Bart’s famous stables face closure as James Cummings joins Godolphin

Godolphin announced James Cummings would head its training operations after the departure of John O’Shea and the interim rule of former jockey Darren Beadman.

Cummings told Sky Sports radio he had to weigh up the huge history of his grandfather Bart’s Leilani Lodge, the man known as the Cups King,  and the future of his family. He said he hoped some of Leilani’s employees could come with him to Godolphin, he also had to tell great clients such as Dato Chin Nam that he would be leaving.

Malaysian businessman Dato Chin Nam had many winners with Bart, including several Melbourne Cup winners.

Bart’s famous green and gold silks would be retained by James for use perhaps at a later date. 

“It is truly an honour to be asked to join the Godolphin team as the head trainer in Australia and I am very grateful to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed for the opportunity," James Cummings said. "I am confident in my experience and I definitely have the enthusiasm to build on the incredible success that has already been achieved by Godolphin in Australia.

"I have been very fortunate in my career so far to have learnt my trade from some of the best in the business and I will be forever grateful to the fantastic and loyal owners that have supported me in my career so far, in particular Eduardo Cojuanco Junior and Dato Tan Chin Nam."

Cummings will work with Beadman - a jockey who was close to Bart and won the Melbourne Cup on Saintly for him in 1996. He’ll also work with one of Bart’s best foremen, Reg Fleming, who heads up Godolphin’s Melbourne operation.

The future of Leilani Lodge is now in doubt, with a decision on the famous stables having to be made by the ATC. But James’s father Anthony, said his other son Edward was keen to take on the Leilani operation, if the ATC approved it. Edward has been training with his father for many years, while James trained alongside Bart for two years until Bart passed away in 2015.

"James is a great fit for Godolphin and his appointment is an exciting new chapter in the Godolphin story in Australia," Godolphin Australia boss Henry Plumptre said.

"In a short space of time James has established himself as one of the most talented trainers in Australia and he has all the attributes to take us in the direction we want to go as a racing team both on and off the track."