Maxime Guyon takes stock and talks about the future

Paris Turf: What state of mind are you in the day after winning your fourth Golden Crop?

Maxime Guyon: Firstly, I felt a lot more enthusiasm this season because it was very close until the end between Mickaël Barzalona and me. Everyone certainly had this feeling, especially the owners, coaches and punters. Moreover, the latter almost always positioned us with the favorite costume at the start of the races.

How do you explain the fact that you had to struggle more this season? Was it more complicated to live with?

Honestly, I experienced it very well because I really get along very well with “Micka”. It was a great match because the wrestling was really very healthy from start to finish. On the other hand, obtaining my fourth title was more complicated because the difference in victories between the two of us has always been minimal. But it was nice because when one won, the other bid just behind.

Did you doubt? And especially when you learned that Mickaël Barzalona was going to try to compete at the end of August?

No, not really because I have confidence in Pierre-Alain Cherreau and Giovanni Laplace, my agents, who do remarkable work. I didn’t doubt my results and at least the fact that I was going to win fewer races, but it’s true that nothing was decided beforehand. When you have three or four victories in advance, it is both a lot but also not a lot. We must not forget that we win races almost every day. At the end of August, I knew that Mickaël Barzalona was going to try to come back on me because he had already done it in 2023, especially since he had twenty-five victories less at that time. So, obviously, with only around ten successes in advance, I knew that he was going to try to worry me. For my part, I remained focused thinking about the great races. I especially thought about the Golden Crop during the month of October, not before.

How do you organize your trips? Is it easy to manage alone?

I am quite independent for this because I organize my trips alone, whether by car or plane. As jockeys, we are used to it because even when we are not engaged in the fight for the Golden Whip, we are used to traveling a lot everywhere.

Is it a goal to win as many Golden Crop as possible?

A goal? I don’t think so. It takes a lot of time and sacrifice. Running to the four corners of France forces us to put our private lives aside. Now, with the new format which extends from March to October (see box), it’s a little easier for us because we have about three months in the year where we can be a little more relaxed. Then, that being said, I don’t have seventeen in Gold, certainly, but I have seventeen in total, which is already very good (laughs)! I think I will get more in the future, regardless of whether they are Gold, Silver or Bronze. What matters most is winning a lot of Group Is.

Trotting, your counterpart is named Eric Raffin. How do you view his career?

This month, he broke another record by racking up 46 victories over this period. It doesn’t touch the ground! It’s incredible. The more races we win, the more motivated we are. There, he is on an incredible dynamic. This bodes very well for him to have a very big winter meeting in Vincennes. And who knows, with the new American sulky, he might be able to break more records. For my part, I’m not specialized enough in sulkys to get into this debate (laughs).

Let’s look back more generally on your season…

I am satisfied. The year is good, especially because I was able to win four Group Is with Horse Postman (Dubaï Turf), Rouhiya (Poule d’Essai des Pouliches), Sauce (Grand Prix de Paris) and Double Major (Prix Royal-Oak). Finishing these races is a good thing, but it’s always better to win. I am referring to the places that I was able to obtain in the classics with in particular Sauce who, in my opinion, could have won the Prix du Jockey Club (Gr.I) if the race had been run under the old formula, that is to say over 2,400 meters. He placed third but if the distance had been longer I think he would have dominated Look de Vega because he always had the last word when they clashed twice over 2,400 meters. The season was still very successful for the Wertheimer & Frère team, it’s great.

Moreover, we recently learned that you are extending your contract with this prestigious team for another three years…

This is great news. Their breeding is incredible and their success is deserved because they put a lot of effort into achieving it. The year has been excellent but I want to say that it’s almost normal because they are doing everything to make it this way. It is therefore deserved and I am convinced that they have many good years left to live. I am really happy to continue this collaboration over the next three years.

What were the other highlights and your regrets from this season?

The Deauville meeting went well. Usually, I know it’s a month that can be more difficult than the others because foreigners come in force but it has been. Moreover, when we look at the number of my successes, we notice that they were constant over the entire period of the Cravache d’Or, but also over the year as a whole. The only downside of this season is perhaps the Arc de Triomphe weekend where I was unable to shine. The English and Irish were very strong. Not having won a race during these two days is a bit my regret of the year.

What is your view on the new wave of young trainers affecting French galloping?

I find it great that young people are taking over from the great coaches who are retiring, they are really competent. Francis-Henri Graffard, who has been coaching for several seasons now, is experiencing constant growth. Christopher Head has only recently started but he already has a very good track record thanks to his numerous Group I victories. Jérôme Reynier is also in the same situation. If I take the example of our struggle with “Micka”, it only pulled us up. For coaches, it’s the same. We need young people who bring new things to challenge the older ones.

What will your program be for this winter?

I will stop going to France in December. Then, I will resume in January. Next year, it is not impossible that I will go abroad again. Since my daughter was born twelve years ago, I haven’t had the opportunity to travel. She’s starting to grow now so it’s getting easier. It is therefore likely that I will leave for several months during the winter. Or ? I don’t really know yet. It will depend on the opportunities.

To conclude, do you plan to demonstrate on November 7 to fight against the bill which aims to increase taxes on sports betting?

Unfortunately, I will not be able to go to this event but it is important to mobilize because this tax can harm our sector. France is a country that already taxes a lot. So it’s good to tax even more, but there won’t be much left in the end. If this passes, many racing players will suffer. We will therefore have to bang our fists on the table to be heard.

The number of victories of Maxime Guyon month/month of 1^is March to October 31

11

Already a winner of 30 Group Is during his career on our soil, Maxime Guyon is however still in the race to conquer 11 of the 27 Group Is which are contested each year in France (Prix Rotschild, Prix Jacques le Marois, Prix Morny, Prix du Moulin de Longchamp, Prix de Royallieu, Prix du Cadran, Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère, Prix Marcel Boussac and the Critérium International).

16

That is the total number of years that Maxime Guyon has not left the podium of the Cravache d’Or. The last time was in 2008, when he had to settle for tenth place… with a total of only 63 winners!