Of course, we do not turn a donkey into a racehorse. However, in equestrianism the importance of jockeys or drivers is undeniable. In football, what would FC Barcelona have been without Lionel Messi or Real Madrid without Cristiano Ronaldo? At the trot, this parallel has to be seen as some drivers are undoubtedly above the scrum and get the quintessence of their horses. Björn Goop and Jean-Michel Bazire are perfect examples.
Both have outrageously dominated their discipline over the past twenty years and have not finished reigning. “In the race, he’s a hell of a customer,” confides the last named about his competitor. He adapted very well to French races and made few mistakes. “And the Swede to return the lift to the one who is nicknamed the” Zidane of the trot “:” In the Prix d’Amérique, I will have the best horse with Face Time Bourbon. Davidson du Pont is an excellent horse but my main opponent will be especially his driver. And it’s Jean-Michel Bazire! ”
While the Frenchman is compared to the hero of the 1998 FIFA World Cup, his Scandinavian counterpart is on par with Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the land of the Vikings. Just that! This year, he even beat the former Paris-Saint-Germain striker in the 2020 Sports Achievement of the Year awards, won by pole vaulter Armand Duplantis, who broke the world record previously held by Renaud Lavillenie.
Men of records and heirs
With “Björn Ibrahimovic” and “Jean-Michel Zidane”, the game of seven differences is more complicated than that of similarities. The first has won twelve Golden Helmets in his country, the equivalent of the French Sulky d’or that his opponent has won twenty times (these awards go to the driver having won the most races in a calendar year).
Both are also the recordmen for the number of victories in the history of their country. Moreover, Björn Goop dethroned his own father, who had set the bar very high with 6,744 successes. On the side of the Sarthois, the influence of the one he has always called “the boss” has also been undeniable. “He was already the best driver, and he became the best trainer after his father died,” agree those to whom he regularly hits the pawn.
Despite their mutual respect and admiration, the two men will not give each other a gift on Sunday during the 2,700m of the legendary Prix d’Amérique. One thing is certain: their talent will prove to be preponderant in a race in which the slightest mistake will be fatal.
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