Two scratchings from the Golden Slipper have paved the way for jockey Daniel Stackhouse to get a career-changing opportunity in the $3.5 million race on Minhaaj. The second emergency’s place in Saturday’s race was confirmed when Cellsabeel was withdrawn on Thursday morning, a day after the Chris Waller-trained Global Quest… Read More »
Kris Lees has secured a third runner for the Provincial Championship Final with Asharani winning a qualifying heat at her home track of Newcastle. The 1200-metre race was scheduled to be held at Gosford last Saturday but was washed out and added to Thursday’s Newcastle program. Starting the $3.60 favourite,… Read More »
James Cummings believes Avilius is on target for his defence of the Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill but the Godolphin trainer is wary of a well-performed international visitor. Avilius returned to Sydney after running fifth in the Group One Australian Cup on March 7 and the six-year-old will be chasing back-to-back… Read More »
Trainer Mike Moroney reckons jockey Michael Dee will be out to make amends in the Group One Galaxy on Tofane after a luckless unplaced run in the Newmarket Handicap. Tofane finished seventh in the recent Group One Newmarket (1200m) but Moroney believes the mare should have finished closer after striking… Read More »
A 10-hour, one-way road trip with a rival jockey is not the Golden Slipper preparation either Hugh Bowman or Tommy Berry would choose. But Bowman figures there are worse people to spend a long-haul journey with than the affable Berry. “If you can’t get on with Tommy Berry then you’ve… Read More »
Mornington Cup day is special for local trainer Tony Noonan who is hoping to rekindle some good memories when Manolo Blahniq runs in the feature sprint. Noonan won three successive Cups with Gunnamatta but is yet to win the day’s feature short-course race, the Listed Hareeba Stakes. Manolo Blahniq lines… Read More »
John Thompson will have one runner in the Group One George Ryder Stakes at Rosehill but he reckons his stable can produce the trifecta. Thompson will saddle up Dreamforce in Saturday’s feature but can also lay some claim to two key rivals. The Randwick conditioner is hosting the Te Akau… Read More »
Trainer Matt Cumani needs to be careful in his planning and placement of Future Score who has an allergy to grass. If left untreated, Future Score breaks out in hives and under those circumstances Cumani will not race the horse. Presently free of the skin condition, Future Score is right… Read More »
As a jockey Chris Munce shared Group One glory with syndicator Shelley Hancox and he is planning to do the same as a trainer. Munce won the Group One Goodwood Handicap on Sword who was raced by one of Hancox’s syndicates. Hancox has been one of Australia’s most successful syndicators… Read More »
Hugh Bowman is looking to the most successful modern-day trainer in Golden Slipper history to deliver him a coveted win in the world’s richest two-year-old race. Bowman partners second favourite Farnan for Tulloch Lodge trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott in Saturday’s $3.5 million Golden Slipper showpiece. The meeting will… Read More »
Racing Queensland has followed other states and agreed to lift minimum riding weights for all TAB and non-TAB meetings across the state. In a media statement on Thursday, RQ said weights would be temporarily raised by one kilogram during the COVID-19 pandemic. The direction will be applied across the board,… Read More »
Two campaign defeats have not lessened Richard Litt’s faith in Castelvecchio and he remains adamant the colt is thriving ahead of the Group One Rosehill Guineas. Runner-up to Japanese champion Lys Graciuex in the Cox Plate last year, the three-year-old is under the microscope this autumn. He finished out of… Read More »
Godolphin trainer James Cummings says the time has arrived for Bivouac to take the next step and announce himself as a future weight-for-age star. Having shown off his qualities under handicap conditions in the Newmarket Handicap (1200m) at Flemington on March 7, Bivouac gets his weight-for-age chance in Friday night’s… Read More »
WILLIAM REID STAKES 1200m, $500,000, Group One, weight-for-age at The Valley, run under lights NOTABLE WINNERS * Gothic (1929); Comic Court (1951); Flying Halo (1952/53/55); Dual Choice (1972); All Shot (1973/74); Manikato (1979/80/81/82/83); Vo Rogue (1988); Hareeba (1995); Cape Of Good Hope (2005); Apache Cat (2008/09); Silent Sedition (2017); Hellbent… Read More »
Trainer Matt Dunn will be forced into running promising Xanthus despite the gelding drawing a bad barrier at Eagle Farm. Xanthus will get an early start to his winter carnival campaign in the Ascot Green Three-Year-Old Handicap (1000m) in which he has drawn barrier 11. Dunn said the barrier was… Read More »
The talented but frustrating Shogun Sun will step up in distance at Eagle Farm after trainer Kelly Schweida struggled to find a suitable race for the gelding. Schweida entered Shogun Sun for Saturday’s Open Handicap (1500m) and the Class Six (1200m). The gelding will tackle the longer race with comeback… Read More »
One-time favourite Cellsabeel has been scratched from the Golden Slipper with second emergency Minhaaj now gaining a start. The filly had been battling to get into the race after a below-par performance in the Silver Slipper and a third in the Black Opal and made the field as the final… Read More »
Three prominent American jockeys will miss the upcoming Dubai World Cup in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Irad Ortiz jr, Luis Saez and Tyler Gaffalione will not travel to the United Arab Emirates for the world’s richest day of racing on March 28. Saez’s agent, Richie DePass, said the… Read More »
One of the key horses in the market for Saturday’s Golden Slipper has been scratched after showing signs of lameness. The Ciaron Maher and David Eustace trained Cellsabeel has been scratched from the Golden Slipper field after she showed she was not 100% right after her final work this morning…. Read More »
Racing globally is an almost daily changing feast, with two significant things happening in the sport overnight. Firstly, both Ireland and Canada have decided to follow the Australian lead and continue racing. With all English and French tracks closing, the decision by Ireland to remain active surprised many. And it’s… Read More »
