Having already won one of the spring majors at the Melbourne carnival, jockey Hugh Bowman says the next one can’t come quickly enough. Bowman won Saturday’s Cox Plate at Moonee Valley on champion mare Winx for the third time and is eagerly awaiting Melbourne Cup at Flemington. The champion jockey… Read More »
Tye Angland is confident he has finally been dealt a winning hand with three opportunities to salute for the first time in Victoria. The Sydney jockey has three Group One bookings on Saturday’s Derby day program at Flemington with Ace High considered his best chance to savour success on a… Read More »
Craig Williams has some homework to to do ahead of the Victoria Derby in which he rides outsider Justice Faith. The non-appearances of two of the early favoured runners, Royal Symphony and Cliff’s Edge, has opened up Saturday’s 2500m Victoria Derby for three-year-olds with the distance an unknown factor. Williams will… Read More »
A South African-raised jockey riding for a Scottish trainer on a horse owned in England in Australia’s most famous race. That’s the scenario for Nakeeta when he runs in Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup at Flemington. Now based in Sydney, Glyn Schofield rides Nakeeta for owners Alex and Janet Card and Iain… Read More »
Classy mare Tiyatrolani has statistics on her side when she returns to racing at Doomben but trainer Tony Gollan isn’t getting carried away with her chances. Tiyatrolani will be having her first start since June in Saturday’s Open Handicap (1050m). She has won four times between 1000m and 1100m and… Read More »
Trainer Sir Michael Stoute believes reuniting Ulysses with Frankie Dettori can only be a positive factor in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Del Mar. Dettori rode the four-year-old to finish fourth in the 12-furlong (2400m) contest at Santa Anita last year but has not maintained the association this year because… Read More »
Former legendary jockey Lester Piggott knows a thing or two about winning big races. During his glittering career spanning 35 years Piggott numbered nine wins in the prestigious Epsom Derby among 30 Classic victories in England and a record 112 Royal Ascot winners. Piggott is in Melbourne for Tuesday’s Melbourne… Read More »
Trainer Stuart Kendrick believes he has found the key to brilliant but sometimes erratic sprinter Tarzan. Tarzan showed what he can do when he ran a course record 56.13 seconds to win over 1000 metres at the Sunshine Coast on Sunday. He beat a good field with the race a… Read More »
Hugh Bowman will ride Gingernuts in the Group One Emirates Stakes at Flemington with one proviso – that Winx doesn’t run. Te Akau boss David Ellis has confirmed Opie Bosson will stay in New Zealand to ride 2000 Guineas favourite Embellish on Saturday week, opening up the ride on the… Read More »
A week after celebrating Winx’s third Cox Plate, Chris Waller will turn his attention to the Flemington carnival starting with Victoria Derby day when Tangled represents the champion Sydney trainer in the feature race. Waller won the $1.5 million Victoria Derby (2500m) at Flemington three years ago with Preferment and… Read More »
Mike Moroney considers the Kennedy Mile at Flemington a good opportunity to give import Radipole a crack at a rich Group One handicap with a light weight. But the trainer believes the barrier draw for the five-year-old former French-trained galloper in Saturday’s $1 million Kennedy Mile is less than ideal…. Read More »
Chris Waller notched a training treble at Canterbury and Blake Shinn rode a trio of winners, but small-scale horseman David Mills boasted the superior strike rate. Mills, who turns 81 in February, revelled in Satirical Magic’s win after Jason Collett navigated the six-year-old gelding from last. “I’ve got one in… Read More »
Sky Boy will head to Melbourne with two options after the Anthony and Edward Cummings-trained gelding won convincingly at Canterbury. The three-year-old had already been earmarked for a run in the spring carnival and those plans were rubberstamped when he claimed a benchmark win for three-year-olds over 1150mon Wednesday. The… Read More »
VICTORIA DERBY $1.5 million for three-year-olds (2500m) HISTORY * First run in 1855 when won by Rose Of May, the Victoria Derby pre-dates the Melbourne Cup by six years and is one of the oldest races in the world NOTABLE WINNERS * Manfred (1925), Phar Lap (1929), Skipton (1941), Comic… Read More »
British raider Charlie Appleby has collected another Bendigo Cup with the fighting win of Qewy. The Godolphin trainer first made his name in Australia last spring winning five races from 10 starters including the Bendigo Cup with Francis Of Assisi. Qewy won last year’s Geelong Cup and Sandown Cup and… Read More »
THE MELBOURNE CUP CARNIVAL – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW * Four meetings during a week in spring, centred around the Melbourne Cup on the first Tuesday in November * Derby Day (Saturday, November 4), Melbourne Cup (Tuesday, November 7), VRC Oaks Day (Thursday, November 9) and Stakes Day (Saturday,… Read More »
Trainer Dwayne Schmidt’s patience with horses who have leg problems was again rewarded with seven-year-old Time To Rock at Ipswich. His daughter Cassie Schmidt rode a clever front-running race to win on the favourite Time To Rock ($3) in the ITC Melbourne Cup Luncheon Maiden (2150m). Schmidt trained with success… Read More »
Chasing a sixth win in the Melbourne Cup, owner Lloyd Williams could have as many as seven runners in the famous race. Team Williams has eight runners inside the top 30 of the 36 horses still in contention for next Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup at Flemington with six safely inside the… Read More »
GROUP ONE COOLMORE STUD STAKES 1200m, 3yo set weights, $1 million, Flemington HISTORY: * Formerly known as Ascot Vale Stakes and upgraded to Group One in 2006. * The Ascot Vale was first run for three-year-olds at set weights and penalties in 1969 when won by Vain. Before that it… Read More »
Co-trainer Ben Hayes has a real soft spot for star filly Catchy and believes the three-year-old can continue an already successful spring carnival for the stable in the Group One Coolmore Stud Stakes. The Group One Blue Diamond Stakes winner is one of three quality fillies the Lindsay Park team… Read More »
