Lindsey Smith is thinking ahead with his talented galloper Tuvalu. The Group 1 Champions Mile (1600m) at Flemington on November 5 and it’s $1.8 million first prize money is firmly in the back of Smith’s mind. For that reason, the Warrnambool-based horseman is playing a waiting game to see whether Tuvalu runs in the… Read More »
Sydney trainer Richard Litt says it is amazing to be part of the Cox Plate build-up for a second time. Profondo runs in Saturday’s weight-for-age race over 2040m at Moonee Valley looking to go one better than Litt’s sole previous Cox Plate runner Castelvecchio. The mighty Japanese mare Lys Gracieux stopped Castelvecchio from becoming a three-year-old… Read More »
Michael Freedman is always on the lookout for signs an older mare is ready for the broodmare barn, but he isn’t seeing them from multiple Group 1 winner Forbidden Love. While the five-year-old has performed below expectations in three runs this preparation, there were enough positives in her Sydney Stakes effort… Read More »
For decades, Graeme Rogerson was part of the fabric of Sydney racing and the colourful Kiwi made a fist of sweeping Australia’s biggest races. During a five-year period from 2003, he won a Golden Slipper with Polar Success (2003), a Cox Plate with Savabeel (2004) and a Melbourne Cup with… Read More »
Multiple Group 1 placegetter Barb Raider is the reason Jerome Hunter will be in Sydney this weekend, but the Victorian trainer is more than hopeful stablemate Thron Bone can be a worthwhile support act. After accepting an offer for Barb Raider to contest Saturday’s $2 million The Invitation (1400m) at Randwick, Hunter thought… Read More »
Trainers Ciaron Maher and David Eustace could not believe their luck when their two quality sprinters draw the two inside gates in the Manikato Stakes. The Group 1 sprint over 1200m at Moonee Valley on Friday night sees a return bout between Coolangatta and Bella Nipotina after they ran one-two in the Group 1 Moir Stakes… Read More »
Somehow, old ownership or new, there is always a story with Alligator Blood. With the well-performed son of All Too Hard due to line up in the $5 million Cox Plate at Moonee Valley on Saturday, a vet check on the horse this morning showed signs of lameness in the… Read More »
James Cummings is adamant Anamoe doesn’t need a Cox Plate on his resume to appeal as a stud prospect. The four-year-old is already Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s equal most prolific Group 1 winner, with six, and was narrowly beaten both on track and in the stewards’ room in last year’s… Read More »
El Bodegon is rated similarly to the Northern Hemisphere three-year-olds who have won the Cox Plate, the question is whether he has the same level of improvement. That’s what form students need to try and work out ahead of this Saturday’s $5 million Cox Plate at The Valley. El Bodegon owns… Read More »
My Bella Mae made the best possible start to her racing career when she bolted in to win by 2 ÂĽ lengths on debut in the Westerntrilogy.com.au Handicap (1100m) at Ascot on Wednesday. The way in which the daughter of Deep Field put away her rivals with a minimum of… Read More »
Sydney’s loss will be Melbourne’s gain with trainer Chris Waller confirming Nature Strip will have his next start in the Darley Champions Sprint on the final day of the Melbourne Cup carnival at Flemington. Connections had also been weighing up whether to keep Nature Strip in Sydney for his namesake race, the… Read More »
Renowned for having a sharp eye for a thoroughbred, owner Alan Bell appears to have unearthed another handy galloper in Warwick Farm winner Golden Age. While the Hawkes Racing three-year-old has a long way to go to emulate the feats of some of Bell’s former stars, who include the great… Read More »
Trainer Mike Moroney is hoping Emissary will gain enough of a rehandicap for the Melbourne Cup to force a start in the great race at Flemington. Emissary came from second-last in the Group 3 Geelong Cup (2400m) on Wednesday to put his hand up for a start in the Group 1 Melbourne Cup… Read More »
Trainer Jason Warren has his eyes on a bigger prize after Grand Pierro took out the Listed Geelong Classic on Wednesday. The Group 1 Victoria Derby (2500m) at Flemington on Saturday week now beckons for the three-year-old after he showed his staying prowess to claim victory in Wednesday’s 2200m contest. Ridden by… Read More »
Having watched fellow Mornington trainer Clayton Douglas pull off an Everest coup with Giga Kick, Jerome Hunter is hoping to make an audacious Sydney raid of his own. Hunter will bring two horses to Randwick on Saturday, headlined by Queensland Oaks runner-up Barb Raider, who resumes in the $2 million The Invitation… Read More »
Eleven Eleven is set to break new ground for trainer Greg Hickman when he lines up in the Manikato Stakes at Moonee Valley. In a 30-start career that has seen Eleven Eleven register nine wins, the six-year-old will have his first start racing left-handed when he runs in the Group 1 sprint 1 over 1200m on Friday night…. Read More »
Chris Waller is chasing a fifth win in the weight-for-age championship of Australia, the Cox Plate, with a horse that will be having his first start for the trainer. Irish-bred El Bodegon will appear in Waller’s name on Saturday in the Group 1 race over 2040m. Waller and connections have been involved… Read More »
The lure of a Group 1 race in his adopted hometown has been enough to convince Bjorn Baker to back-up Renaissance Woman in the Spring Champion Stakes at Randwick. The filly arrived back in Sydney earlier this week after landing a brilliant victory at Caulfield on Saturday, coming from last… Read More »
Damien Oliver has picked up the Melbourne Cup mount on last weekend’s Caulfield Cup winner Durston. The three-time Melbourne Cup winner was on Wednesday confirmed as the replacement for Michael Dee, who partnered the Chris Waller-trained import to victory in the Caulfield Cup. Dee was unavailable to partner Durston in… Read More »
Apprentice jockey Jaden Lloyd, who last saw competitive race action on July 9, returns to the saddle at Ipswich on Wednesday where he has accepted three rides as he looks to ease himself back into the fray. An extremely talented young rider, Lloyd, by his own admission welcomed his extended… Read More »
