For Gai Waterhouse, having an Australian born and bred runner in the Melbourne Cup has helped to quickly erase any disappointment that Runaway’s stablemate Thinkin’ Big won’t also be lining up. Thinkin’ Big went into Saturday’s Victoria Derby as the favourite and needed to win to take his place in… Read More »
Barrier 22 is not exactly what trainer David Payne had in mind for Ace High in the Melbourne Cup but he still expects the horse to be able to take up a position and not produce a repeat of his Caulfield Cup run. Market 💰: View the Melbourne Cup odds Last… Read More »
Aidan O’Brien might not have been able to come to Werribee to see his three Melbourne Cup runners, but is well and truly in the loop as to their progress. The O’Brien stable will saddle easing $5 favourite Yucatan along with The Cliffsofmoher ($16) and Rostropovich ($26) in Tuesday’s $7.3… Read More »
Lessons learned a year ago have shaped the Melbourne Cup preparation of international visitor Marmelo for another crack at Australia’s most famous race. Trained by Hughie Morrison in England, Marmelo ran an eye-catching sixth in the Caulfield Cup last year in his first Australian appearance but was unable to back… Read More »
Mark Zahra has picked up the ride on the Anthony Freedman-trained triple Group One winner Santa Ana Lane in the VRC Sprint Classic. Santa Ana Lane’s regular jockey Ben Melham was suspended on Saturday at Flemington for breaching the whip rules aboard runner-up Stars Of Carrum in the Victoria Derby…. Read More »
The Australian spring campaign of English stayer Red Verdon may not be over despite the horse having to miss the Melbourne Cup with a hoof abscess. Trainer Ed Dunlop said if the abscess to the stayer’s right fore-foot bursts in the next day or two, he may run Red Verdon… Read More »
A Prince Of Arran has pulled up from his win in the Lexus Stakes at Flemington in far better shape than his trainer Charlie Fellowes. Victory in Saturday’s race earned A Prince Of Arran a berth in Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup and his trainer a first Group win which he admitted… Read More »
Enable has shown her brilliance to continue her winning run with an epic success in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Churchill Downs. Given a superb ride by Frankie Dettori, the dual Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner was challenged hard by Ryan Moore on Magical all the way down the… Read More »
Ben Melham will miss two prized rides on the final day of the Melbourne Cup carnival after being suspended for breaching the whip rules in the Victoria Derby on runner-up Stars Of Carrum. Melham was banned for six meetings after using the whip 12 times before the 100m in Saturday’s… Read More »
Irish-trained Melbourne Cup 2018 favourite Yucatan has drawn a wide barrier for Australia’s greatest race. A clear-cut pick since making an impressive Australian debut at Caulfield last month, Yucatan will start from the second widest gate after drawing gate 23. Caulfield Cup winner Best Solution drew best of Godolphin’s three… Read More »
Trainer Kelly Schweida and jockey Jimmy Orman dominated the Doomben meeting when they combined for a career-best four winners. The duo were successful with Pocket Pistol ($3.50), Gala Miss ($2.70), Desert Man ($7) and Double Superlative ($10). Desert Man completed a remarkable comeback to racing after suffering a career-threatening injury…. Read More »
Staying races or the Magic Millions. That’s the dilemma confronting trainer Tony Gollan after Light Up The Room kept her unbeaten record this campaign intact at Doomben. Gollan will weigh up options in the next few weeks for Light Up The Room ($3.20) after the filly defeated Champagne Daisy, the… Read More »
Japanese horse Sole Impact has missed a start in the Melbourne Cup after his failure in the Lexus Stakes at Flemington. A full field of 24 has been declared for Tuesday’s Cup (3200m) with Sydney Cup runner-up Zacada and Scottish stayer Nakeeta claiming the final two places. The only three-year-old… Read More »
Divine Quality has finally lived up to her stable’s lofty expectations with a runaway victory in a stakes race at Flemington. Having her first start since July, Divine Quality took out the Group Three Furphy Sprint on Saturday. Ridden by Beau Mertens, Divine Quality ($26) scored a widening 3-1/4 length… Read More »
Youngster Time To Reign has further fuelled his connections’ Golden Slipper 2019 hopes with his win at Rosehill while old-timer Red Excitement has shown he is not finished yet. A half brother to the Gary Portelli-trained 2017 Golden Slipper winner She Will Reign, Time To Reign is also prepared by… Read More »
What happens when you combine an Irish jockey who couldn’t get a ride back home, a Hong Kong billionaire, a big group of everyday Aussies and the country’s most prolific trainer? You win the $2 million Victoria Derby, Australia’s oldest Classic. Chants of “Bruty, Bruty, Bruty” turned into “Johnny, Johnny,… Read More »
Find out what the jockeys made of their horses’ runs in the Group 1 Victoria Derby (2500m) at Flemington. John Allen (Extra Brut) 1st : “It’s unbelievable, really. I’ve come a long way in a couple of years and that’s all due to Darren Weir and his team. He rounded… Read More »
A Group One win to import Best Of Days in the Kennedy Mile has capped a memorable day for trainer James Cummings and the Godolphin operation on the big stage at Flemington. Best Of Days surged late to win Saturday’s 1600m race, bringing up a winning treble for Godolphin on… Read More »
Shillelagh has returned to Flemington to claim a second Group One race on the opening day of the Melbourne Cup four-day carnival. The Chris Waller-trained mare won the Kennedy Mile on the same program last year before capturing Saturday’s Empire Rose Stakes against fillies and mares. Ridden by James McDonald,… Read More »
Darren Weir’s first Victoria Derby runner has come up trumps with Extra Brut winning the blue riband in a superior display of stamina with favourite Thinkin’ Big unplaced and out of the Melbourne Cup. The Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained Thinkin’ Big captured punters attention at $2.90 but never looked… Read More »
