24 May 2016
Courtesy of Dennis Ryan, The Informant
There’s no greater rumour mill than the one that exists in the racing industry, and the rumour that’s currently got the longest legs concerns a world famous New Zealand entity.
In the fortieth anniversary year of the founding of Cambridge Stud, Sir Patrick Hogan has decided that enough is enough; the time has come to lay a certain rumour to rest. For the best part of a year he has been hearing the same old line ? that Cambridge Stud has been, or is in the process of being sold ? and now he wants to put the record straight.
“There have been times over the years that Cambridge Stud has been the subject of outside interests, but none of those went anywhere,” Hogan told The Informant this week in an exclusive interview.
“I realise it’s been no secret that the most recent inquiry has been from an offshore group, but I can now state that the bottom line is Cambridge Stud is not for sale. Any negotiations that may have been taking place have ended.
“As it stands there is nothing on the table - not now and not in the foreseeable future.”
Hogan reflects on Cambridge Stud’s four decades as being marked by two champion stallions and another that is now making great strides. That began in 1976 with Sir Tristram’s reign as a breed-shaping champion par excellence, his dynasty continued extraordinarily by his son Zabeel, and now the new shooting star, Tavistock.
“When Sir Tristram was retired and all over, I said to myself it was a shame there would not be another one like him, so it might be time for a different direction.
“Then along came Zabeel to follow in his own sire’s footsteps and I was thinking it can’t get much better than this. When his time was over again I wondered if I should let someone else take the reins at Cambridge Stud.
"But what’s happened now? Tavistock certainly has a way to go to live up to Sir Tristram and Zabeel, but I can’t help that feeling of here we go again.
“For any stud to succeed you have to have the bull in the paddock. That’s what Cambridge Stud has had from day one, it still has, so why would I want to sell?”
It becomes quite clear when talking with Hogan that what has rankled him most lately is what he describes as “other people knowing more about my own business than I do myself”.
“To have to put up with being asked by any number of people at the yearling sales, getting phone calls from the other side of the world as to what’s going on and being assailed in front of a whole lot of other people while having a day out at the races. That’s what it’s been like and now it’s time to put the record straight.
“To be quite clear, I’ll put it this way. We the proprietors of Cambridge Stud, Sir Patrick and Justine Lady Hogan, advise the industry that despite numerous rumours and widespread gossip, Cambridge Stud has not been sold.
“While Cambridge Stud attracts ongoing international interest, it will continue to remain in our ownership. Justine and I believe that those spreading the rumours would be better off concentrating their time on running their own businesses instead of creating or perpetuating rumours from these unfounded facts.”
