Once touted as an Everest contender before being struck down by soundness issues, Showmanship will be looking to prove that he still packs a punch when he returns to Sydney for the first time in almost two years. The eight-year-old, who will line up in Saturday’s Listed Winter Stakes (1400m) at… Read More »
There’s a healthy Finals Day prize up for grabs, but Ethan Brown knows he could be riding for much more than that when he teams with Berkshire Breeze in Saturday’s $150,000 Banjo Paterson Series Final at Flemington. An effortless win at the same track four weeks earlier swiftly elevated the Ciaron Maher-trained… Read More »
Anthony and Sam Freedman surprised many when Post Impressionist appeared in the entries for this Saturday’s $300,000 Caloundra Cup and while the import is among the final field, a start is not yet guaranteed. The father/son training duo is reluctant to run the gelding, who has 60kg and barrier 16, on a… Read More »
Results this weekend will be pivotal for trainers Paul Messara and Leah Gavranrich as two of their most promising horses face important tests in different states. Unbeaten mare Clear Thinking can stake her claims for a Kosciuszko slot when she rises to Highway Handicap (1200m) company at Randwick, while Know Thyself steps out… Read More »
Wednesday’s Sandown meeting was a rare one at which Ciaron Maher did not have a clear-cut favourite going into the day, but that did not stop the country’s most prolific trainer of winners bringing up a season milestone. Maher celebrated his 100th Victorian metropolitan winner for the season when Baroque Road won the… Read More »
It is usually Tulloch Lodge-trained horses that run their rivals ragged, but this time it is Chris Waller who has produced a late-season gem in flying filly Extremely Hardys. Making her debut at Canterbury on Wednesday, the $300,000 buy defied the usually patient tactics for Waller first starters, leading and extending… Read More »
It has been a momentous few weeks for Rachel King on a personal front, and the top jockey will be looking to parlay that into racetrack success with a strong book of rides at the Sunshine Coast. King returned home to England last month to marry Luke Hilton, racing manager for… Read More »
Victorian racing might be deep into its off-season, but Blake Shinn knows quality horses can emerge from anywhere, which is why he believes connections of Supercilious have reason to be optimistic. The top jockey partnered the Leon and Troy Corstens-trained daughter of Written Tycoon to an impressive on-pace win in the 1300-metre 2YO… Read More »
Gavin Bedggood understands Windstorm was beaten fair and square by Munhamek last start at Flemington, but he is still clinging to the hope he can turn the tables in Saturday’s Winter Championship Final. The geldings, who were separated by half-a-length when first and second in the 1620-metre The David Bourke on June 22,… Read More »
An interstate trip is Peter Snowden’s preferred choice for untapped filly I Found You, but the relative safety of a home track assignment could still win out. The two-year-old, a half-sister to stallions Deep Field and Shooting To Win, has been accepted for the Petaluma Handicap (1100m) at Randwick and… Read More »
Henry Dwyer, a recent convert to the world of frequent flyer points, is set to rack up the miles in 2024. After Royal Ascot, Dwyer plans to take Asfoora to Goodwood and York in August, potentially leading to races in France and America. “I didn’t actually know frequent flyer points… Read More »
Veteran stayer Vow And Declare will return for another spring carnival after claiming a tough victory in the Group 3 Tatt’s Cup (2200m) at Eagle Farm. The nine-year-old secured his second Tatt’s Cup win, following his first in 2019. While the iconic Melbourne Cup win in 2019 remains a career… Read More »
Maddie Raymond has one of the more interesting nominations for Saturday’s feature event at Flemington, the $200,000 Winter Championship Final, but Kingswood is unlikely to take his place in the 1600-metre Listed event. Stable followers won’t have to wait long to see the imported entire in action, however, with Raymond keen… Read More »
Mitch Beer has seen more than enough evidence that his stable star Mnementh is a superior heavy-tracker and will seek the wettest track he can find this Saturday, with a final decision to be made on Wednesday. A last start winner of the Listed Bob Charley AO Stakes (1100m) at Rosehill on… Read More »
Tony Gollan was relieved to see Wollombi make a winning debut for the stable at Ipswich and is now looking forward to giving the mare the chance to build on her record in this Saturday’s Glasshouse Handicap. The Extreme Choice four-year-old will chase back-to-back Listed wins in the $300,000 event over 1400… Read More »
Hong Kong superstar Romantic Warrior remains the top target for Racing Victoria’s international recruiter Paul Bloodworth for the Cox Plate 2024. However, Bloodworth is cautious about the gelding’s return to Melbourne. Bloodworth recently met with trainer Danny Shum in Hong Kong and has had several exchanges with him since Romantic… Read More »
It could be considered ambitious of Ben Hayes to think that this Saturday’s Finals Day card could be as lucrative for the stable as the most recent meeting at Flemington, but he is from a family known for its optimism. Hayes and his training partner brothers Will and JD will return… Read More »
Racing Victoria stewards have informed trainers Clinton McDonald and Luke Oliver of irregularities in recent test samples from their horses. A pre-race blood test from McDonald’s Flying On A Limb, unplaced at Flemington in April, showed triamcinolone acetonide, an anti-inflammatory banned on race day. Oliver’s filly, Hey Bella, tested positive… Read More »
Golden Path’s McKell Cup win was the latest chapter in the Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr Sydney success story for 2023/24 and the bad news for trainers permanently-based in the Harbour City is the team is hoping to quadruple its numbers there. The training partnership, whose main base is at… Read More »
Dubai Honour, the globe-trotting gelding who conquered Sydney last year, added a European Group 1 to his CV late on Sunday night, Australian time. The William Haggas-trained galloper won beyond 10 furlongs for the first time when too strong for his rivals in the Group 1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud… Read More »
