myself sometimes just thinking about it,” he said. “I'd never been anywhere before I got this horse. My passport, I could have cashed it in–I just didn't travel. I didn't have a reason to go. I'd never been to Dubai and I'd never been to Hong Kong until Gordon took me there and now he's taking me to Australia.”