BREEDERS’ CUP / SPRINT : ‘Fastest Horse in the World’ Seeks to Break New Ground

He may be the only man ever fired by a queen and hired by a sheik. And now he trains “the fastest horse in the world.”

The trainer’s name is Maj. Dick Hern, and the grandiose equine appellation, an invention of the English press, belongs to Dayjur, one of 21 horses either bred or raced in Europe who are entered in Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup races.

Dayjur, owned by Sheik Hamdan ibn Rashid al Maktum of Dubai, was the 7-2 early favorite in the six-furlong, $1-million Breeders’ Cup Sprint, which starts the seven-race program at Belmont Park.

The 69-year-old Hern, confined to a wheelchair since a hunting accident in 1984, chuckles at the nickname, but he won’t argue with it. “I don’t know if there is a faster horse,” he said today. “If there is, I hope he doesn’t run on Saturday.”

In the first six Breeders’ Cups, seven horses either bred or raced primarily in Europe won races.

A victory by Dayjur, however, would break new ground. All the previous European victories came in either the Mile or the Turf, both grass races. None of the European entries have ever won on dirt, a surface unique to North America until just recently.

Not only has Dayjur never raced on dirt, but he has never raced around a turn.

“He’ll either go on it, or he won’t,” Hern said. “We worked this morning, and he handled it very well for a horse that’s never been on it before. We let him get some dirt in his face, and we worked four furlongs to get the feel of a turn.”

His workout was timed in a quick 45 4/5 seconds.

Dayjur, a Kentucky-bred son of Danzig, has won six of eight starts this year in France and England, including the Prix de l’Abbaye at Longchamps. His last loss was by a head in the Hue-Williams Stakes at Newbury, England, on May 18. Since then, Dayjur has won five in a row.

Two other European horses, Corwyn Bay and Black Tie Affair, also are entered in the Sprint. The second favorite, however, is an American horse, Mr. Nickerson, who was 4-1 in the early line.

In ill health, Hern almost retired in 1988 and, presumably for that reason, was asked to leave West Ilsley Stable, which is owned by Queen Elizabeth II. Although he now shares the stable with William Hastings-Bass, he will move to the sheik’s stable, Kingwood House, full time next year.

Once asked his philosophy of life, Hern replied: “Few things matter, and nothing matters much.”

So it’s not difficult to understand how he approaches this race.

“We are aware that we are entering unknown territory, facing the local experts and running on a track that suits them fine but is not particularly in our favor,” Hern said. “I am under no illusions.”