If attention to detail is what makes a good racehorse trainer, then Dan Blacker has it in abundance.
The California-based trainer flew 16 hours to Dubai last week to watch his superstar Straight No Chaser work at Meydan Racecourse ahead of the Dubai Golden Shaheen (G1) April 5.
"I came in for four days," he explained. "It was his first work there so I just wanted to see him go over the track and talk to my assistant, Juan Landeros, who gets on him every day. He's a big part of this horse's success."
In a sense, it was a return to the start for Blacker, who graduated from the Godolphin Flying Start program in 2007. The two-year course involved a stint in Dubai, which Blacker remembers fondly.
"Dubai was a lot different then to what it is now," he says. "It's always had a special place in my heart and I've always hoped to have a horse good enough to compete on World Cup night. I'm thrilled to get the opportunity to do it with this horse."
Also on that 2007 course was soon-to-be bloodstock agent Conor Foley, who later purchased Tuz for just $7,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale back in 2018. Seven years later, Tuz will be the main rival to Straight No Chaser in the Golden Shaheen. Ever thorough, Blacker has done his research on the local sprinting star, who is unbeaten in his last five starts, including this race in 2024.
"I've watched his win in the Golden Shaheen last year and we respect that horse a lot," he says. "Bhupat (Seemar, trainer) does a great job and he's on his home turf—I think that's the main thing. This is a new surface for us, a new challenge. We'll just have to see who's best on the big night."
New challenges don't seem to faze Straight No Chaser, who followed his Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) success at Del Mar in November with a blistering win in the Riyadh Dirt Sprint (G2) in Saudi Arabia a month ago.
"Saudi was a great experience personally," says Blacker. "The horse really thrived there and he's thriving in Dubai too. What's remarkable about this horse is not only his talent and his desire but that he just takes everything in his stride—all the travel is no trouble to him—that's what makes him so special."
The Straight No Chaser journey hasn't always been smooth, however, and the 6-year-old son of Speightster required plenty of patience early on in his career.
"(Owners) MyRacehorse purchased him at the Fasig-Tipton (Midlantic 2-Year-Old in Training Sale) in Maryland," explains Blacker. "After that he needed a bit of time, just immaturity stuff, nothing major. He came into my barn at the end of his 2-year-old year and was a little bit of a late-bloomer. But as he trained and grew, he just got stronger. We had a minor issue with him at the beginning of his 3-year-old year so he didn't start until July. But he always showed a lot of talent—right from the word go."
Blacker, who is married to well-known racing TV host Christina Blacker, is originally from the United Kingdom and perhaps still has his British sense of reserve, despite 18 years in California. Even so, he admits that Straight No Chaser has broken new ground for him.
"He's the best horse I've ever had, so of course he's changed my life," he says. "I've got to follow him in his races around the world and any horse that does that is very special. To compete on the global stage has always been an ambition of mine, so to have a horse that can do that and win is very exciting. I'm thankful to be his trainer."
Should Straight No Chaser win the Shaheen, even Meydan's spacious winner's stage could become a little crowded. Through micro-share company MyRacehorse, he has 946 owners, plenty of whom will be making the trip.
"The more owners, the bigger the party!" says Blacker, with a little United States-inflection on the last word. "I don't feel any pressure. I think the micro share syndicates like MyRacehorse are a great addition to the industry. It encourages people to get into ownership when they might not have before. I think it's a really positive thing and I'm proud to be a part of that.
"I enjoy sharing my love for the game and my love for horses with people who are less exposed to horses and horse racing, I believe that owners get more of a thrill when they are part of the process leading up to every race. One of our challenges in the industry is promoting the sport in a positive way and they can see firsthand the care these horses get and spread that message."
In addition to being grateful for his part in the Straight No Chaser story, Blacker is thankful for a lucky escape earlier this year when his family home was scarily close to the California wildfires.
"We evacuated for about a week," he explains. "We live in Pasadena and could see the fire from our backyard on January 7. The winds were like nothing I've ever felt before, and I've lived in California for 18 years. Our house wasn't burned but we had to replace a lot of things due to smoke damage and ash. Overall, we were very lucky."
Lucky, yes, but hard work and talent have also played a part in the Blacker story so far. With Straight No Chaser, that story could yet get even better.
This press release has been edited for content and style by BloodHorse Staff.
