Annabel Neasham is unsure if she has a Spring Champion Stakes horse in her stable, but she expects to have a better idea this weekend. The top Sydney trainer , who operates in partnership with Rob Archibald, has accepted with three horses, Firm Agreement, San Gabriel and Cristal Clear, in the $500,000… Read More »
Delta Blues, the first Japanese horse to win the Melbourne Cup, has passed away at the age of 24 due to complications from laminitis, a painful hoof condition. The historic Melbourne Cup winner made his mark in 2006, defeating fellow Japanese horse Pop Rock in a thrilling finish, with just… Read More »
More than 800km separates Leonora and Muchea, but that hasn’t stopped Peter Bamford from venturing to the northern Goldfields with a team of runners at Saturday’s Leonora Cup. Bamford, who is based at Muchea, will saddle up Zorro’s Aim, Smokey Mountain, Reaction and Ima Wild Girl at the Leonora Racing Club’s (LRC)… Read More »
Multiple Group placegetter French Endeavour earned her way back into some better races after snapping a 13-month winning drought on Wednesday. The Matthew Smith-trained four-year-old outclassed her rivals to score a dominant win in the $60,000 Precise Air F&M BM78 Handicap (1400m) at the meeting on Randwick’s Kensington track. The victory… Read More »
A slight alteration to the campaign of Antino is what trainer Tony Gollan is banking on turning around the fortunes of the gelding at Group 1 level. Antino finished second in the Toorak Handicap (1600m) at Caulfield last year and returns 12 months later, with 1kg more, looking to go one… Read More »
The world’s richest sprint race, Randwick’s $20 million The Everest, has received Group 1 status in time for this year’s running. Racing Australia on Wednesday announced that the 1200-metre event, which will be run for the eighth time next Saturday, had been upgraded to Group 1 status after ratification at… Read More »
The good form on paper stacked up in midweek country company and trainer Julius Sandhu is now eyeing a black-type feature on the other side of Melbourne for Sale winner Oxford Blue. The Listed Geelong Classic (2200m) on October 23 is where the Cranbourne-based horseman is hoping to send the three-year-old… Read More »
Jason Warren’s top mare Benedetta will not feature in the upcoming Spring Carnival. The Group 1 Goodwood winner has been sent to the paddock after a setback that disrupted her preparation for key races. Benedetta suffered a knock to her hind leg, which led to her withdrawal from the Group… Read More »
Nonconformist had never raced in Sydney prior to this campaign, but with a plethora of Group races worth significant prize money, Grahame Begg has been happy to send his evergreen gelding north and will run in Saturday’s Group 2 Hill Stakes (1900m) at Randwick. The eight-year-old, who has won over $2 million… Read More »
The decision to bypass the Epsom Handicap and concentrate on The Big Dance could reap a $1.5 million bonus if Gringotts can capture the Alan Brown Stakes at Rosehill, en route to his main mission. The Ciaron Maher-trained five-year-old passed the qualifying clause for the Melbourne Cup Day feature with… Read More »
With one important contest under the belt, it is now time for number two when Broadsiding heads to the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas. Crowned Champion Two-Year-Old of the season in Adelaide on Tuesday night, Broadsiding will be out to continue the momentum he built as a late two-year-old and early three-year-old… Read More »
Racing Victoria CEO Aaron Morrison has thrown his support behind the creation of a national betting pool, a move aimed at addressing the decline in tote betting. With Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory pushing to merge their Tatts pool with Victoria’s, Morrison believes the change would improve… Read More »
Champion jockey Zac Purton will ride Land Legend in both the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup, following the horse’s impressive victory in the Group 1 Metropolitan. The Hong Kong-based rider was confirmed after Land Legend’s win last Saturday, which secured his spot in the spring’s biggest races. The Hong Kong… Read More »
Talented jockey Laura Lafferty has been moved out of the Intensive Care Unit and into a trauma ward at The Alfred Hospital in Melbourne after a serious fall at Ballarat last Thursday. Lafferty sustained multiple internal injuries when she was dislodged from her mount, The Praised One, while leading the… Read More »
Wagga-based apprentice jockey Holly Durnan has been handed a three-month suspension by Racing NSW stewards after being found guilty of workplace harassment and the unauthorized use of her mobile phone in the jockeys’ room. The investigation by stewards began in late September, following reports of an “offensive photograph of a… Read More »
Pride Of Jenni won’t be taking her place in the Toorak Handicap at Caulfield with trainer Ciaron Maher advising Racing Victoria stewards that he will not be accepting with the star mare. Controversy had surrounded her surprise nomination this week as due to her high rating of 122, she was allotted topweight… Read More »
Connections of Via Sistina and Buckaroo are keeping their spring options open, with both horses still in contention for the Caulfield Cup (October 19) and Cox Plate (October 26) after third declarations on Tuesday. There are now 33 remaining acceptors for the Caulfield Cup and 26 for the Cox Plate,… Read More »
Triple Group One winner Broadsiding remains an odds-on favourite for the Caulfield Guineas after drawing barrier nine, but rival trainer Gai Waterhouse isn’t giving up on the emerging Mayfair upstaging the star colt. Waterhouse and training partner Adrian Bott will saddle up the Golden Rose placegetter and the improving Wanaruah in Saturday’s $3… Read More »
Grant and Alana Williams are keen to give classy West Australian mare Alsephina another Group One opportunity in the Toorak Handicap, but their decision could be determined by whether star rival Pride Of Jenni takes her place. Pride Of Jenni is a dual nominee for Saturday’s Group 1 Caulfield mile and the… Read More »
Golden Slipper winner Lady Of Camelot has taken out a star-studded barrier trial at Randwick, leading home a field featuring nine Group One winners and four Everest contenders. The Tulloch Lodge filly, whose owner Sir Owen Glenn has leased an Everest slot for 2024, shaded Lady Laguna by a neck in Tuesday’s… Read More »
