Kelly Schweida has a reputation for placing his horses in the right races and will get another boost if Oink wins at Doomben. The Brisbane trainer showed his skill in picking winnable races when he had a three-venue treble at Randwick, Doomben and the Gold Coast last Saturday. Oink, who… Read More »
Michelle Payne has created a stir in England by reportedly leaving a Shergar Cup media function after being kept twice as long as expected despite telling organisers she was unwell. Payne and her brother-in-law Kerrin McEvoy are both scheduled to ride in the international jockeys’ team challenge at Ascot on… Read More »
With heavy tracks no longer a burden, Mark Newnham is enthusiastic about Diamond Tathagata’s campaign for more black-type recognition at Rosehill. The three-year-old underscored his class when he claimed the Group Two Skyline Stakes at just his second start in February. That success earned the colt a start in the… Read More »
Trainer Peter Healey could never have dreamed Riyadh would be aiming at four straight wins when the gelding entered his Mornington stable. But that’s just what Riyadh will be attempting in Saturday’s VRC Member William O’Grady Handicap (1700m) at Flemington. Riyadh came into Healey’s care in late 2015 after showing… Read More »
Blue Diamond Stakes winner Catchy has opened favourite for the Thousand Guineas but may run in the more lucrative Caulfield Guineas on the same day. Lindsay Park is still yet to decide whether come October 14 the filly, who is unbeaten in Melbourne, will take on the boys or stick… Read More »
Robert Heathcote has trained more than 1100 winners but he struggles to think of an unluckier horse than Kubis. The four-year-old will be having his 18th start in the McIntyre Centre Riding for Disabled Handicap (1640m) at Doomben on Saturday. Heathcote believes Kubis should be talked about as a much… Read More »
A strong Sunshine Coast barrier trial win has thrown three-year-old Let’s Party Marty into the spotlight as he prepares to make his debut at Doomben. The David Vandyke-trained colt will be having his first start against a strong field of three-year-olds over 1200m on Saturday. With the scratching of Cabeirian,… Read More »
Oscietra, the first foal of champion Black Caviar, has been overtaken in favouritism to claim her first win when she steps out for her second race start in a Geelong maiden today. The three-year-old finished third in a 1000m race for two-year-old fillies at Flemington on debut in January before… Read More »
Caulfield Cup runner-up Scottish has been ruled out of a second trip to Australia with a recurrence of a fetlock injury. The injury was discovered as he was being prepared for Sunday’s Arlington Million in Chicago and he will be out of action for the rest of the year. Trainer… Read More »
Just two cents of every dollar bet so far with the TAB on the Cox Plate has gone on a horse not called Winx. The champion opened at $4 minutes after her second consecutive Cox Plate victory in 2016 and was already at $1.60 in April By this week when… Read More »
Murray Baker has prepared more Australian Group One winners than any other New Zealand-based trainer and is gearing up to do it again. He and his training partner Andrew Forsman won the NZ premiership and came away with both Classics at the Sydney autumn carnival with Jon Snow winning the… Read More »
Chris Waller ushers in two newcomers to his staying ranks when Sarrasin and Tom Melbourne begin their preparation for spring campaigns at Rosehill. Although Sarrasin changed hands from French trainer Andre Fabre to Lee and Anthony Freedman in June 2015, he only had one start before being transferred to Waller’s… Read More »
A host of feature spring races are in the thoughts of trainer Shane Nichols as he prepares his stable flag bearer I Am A Star for her return at a track where the mare is unbeaten. I Am A Star resumes in Saturday’s Group Three Aurie’s Star Handicap (1200m) at… Read More »
Terry Robinson is looking forward to finally seeing And There Is More race after injury prevented the mare from cashing in as a three-year-old for her new trainer. The NSW South Coast-based Robinson had hoped to run And There Is More in a BOBS race after she was transferred from… Read More »
Dwayne Dunn will ditch the ride on his wife’s horse in the Caulfield Guineas if he is asked to mount up on Hawkes Racing’s Chautauqua in the world’s richest turf race. Royal Symphony’s trainer Tony McEvoy said he had briefly spoken to the colt’s regular rider about a potential clash… Read More »
Talented sprinter Hanwritten has had a deliberate soft trial in preparation for his return to racing at Doomben. Hanwritten will be having his first start since finishing fourth behind Your Way at Randwick in February when he tackles Saturday’s Chris Munce Racing Handicap (1050m). The seven-year-old gelding has won five… Read More »
A year after celebrating their first win as a training partnership with Thronum in the Rosebud, Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott are looking to mark the occasion with victory in the Listed race again. Bott is relaxed at the prospect of Siege Of Quebec stepping back in distance on Saturday… Read More »
Refreshed from a holiday after a break-out season, Beau Mertens is keen to begin his new campaign on a winning note at Flemington. In his first full year riding in the metropolitan arena, Mertens notched 73 winners in 2016-17. He comfortably won the apprentices’ title while he fell just short… Read More »
Tony Edmonds-trained stablemates Whypeeo and I Am Impinge are at long odds for the Group One Golden Rose but a good showing by either or both at Doomben could prompt a change. Whypeeo is the favourite for Saturday’s VCV 3YO handicap (1200m) with I Am Impinge the second-elect while both… Read More »
Many Queensland trainers have been heading across the border into northern NSW in the past year but Ballina’s Stephen Lee has made a success of going the opposite direction. Lee has been a leading trainer in the NSW Northern Rivers for more than three decades and has campaigned in Sydney… Read More »
