Stakes winner First Crush’s last start was so poor his trainer Chris Munce has erased it from his memory. First Crush lines up for his second attempt to win the Listed $175,000 Ipswich Cup (2150m) on Saturday. He ran second in the Ipswich Cup last year before going on to… Read More »
Trainer Archie Alexander believes five-year-old Spanner Head has returned in career-best form this campaign and he is hopeful the mare can back up a last-start Flemington win with another at Sandown. Spanner Head finished second to stakes winner Twitchy Frank first-up at Caulfield in the VOBIS Gold Distaff before winning… Read More »
Trainer Matt Dunn is hopeful former stakes performer Petrology is back in the right head space to win his first race in two years at Ipswich. Petrology will give jockey Jim Byrne a chance to win his fourth Listed Eye Liner Stakes (1350m) on Saturday. Formerly trained by the Hayes… Read More »
Bookmaker Simon Beasley has been charged with misconduct in relation to his betting operations during a near five-month period earlier this season. Racing Victoria stewards charged Beasley on Friday with accepting and recording bets outside of his licence conditions from the start of September last year until January 26 this… Read More »
Tulloch Lodge is renowned for its bone and muscle style of horses who race on speed and prove hard to get past but steering them is not as easy as it might look. Tim Clark, who has successfully ridden for Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott over several years, enjoys the… Read More »
Group One-winning jockeys Josh Parr and Rachel King have both been ruled out of the Winter Cup meeting at Rosehill because of injuries. Parr tumbled from On Her Word after winning the opening race at Warwick Farm on Wednesday and Racing NSW stewards confirmed on Friday he had been ruled… Read More »
A strong recent trial and a good barrier give filly Winter Passage a chance to shed her title as one of Queensland’s unluckiest horse. Winter Passage resumes in a strong T L Cooney Three-Year-Old Handicap over 1100m at Ipswich on Saturday. The Cooney is regarded as the best three-year-old race… Read More »
Trainer Stephen Gray admits it is a dream to have Singapore sprinter Lim’s Cruiser at Royal Ascot for the Diamond Jubilee Stakes. The ex-pat New Zealander says Lim’s Cruiser has settled in well to his surroundings at Newmarket ahead of an ambitious tilt at the 1200m-race on Saturday week. The… Read More »
Mike Moroney is still learning about lightly raced English import Buffalo River but the trainer is hoping the free-running gelding can make it two wins from as many Australian starts at Sandown. Buffalo River scored a front-running win in benchmark 70 grade at Ballarat on May 22 and Moroney has… Read More »
Tough Toowoomba mare Ruby Guru will get her chance in the Listed Ipswich Cup after trainer Michael Nolan decided she had too much weight in a restricted class race. The consistent Ruby Guru would have been favourite in the $125,000 Provincial Stayers Final (2500m) also at Ipswich on Saturday. When… Read More »
Toowoomba trainer Ben Currie’s time on the sidelines continues to grow after another three-year disqualification, taking his total punishment to 7-1/2 years. The combined sentence is the largest imposed on any trainer who has not been warned off for life in Queensland history. Racing Queensland stewards last week found Currie… Read More »
Nash Rawiller has ridden trackwork at Rosehill as he starts the road back to reclaiming his career after serving a lengthy disqualification. The multiple Group One-winning jockey was banned in April last year for 15 months by Hong Kong authorities for accepting gifts or money in exchange for tips. With… Read More »
Sydney Cup runner-up Vengeur Masque will be missing from the spring carnival after suffering an injury in a paddock accident. The Mike Moroney-trained imported stayer won the Geelong Cup and Queen Elizabeth Stakes during the 2017 Victorian spring carnival while his spring preparation last year included unplaced runs in the… Read More »
Victorian Racing Minister Martin Pakula believes the racing industry needs to be judicious in determining the rate of Victoria’s Point Of Consumption Tax. Victoria currently has the lowest POC in the country at eight per cent which the government says it will revisit in 18 months. The POC was introduced… Read More »
Like a number of his fellow trainers, Robbie Griffiths is hoping the rain has stopped in Melbourne and the Sandown track can dry out. Griffiths’ sole representative at Sandown on Saturday is Igniter in the Ladbrokes $101 Odds Handicap, a heat of the Mahagony Challenge over 2100m. Igniter was on… Read More »
Victorian Racing officials might not like Racing NSW’s recent spring carnival initiatives, but trainer Mark Newnham is convinced the competition will benefit the sport. As the in-form Newnham prepares to saddle up a trio of talented horses at Rosehill on Saturday, he has thrown his support behind the revitalisation and… Read More »
Defending titleholder I’m A Rippa will back up from defeat in the Stradbroke Handicap to head trainer Tony Gollan’s four-handed assault on the Listed Eye Liner Stakes at Ipswich. Gollan will also saddle Coldstone, Natch and Snitch in the $175,000 Eye Liner Stakes over 1350 metres. I’m A Rippa led… Read More »
New Zealand trainer Roger James has seen encouraging signs from Group One placegetter Hypnos in Melbourne in the lead-up to the three-year-old’s second Australian start at Sandown. James, who trains in partnership with Robert Wellwood, nominated Hypnos for three races on Saturday’s program before opting for the $75,000 Ladbrokes Odds… Read More »
Tim Clark is confident he will be fit to ride at Rosehill after injuring his thumb in a post-race incident at the Queen’s Birthday meeting on Randwick’s Kensington track. While X-rays have cleared the jockey of any breaks, Clark will need the final tick of approval from his doctor and… Read More »
Racing authorities have warned racehorse trainers to be alert after a confirmed case of the Hendra virus in the NSW Hunter Valley. Racing NSW confirmed it had been advised of the isolated case of a 25-year-old unvaccinated mare on a property near Scone. “At this time, advice is that there… Read More »
