ENGLISH TEXTS the Deauville yearling sales, without a client behind us. I had to be careful with my cash flow, so I couldn’ t afford to buy such a horse in just my fourth year of business, even though I quickly saw he was good. Quite a few people refused to buy him from me. In the end, it was Scuderia Scolari who trusted me with this colt, whom we broke in ourselves.” And as often happens at these key moments in his career, this young professional from the Brescia region was able to count on his Italian network— where it all began. Coming from a family passionate about horses, Mario Baratti was already riding at age four. After taking part in many show jumping competitions and switching to eventing, he earned his gentleman-rider’ s license, collecting wins in his home country as well as in England, France, and Germany through the prestigious Fegentri circuit. Straight out of high school, Mario Baratti began learning racehorse training alongside Mil Borromeo:“ After a year working for him, Mil told me to leave because the racing scene in Italy was struggling. I had decided to apply for the Darley Flying Start program, but my English wasn’ t good enough to pass the required exam. So I headed to England to join Marco Botti’ s yard.” A morning exercise rider for his fellow countryman in Newmarket, the young Italian exile improved his
English in the afternoons in Cambridge to prepare for the test, which he passed— though he ultimately didn’ t join Godolphin’ s coveted program:“ After a year, Marco offered me a position as assistant. I was riding top-class horses at a stable that was rapidly growing, and I couldn’ t turn down such an opportunity.”
From Newmarket to the Irish countryside At just 20 years old, the Lombard took on the challenge of managing British staff. He quickly adapted to his new responsibilities and contributed to the rise of the stable, which gained international success with horses like Excelebration, Euro Charline, Jakkalberry, and the marathoner Tac de Boistron, a two-time winner of the Prix Royal-Oak( Gr. 1). After five years in Newmarket, the Brescia native moved to Ireland to gain one final experience before going out on his own:“ I felt like England was home, but I needed to see something else. People also recommended the U. S., but I couldn’ t go that far from my family.” So, at age 25, he landed in the heart of the Irish countryside, joining the yard of seasoned trainer Jim Bolger:“ He told me he’ d hire me only if I stayed three years. I agreed, but I only stayed … three months. I love horses, but living alone in an isolated house 10 kilometers from the nearest neighbor was too hard. It wasn’ t for me. Still, I learned how to break in horses. But it wasn’ t enough experience to go out on my own, so I decided to continue my journey in France. Pascal Bary agreed to take me on after the 2015 Arc de Triomphe.” After spending a few weeks with his friend Simone Brogi and an August in Deauville at Jean-Claude Rouget’ s yard, the globetrotter became an assistant to the trainer of Divine Proportions, despite a very basic level of French:“ It was even harder,” he recalls.“ The older you get, the harder it is to change countries.” Nevertheless, Mario Baratti persevered and completed a crucial step before becoming a trainer himself four and a half years later.
A steadily growing stable Despite an impressive international resume, he initially struggled to find clients and had to convince an Italian friend, Giovanni Bajetti, to buy a horse:“ He had no particular interest in racing and only did it as a favor. I’ m very grateful to him for buying Moana, whom I had specifically prepared for a race in Deauville.” Baratti’ s first runner, the aforementioned mare, won straight away, followed by placings from the other two horses in his stable:“ Unfortunately, racing was suspended after that because of COVID. Like everyone, it was a tough period, but I was thrilled with the
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