Christopher Head is a fifth-generation French trainer from a family steeped in history; dual Arc winner Treve was trained by aunt Criquette Head; Christopher has chances in both the French Derby and Oaks with Big Rock and Blue Rose Cen; watch live on Sky Sports Racing
Thursday 1 June 2023 17:53, UK
Christopher Head will be looking to add to his family’s incredible record in French Classics this weekend as he hunts down a remarkable Derby and Oaks double in just his fifth season as a trainer.
The son of legendary trainer Freddy Head and nephew of Criquette is the fifth generation of a remarkable racing dynasty based in Chantilly, a name that has trained multiple Arc winners, French Classic victories and enjoyed countless Group One successes.
It would be easy for Christopher to maintain the status quo, training out of the same yard and no doubt enjoying plenty of success at the same time.
But having rented boxes from Pascal Bary initially, Head is keen to make own impression and has done just that, landing a first Group One with Blue Rose Cen in the Prix Marcel Boussac in 2022.
Since then, the three-year-old filly has won the French 1000 Guineas and is favourite for the French Oaks, while Big Rock looks to have a leading chance in the French Derby this weekend.
"It brings an advantage because people are confident with the name so they have trust," Head exclusively told Sky Sports Racing. "You need that trust with the owners to get good horses at your stable.
"I've been at this stable for 12 years, learning from my father and now training for four years. This has been a place of many champions so I am trying to get more quality out of those boxes.
"My father has been my main form of inspiration from the very beginning. My grandfather was the builder of the family. All the heritage we have now in terms of knowledge and passion is from him. I owe him everything."
With a rich family tradition comes plenty of responsibility and no doubt Group winners will have been expected almost immediately.
And with that comes a level of pressure that Head appears to thrive on, with an outstanding strike rate and his fair share of stars in the yard ahead of the Prix du Jockey Club, live on Sky Sports Racing.
"It's a bit of both. Of course, there is pressure because people are waiting for the results and they need to come but we've been lucky enough to have good horses.
"The most important thing is to prove it to myself. It's a job I work on every day - you never stop. We will need to do that every year now - the pressure is still on!
"Blue Rose Cen is really one of those brilliant kinds and I just can't wait to see what step she takes next.
"She has been very professional the whole time but it was a very important challenge for us to make her into a star three-year-old.
"We've proved now we can do it and I have the feeling we can do it again."
While Blue Rose Cen was a two-year-old sensation and always likely to be at the fore in both the French 1000 Guineas and Oaks, Big Rock came from the Mathieu Brasme yard having failed to win in three starts.
But he's thrived since moving to the Head stable in February, winning four straight including a duo of Group Three heats, rocketing to the top of the French Derby market as a result.
"Big Rock is incredible and has been working hard here," he added. "I really have the feeling he is improving with every race.
"Like all horses, he has a cruising speed but his is around 61kmh, which is pretty amazing. He can keep that up for a whole race and then go even further. I've never trained a horse like that in my life.
"He's exhausting the others because of that speed."
Regular jockey Aurelien Lemaitre has thrived alongside Christopher Head, and will take the stellar rides on both Big Rock on Sunday and Blue Rose Cen later this month.
And the rider could hardly have been more effusive in praising the Chantilly-based handler ahead of a huge month for the pair.
"Christopher is an incredible professional," Lemaitre added. "We climbed the ladder together and when he set out training, he asked me if I could help him out, which I did with great pleasure. Now we work together, hand in hand.
"He is a visionary, not like when I knew him in his younger days. He sees things differently from others and it works well for him.
"It's difficult to find Classic horses and he has succeeded in doing so with the Blue Rose Cen. All credit to Christopher because he educated the filly when she was young.
"Starting from scratch, always evolving progressively and maintaining that quality at three years old, it's incredible to do that, especially for someone like him with so little experience."
Watch the French Derby on Sky Sports Racing on Sunday 4 June.
