Sir Alex Ferguson seeks another big trophy with Spirit Dancer

Legendary football manager Sir Alex Ferguson is hoping to add another trophy to his collection in Bahrain on Friday when he has his sights set on winning the kingdom’s biggest horse race of the year.

Spirit Dancer will carry the silks of Sir Alex in the $1 million Bahrain International Trophy at Sakhir Racecourse. The Group Two race has attracted 14 runners from around the world and the former Manchester United manager will be there to cheer him on.

He owns the six-year-old, a son of the mighty Frankel, in association with friends Fred Done and Ged Mason. His bond with the horse, who has won six of his 22 races and accumulated £243,000 in prize money, goes back to day one as he was bred at the octogenarian’s Upperwood Farm Stud in Hemel Hempstead.

“Spirit Dancer has given us great joy,” Sir Alex admitted in an interview with Raceday's Frankie Foster in Bahrain. “I have started a stud down in Hemel Hempstead and he was the first product of the stud - with [the help of] Frankel and Queen’s Dream. We have done well, one or two have done very well.”

Sir Alex has been involved in the racehorse ownership for more than 25 years and now owns 32 thoroughbreds. He was famous for giving some of his players the “hairdryer treatment” but he says it’s a different story when it comes to horses, trainers and jockeys.

“I can’t tell a horse what to do, whereas at least I could tell players what to do so in that respect, I am not a critical judge at all.

“To be honest, I think my competitive element was left in football. I never question the racing trainer or get upset if the horse loses as this is a different sport for me.

“I enjoy being there. Of course, if you win, then it is really enjoyable being there, particularly at the big races.”

Explaining how he got into racing, he said: “I first went racing at Cheltenham during an international break one year – and from then on, I was hooked.

“The route I got into racing was through my father, he was a great horse fan. He used to have his Timeform book every Saturday morning, looking through all the information you could get about every race.

“I didn’t really take it up, in terms of ownership at least, until 1997/98 when there was an international break. I said to my wife “Why don’t we go to the racing?” Where did you get that from, she said. We went to Cheltenham, and I got hooked on it.

“We bought a horse with [former trainer] Jack Berry and from there on, I now have 32 horses! It is a fantastic sport in terms of a release for me away from football.”

Sir Alex took over at Manchester United in 1986 and by the time he left them, in 2013, had guided the club to a record 13 Premier League titles and two Champions Leagues among a haul of more than 30 trophies.

One of his first matches in charge was in Bahrain. “It was my second game. It was the prince's birthday and they had a select team play against us and that was my first real trip with United,” he recalled.

“Bahrain has been fantastic - especially the hospitality we have had. I see this place now and I think in five or six years it will be one of the top races in the world.

“The change in the place is remarkable, the buildings, the design, it is quite fascinating.”

The Bahrain International Trophy will be broadcast by 22 broadcasters – a record total for the event – as befitting one of the showpiece races in the region. The race is due off at 12.05pm and will be shown live on Racing TV.