Vassilator has broken through for a long overdue win by snatching victory in the last stride at his favourite track. Success in the VRC Heritage Handicap at Flemington on Saturday was Vassilator’s first in more than two years and his third overall in a career spanning 22 starts. All three… Read More »
Godolphin mare Aquitaine will chase more stakes success in Queensland after winning the Listed Mick Dittman Plate at Eagle Farm. Despite being forced to race deep Aquitaine, the $2.50 favourite, finished too well to beat Iced ($61) by three-quarters of a length in the 1000m scamper. It was the first… Read More »
Les Bridge was ruffled, Kerrin McEvoy was feeling the pre-race nerves but Classique Legend remained unperturbed by the emotion surrounding his Sydney return to stamp his class at Randwick. The striking grey was all but on a plane to Hong Kong but due to a mixture of the coronavirus pandemic… Read More »
A plan that was a year in the making came to fruition when Tyzone won the Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm. Tyzone ran second in last year’s Stradbroke behind Trekking and trainer Toby Edmonds immediately set him for a return bout this year: Starting at $14, Tyzone charged down the… Read More »
Dual Group One placegetter Chapada has snapped a lengthy absence from the winner’s circle to register just the second victory of his career at Flemington. The Mike Moroney-trained Chapada strode to a one-length win over import Masaff in Saturday’s Grinders Coffee Carriage Paddock Plate (2520m) having been winless in his… Read More »
Trainer Robert Heathcote allowed himself to think about a slot in The Everest after his gelding Rothfire ran a course record in winning the Group One JJ Atkins at Eagle Farm. Sent out favourite, Rothfire ($3.50) gave Heathcote his 11th Group One win but his first in Queensland when he… Read More »
Trainer Chris Anderson’s luck finally changed when Ballistic Boy helped him achieve a boyhood dream by winning a Group race with a horse wearing the colours of the Think Big Stud. Starting favourite, Ballistic Boy ($2.80) dispelled any notion he was not a genuine stayer when he beat Supergiant ($4.50)… Read More »
While punters may have been shocked by the victory of Standoff at Flemington, Grant Dalziel headed to the track enthusiastic about the filly’s chances. Dalziel, who trains Standoff in partnership with his son Peter, said the filly had stronger claims than her odds indicated in the Bagotville Handicap on Saturday…. Read More »
A textbook ride from champion jockey Hugh Bowman has helped deliver progressive Lando Bay his first city win at Randwick. Trainer John Thompson believes Lando Bay has turned the corner since being gelded after going winless from his first six starts, with Saturday’s three-quarters of a length victory in the… Read More »
A new-look Brenton Avdulla has ended a frustrating run of outs with victory aboard the Chris Waller-trained Achiever at Randwick. Avdulla had not ridden a metropolitan winner since Welsh Legend on Anzac Day so he decided to dye his dark hair to blonde, hoping to change his fortunes. The ploy… Read More »
Once described as a non-winner, Prezado has registered a third-straight victory on his favoured Flemington straight course. Prezado registered his fifth win over 1000m at Flemington with a strong performance in the Jim Beam Hill Plate on Saturday. Trained by Mathew Ellerton and Simon Zahra, Prezado has now won six… Read More »
Trainer Archie Alexander has been charged by Racing Victoria stewards after one of his horses returned a swab that breached allowable cobalt levels. The Alexander-trained Tom’s Knight returned a urine sample containing traces of cobalt in excess of the allowed threshold of 100 micrograms per litre. The swab was taken… Read More »
Racing Victoria has rejected a proposal to make sweeping changes to the 2020 spring carnival. In a Melbourne Racing Club-backed move, plans were tabled to shift the Caulfield Cup from a traditional mid-October date to a late November timeslot. The proposal would have upended decades of thoroughbred racing tradition by… Read More »
Kris Lees is hopeful a switch in environment will help bring about a change in fortunes for Graff who is one of two chances for the trainer in the Stradbroke Handicap. Lees is set to have both Graff and fellow entire Chief Ironside in Saturday’s Group One Stradbroke Handicap at… Read More »
Andrew Adkins has set himself one simple goal for the remainder of the season – not to break any more bones. The young jockey has recently returned to the saddle following a run with injury which started during the 2019 Sydney autumn carnival when he suffered multiple fractures in a… Read More »
One-time favourite Vega One will be ridden in his comfort zone despite drawing wide in the Stradbroke Handicap. Vega One was favourite for much of the early betting in the Stradbroke until his defeat in the Victory Stakes at his last start. After drawing barrier 20, he is now being… Read More »
South Australian trainer Ryan Balfour has placed a lot of faith in the judgment of Jamie Kah with his decision to step Li’l Kontra up in distance at Flemington. Before Kah made the move to Victoria in early 2019, the trainer and jockey had been a successful combination in Adelaide… Read More »
Trainer Steve O’Dea has taken a cautious route to the JJ Atkins with Gotta Kiss but he is confident she won’t be disgraced in the Group One race. Gotta Kiss is the forgotten horse of the Atkins as O’Dea has carefully managed her career. The filly had her first start… Read More »
Multi-talented Steve Tregea can become one of the few to breed, own and train a Group One winner in Australia if Niccanova claims the Stradbroke Handicap. Tregea has built up an impressive reputation from his Windermere Stud complex on Toowoomba’s outskirts on the Darling Downs. He mainly breeds horses which… Read More »
Peter Snowden once achieved the feat of training the winners of all five Australian Group One races for two-year-olds in a season. While he cannot match that in 2019-20, Snowden believes Saturday’s JJ Atkins contender Wild Ruler is a chance to give the stable its third juvenile Group One for… Read More »
