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BREEDERS' CUP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

October 26, 2007

OCEANPORT, NEW JERSEY

ERIC WING: Welcome again, we are joined presently at the winners table by jockey Julien Leparoux who picked up his first career Breeders' Cup victory, and to his left is Fabien Ouaki, the owner and breeder of Nownownow.
Fabio, I imagine this has to be doubly exciting for you given that you campaigned and owned the Nownownow stallion, who is, of course, Whywhywhy, has to be nice to have the first Breeders' Cup title in the bag.
FABIEN OUAKI: Yes, this is a big very big title for me. I still own Whywhywhy and still have some shares because I do believe in this horse and I own the mare from the beginning, too. So for me, it's a family victory, and also the ones missing today, Patrick is a friend of mine for 40 years now because he was a friend when we were kids.
So it's a family, it's a real family victory.
ERIC WING: And July January, this victory on Nownownow was reminiscent at his win of Saratoga. You just sat in the rear and bided your time, it looked like, and let the pace setters duel it out and you came and picked it all up at the end, is it a pretty uneventful trip for you.
JULIEN LEPAROUX: Yeah, I did exactly what he wanted me to do, he told me to get him to relax. Last time, we got no pace, but still it was kind of a little rink. But he was relaxing when I came outside in the straight, he take off.
ERIC WING. And now, Julien and Fabio are joined by Francois Parisel who has the somewhat unique distinction of having his first official win as a trainer in a Breeders' Cup race. The press would like to know your background as a horseman and what you've done before jumping into the scene here this last week or so.
FRANCOIS PARISEL: I came to this country in 1979 and I was, therefore, working for Mr. Fustok, and I was working for him for four or five years, the late Mr. Fustok. And, of course, like everybody knows, he passed away and then Mr. Biancone asked me to, if we need somebody and then I know all of the family of Mr. Biancone, the dad, him, and so it was great to work for him.
ERIC WING: Was there a bit of uncertainty for the two of you?
FRANCOIS PARISEL: No, I think he was training very well and I think Mr. Biancone did a masterful job with him and very confident and we worry about the soft track. But like the owner said, you know, the background of the family is solid, so I was very happy. I was not too worried about the condition of the track.
ERIC WING: And Julien, did it feel to you like once you left the gate that he was really going to like things?
JULIEN LEPAROUX: Yeah, but already before, I work at Keenland where the track is a little bit soft, too, and he worked very good, so we know he's going to be okay, and he prove it today again.
We have to say congratulations to Mr. Biancone, too, because like Francois said, he did a lot of work, and I think he kind of wins the Breeders' Cup, too, today. And hopefully we get a good day tomorrow, too.
ERIC WING: And Fabio, there was a question, will Mr. Biancone in any way share in some of the financial profits from the victory today?
FABIEN OUAKI: No, no financial profits. Although I'm sure he's proud today, and I'm sure, because he knows where we are coming from, both of us, and you know, as he said, his life is like a ping-pong ball. You know, it's always rebound.
We just say with age, we need to put it stronger on the floor to get rebound. So I think it will come back anyway, because he's a horseman from the beginning, and he's only thinking about that.

Q. Given that you lost on La Traviata in the first race, what did you learn from that ride in terms of the condition of the track that helped you decide your strategy for the second race; did you learn anything from the first?
JULIEN LEPAROUX: No, because I was on the dirt and this one was on the turf and it's totally different.
But that La Traviata was a little disappointing. But Patrick told me a good jockey is one who knows how to rebound, too, after a defeat.

Q. Julien, another question for you, could you describe the feeling of winning your first Breeders' Cup race in such a relatively short period of time since you started riding a couple of years ago?
JULIEN LEPAROUX: It's wonderful. It's like a dream, when I was a little boy, I was watching on TV, and so it's nice to be here today and win a race like this.
I mean, I don't realize, yet, I guess, but it's very nice.

Q. Just wondering, your first Breeders' Cup win, you had company there late in the race, there was a horse right to your outside; was that the way you envision winning your first in a hard-fought duel inside the 16th?
JULIEN LEPAROUX: No. But a win is a win, and we got it now, and it's okay.

Q. Obviously Nownownow has established himself as an excellent two-year-old grass horse. Whenever a two-year-old wins, a major stakes around two turns, folks in America start thinking, you know, maybe the dirt division is a little more prestigious in this country than the grass division. The sire, Whywhywhy, was no slouch on the dirt. What do you think the future might hold next year for Nownownow?
FABIEN OUAKI: I think we have to try, you know, the solution with the Polytracks now are because it shows he can go on the soft, on the yielding turf. Definitely he's not a dirt horse. But I think he can do well on the Polytrack. Let the horse get two years old and we'll see what is his attitude.

Q. Do you have any sense at this point of what the next couple two or three months might hold for Nownownow and are you going to put him away for the year and gear him up towards next year or is that still in the planning stages?
FRANCOIS PARISEL: Mr. Biancone will give rest to him on the farm and then, you know, he will decide how he will pass the winter and then hopefully we'll see him next year.
You know, it's up to Mr. Biancone, who will make the decision. He's the owner.

Q. Is there going to be a race now or is that it for the year?
FRANCOIS PARISEL: I don't know. Mr. Biancone will decide.

Q. Was it your plan to try to close him off the pace or was that just the way the race developed for you?
JULIEN LEPAROUX: No, that was the plan.

Q. And did you have concern at any point in the race whether you were too far back?
JULIEN LEPAROUX: That was the plan, so he followed the plan and you see what happened. I mean, after that, when I gave him outside, he kicked very good and he went. That's how the race is.

Q. Fabien, you're based in Paris, I believe, and we Americans are always scared to death when the European invaders come in to challenge our American turf runners. You're kind of on both sides of the fence, you're over there and you know what things are like, you're very familiar with European racing and you race extensively in the United States. Were you concerned about horses like Achill Island and so forth?
FABIEN OUAKI: I'm a breeder for 20 years and every year I send my best horse to America.
So after 15 years, I tried to sell a horse, who name was Bonapartiste who used to be trained by Ron McInally, so I send it to Ron McInally, but it was a very successful horse in California.
So I launched an operation there and I don't have any operation in France. I consider myself as an American horseman even if I may French and I speak French.
But for me, horse racing is America. It's no more Europe. I'm sorry for the Europeans, but it means the market is here, the public is here, the horses are here, too. So for me, that's what makes the races happen. It's not only a matter of money; it's a matter of public. The public is fantastic here.
And I think for the jockey, for the owner, for everybody to have this crowd at Keenland or, you know, in California, and to have this crowd and this public behind our sport, because I consider it as a sport, and that's very important and makes a difference.
ERIC WING: Congratulations on just a terrific performance by Nownownow and we look forward to seeing him next year.

End of FastScripts

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