Trainer Kris Lees’ knack for keeping older horses in a winning frame of mind will be given its latest examination at Rosehill on Saturday. Lees will saddle up Motspur in the Mackinson D’Apice Lawyers Handicap (1350m), hopeful the 10-year-old can rebound from a first-up disappointment in the Ortensia Stakes at [...]
Kris Lees-trained stablemates Express Power and Soapy Star have run the quinella in the Gold Coast Bracelet but will take different paths for the rest of their campaigns. Express Power ($4.40 fav) was ridden confidently by Jim Cassidy, striding past Soapy Star ($5) to win the Bracelet by a length. [...]
He might have been up against opposition described as modest at best but imported stayer Hathras kept alive his chances of running in the richest weight-for-age race of the Sydney autumn carnival with a runaway Warwick Farm win on Thursday. Taking on three rivals over 2200m, Hathras made a one-act [...]
Newcastle trainer Kris Lees was grinning through the rain after his German import Hathras claimed his first Australian win at Rosehill on Saturday. The wet track and challenging conditions didn’t bother the four-year-old or jockey Christian Reith, who steered the promising stayer to an impressive win in the Endeavour Foundation [...]
Bjorn Baker’s summer streak shows no sign of abating after up-and-coming filly Quick’s The Word kept an unbeaten record at Canterbury on Wednesday. Quick’s The Word’s win in the Tab.com.au Handicap took her sequence to three victories from as many starts for Baker’s in-form Warwick Farm stable. She had to [...]
A relieved trainer Kris Lees headed to Melbourne on Tuesday in the knowledge Award Season would get the chance to continue his rise in the Australian staying ranks in the Mornington Cup. Newcastle-based Lees has planned to run in-form import Award Season in Wednesday’s $350,000 Mornington Cup (2400m) for more [...]
Kerrin McEvoy is playing a waiting game ahead of Wednesday’s Mornington Cup, hoping up-and-coming stayer Award Season can sneak into the field. McEvoy has committed to riding the Kris Lees-trained Award Season but the imported stayer is in danger of missing a start. Newcastle-based Lees brought Award Season to Victoria [...]
It was a frustrating afternoon for punters at Wyong on Wednesday but no so for Christian Reith who took riding honours with a treble. Reith notched his three wins in successive races aboard the Kris Lees-trained Gold Epona ($4), the Chris Waller-trained Forever Crazy ($4.40) and Tunes ($6) for Darley [...]
Newcastle trainer Darren Smith admits he was disappointed when Heaps More was beaten last start but subsequent events have buoyed his confidence for the mare’s Cessnock assignment on Monday. Heaps More, a four-year-old by Al Maher, was unlucky to run into the Kris Lees-trained French stayer Award Season when runner-up [...]
The form surrounding the penultimate race in the European career of this year’s early Melbourne Cup favourite promises to have a more modest impact at Warwick Farm on Saturday. One of an ever increasing number of overseas horses paying their way in Australian racing, Award Season is considered one of [...]
