How many Group 1 winners has Jeff Smith owned?

Multi-millionaire owner/breeder Jeffrey ‘Jeff’ Smith raced his first horse, Rush Bond, in 1976 but, since 1984, the majority of his horses have been bred at his own Littleton Stud, near Winchester, Hamsphire. Never one to seek the limelight, Smith has, nonetheless, bred and owned some truly outstanding racehorses, including Chief Singer and Lochsong, who both won three Group 1 races apiece.

Indeed, Lochsong, who won the Stewards’ Cup, Portland Handicap and Ayr Gold Cup in 1992, followed by the Nunthorpe Stakes and the Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp in 1993 and the Prix de l’Abbaye again in 1994, was his most successful horse ever. Of the 1993 Cartier Horse of the Year, Smith said, ‘It’s one of the great sights of racing at the moment, Lochsong bursting out of the stalls and leading her rivals a merry dance. She’s a wonderful character. Ian [Balding] is convinced she knows when she has won.’

Although Smith is primarily an owner/breeder, his most recent Group 1 winner, Alcohol Free, was a rare purchase. Bought for €40,000 as a foal, Alcohol Free won the Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket, Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot and Sussex Stakes at Goodwood and has, so far, amassed over £1 million in prize money. At the last count, Smith had 11 Group 1 wins to his name at home and abroad.