Goulburn trainer Danny Williams is taking two horses to Rosehill this weekend on a quick three-day back up, but he sees no reason why they both can’t acquit themselves well. Rent A Rock was a handy winner over 1600m on his home surface on Wednesday and Williams will step him… Read More »
The number one horse in Tony McEvoy’s stable, Hey Doc is ready for the challenge of the VRC Sprint Classic and the co-trainer knows he will give his all in the race. McEvoy isn’t certain Hey Doc can win the race, which he regards as the best sprint event of… Read More »
Trainer Bjorn Baker has nine runners accepted for the Rosehill meeting but will wait to see what the weather does over the next 48 hours before deciding which of them will run. Baker has experienced a fruitful carnival to date, highlighted by Positive Peace’s last-start victory in the Group Three… Read More »
Tamworth trainer Cody Morgan didn’t have much luck from the barrier gods in The Kosciuszko with his three runners all drawing outside gates. However, he has fared much better in the Country Classic at Rosehill on Saturday with Bajan Gold coming up with the inside alley for the 2000m race…. Read More »
Hugh Bowman will partner Nature Strip in the VRC Sprint Classic after James McDonald lost his appeal against a careless riding suspension. McDonald has been the horse’s regular rider for the past two seasons and was in the saddle for his last-start seventh in The Everest. But after being outed… Read More »
Brothers and training partners Richard and Michael Freedman will field a strong team at Rosehill and they are particularly keen on two-year-old colt Tiger Of Malay in the $1 million Golden Gift. The Extreme Choice youngster was impressive on debut at Randwick when he defeated Cerda and Mura Mura and… Read More »
Tom Dabernig doesn’t think there is a better way to attack the Mackinnon Stakes than with a pair of horses who are proven at the track, distance and class. Dabernig and Ben Hayes will be represented by two horses who between them can boast wins in the past three Australian… Read More »
Racing Victoria officials will launch a thorough investigation into the death of Melbourne Cup runner Anthony Van Dyck once post mortem results on the horse are complete. The 2019 Epsom Derby winner suffered a catastrophic leg injury during the final stages of Tuesday’s race and despite attempts by veterinarians to… Read More »
Becoming a Melbourne Cup-winning jockey at the age of 25 is still sinking in for Jye McNeil after a restrained night of celebrations. McNeil became the toast of Australian racing with his daring front-running ride to win the two mile feature on Irish-trained raider Twilight Payment on Tuesday. One of… Read More »
Tom Dabernig acknowledges boom Sydney filly Montefilia is the horse to beat in the VRC Oaks at Flemington but he thinks Personal has some advantages over her. Those advantages are geographical and historical, according to the co-trainer. The David Payne-trained Montefilia is a $1.85 favourite with TAB fixed odds and… Read More »
If finishing a narrow second in the Melbourne Cup wasn’t bad enough, Kerrin McEvoy’s afternoon got even worse in the stewards’ room. The jockey was fined $50,000 and suspended for 13 meetings for breaching the whip rules on Tiger Moth, striking the horse more than 21 times in total. McEvoy… Read More »
It was the wee hours of the morning in Ireland and after a fitful, anxious sleep, Joseph O’Brien rose in the dark to watch his two Melbourne Cup runners. Unable to be at Flemington due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, the young Irish trainer had to content himself with looking on… Read More »
The department of youth was to the fore in the Melbourne Cup with the youngest trainer and jockey combination in the race, Joseph O’Brien and Jye McNeil, scoring with Twilight Payment. It was the 27-year-old Irish-based O’Brien’s second victory and 25-year-old Melbourne jockey McNeil’s first at what was his maiden… Read More »
Lindsay Park has continued its winning ways in the Group Three Maribyrnong Plate at Flemington, taking it out for the second year in a row, this time with Finance Tycoon. While last year’s winner Hard Landing was prepared by the trio of David Hayes, Ben Hayes and Tom Dabernig, the… Read More »
Outsider King Of Leogrance has been scratched from the Melbourne Cup, leaving a field of 23 to compete in Australia’s iconic race. The Danny O’Brien-trained stayer was inspected by Racing Victoria veterinarians on Tuesday morning at the request of the stable and was found to be lame. The Adelaide Cup… Read More »
Some general facts and figures on the Melbourne Cup: * First run in 1861 under the banner of the Victorian Turf Club and won by the Etienne de Mestre-trained Archer who beat the favourite Mormon by six lengths. The prize was 1420 pounds and the trophy a gold watch. *… Read More »
There will be none of the trackside flair and fanfare that has become synonymous with Australia’s most famous horse race but the Melbourne Cup still promises to be an incredible spectacle. Fears of limited international participation this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic have not been realised and instead, master… Read More »
OVERSEAS-TRAINED HORSES TO HAVE WON THE MELBOURNE CUP (From 1993 – excludes New Zealand-trained horses) * 1993: Vintage Crop (55.5kg) – Ireland * 2002: Media Puzzle (52.5kg) – Ireland * 2006: Delta Blues (56kg) – Japan * 2010: Americain (54.5kg) – France * 2011: Dunaden (54.5kg) – France * 2014:… Read More »
Few people are lucky enough to have an interest in a Melbourne Cup runner and Tony Rider is pinching himself to have a connection to two. The principal of New Zealand’s Cambridge thoroughbred nursery Milan Park bred Oceanex and is a part-owner of The Chosen One. “It’s a dream come… Read More »
Paul Preusker believes the lessons learned from last year’s Melbourne Cup will hold Surprise Baby in good stead for his second tilt at the race. He is also adamant Surprise Baby is a more complete racehorse than when he flew home to finish fifth in last year’s renewal. Market 💰:… Read More »
