Muhaarar and Paul Hanagan - Revisited

Muhaarar - Revisited with Paul Hanagan 



Muhaarar was Champion 3yo Sprinter in 2015, what specifically do you think made him so consistently brilliant?
A couple of things made him so brilliant, was that he got quicker with every race, it took a long time to get his trip right as he won over 7 and I’m sure he would of won over a mile but he just got quicker with age. Another was his temperament, as he was a very good natured, calm horse but when those gates opened he knew his job and was very genuine.


You rode him to win on his racecourse debut. He was a 5-6F that day, did you have any idea he’d be a multiple G1 winner in waiting?
I think he went off short that day as people see the Hamdan colours in a race that wasn’t very strong. But there was talk of him before hand, I’d never sat on him until the race. It was still hard to tell as obviously the race wasn’t much and the ground was heavy but he won by about 4 lengths on the bridle and with him being very green as well I was thinking one definitely for the notebook.


He retired at the end of his 3yo season, if he had raced another year before heading to Shadwell Stud, do you think he’d of continued to dominate G1 races?
I was gutted he got retired at the end of his 3y old season, he won everything there was to win and getting better with age. People talk about how good Battaash is, but he wouldn’t be anywhere close to Muhaarar if he hadn’t retired.


Where does he rank with other horses you’ve ridden?
He’s by far the best sprinter I’ve rode and I’ve been lucky enough to ride some good sprinters. To win 4 G1s in a season says it all really.


What was your personal highlight on Muhaarar?
My personal highlight was winning the champion sprint at Ascot. He was literally still pulling double a furlong out and I gave him a flick and he took off. With there being a lot of pressure that day and expectation for both of us, he delivered out of the top drawer.


What did Muhaarar mean to you, and what do you think he did for your career?
I think any horse you win a G1 on does wonders for your career but when you win 3 G1s and a few other nice races then people take notice of horse and rider so he did mean a lot to me.


Thanks to Paul Hanagan for talking to me and giving us a wonderful insight to one of my personal favourites, and a very underrated champion sprinter. 
There will be more Revisited to follow!

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