A nasty incident in the mounting yard at Benalla has cost apprentice Matthew Cartwright the opportunity of riding a winner for his mother and grandmother a day later at Sandown. Cartwright fractured his ankle in the incident on Tuesday and was due to have surgery on the injury around the time the Lyn… Read More »
Jockey Michael Walker has called time on his career after riding more than 2000 winners in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Singapore. Walker has made the decision to hang up the saddle after suffering a brain injury during a fall at Pakenham jumpouts in July last year. “I’ll never… Read More »
He’s just 12-months into his training venture, but former jockey Ryan Hill hopes the spotlight will shine on his stable at Pinjarra on Saturday. Aiming for his biggest payday, Guarding Heaven and Ofcourse She Has will step out in the $250,000 Magic Millions WA 2YO Classic (1200m). Guarding Heaven has… Read More »
Gary Portelli’s quest for back-to-back Golden Slippers ramped up a notch after Extreme Spirit took the first step on that path with a determined debut win at Kensington. While the Warwick Farm trainer will be racing the clock to get the two-year-old qualified given the $5 million Golden Slipper showpiece is just… Read More »
Trainer Matthew Williams does not want to upset the hand that feeds him. When Jamie Kah elected to ride the Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr -trained Annavisto in the Group 3 Tony Bourke Memorial (1400m) at Flemington on Saturday, Williams was not about to argue. Williams saddles Wrote To Arataki, a horse Kah has ridden to… Read More »
Learning To Fly’s Inglis Millennium victory was a bittersweet moment for Michael Freedman. While the Randwick trainer had to settle for a narrow second with Blanc De Blanc, there was some consolation in the fact Learning To Fly’s performance franked the form of another of his smart two-year-olds, Mumbai Muse…. Read More »
Star English jockey Tom Marquand will be sidelined for two months with a dislocated shoulder but remains hopeful of making a late Sydney autumn carnival cameo. Marquand suffered the injury when he fell heavily from Dorothy Gail in the $2 million Inglis Millennium at Randwick last Saturday. While initial scans didn’t… Read More »
A jump-out last week has Scallopini primed to tackle a stakes race at Flemington. The Steven O’Dea and Matt Hoysted-trained eight-year-old returns to Flemington on Saturday to contest the Listed Elms Handicap (1400m). It was the same course and distance Scallopini was successful over during the spring when he accounted for Pinstriped in… Read More »
Nine races will be run and won at Happy Valley on Wednesday night, with good depth across the program. Race One: 8 Tronic Mighty Race Two: 5 Sky Gem Race Three: 1 Cheval Valiant Race Four: 7 Sunny Delight Race Five: 3 Victory Scholars Race Six: 7 Eighteen Palms Race… Read More »
Rosie Mahony’s win on Sir Snugalot at Albany last week validated her decision to have a second crack at rebuilding her riding career. The 23-year-old apprentice took a break for most of the 2022 racing year in order to rediscover her passion and love of riding. Mahony cited weight problems and… Read More »
Border closures have kept WA riders from the National Apprentice Race Series (NARS) for three years but they will be lining up at the starting gates in Darwin on 4 March. Apprentices Cassey Martinan, Brayden Gaerth, Luke Campbell, Victoria Corver, Keshaw Dhurun and Holly Watson have been selected to represent WA in… Read More »
Skirt The Law, the unbeaten, Golden Slipper-bound filly, strolled to an uncontested six length win in a trial at Doomben over 1000m on Tuesday morning, without ever raising a sweat. Just what is more exciting … Skirt The Law’s willingness to take on what is asked of her or the… Read More »
The Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott trained Soul Choice had no concerns booking her ticket for the Tasmanian Oaks when taking out the Listed Strutt Stakes at Hobart on Friday evening. A maiden success in the feature for the Waterhouse and Bott stable, Soul Choice only faced four rivals and led… Read More »
Super Seth came from a seemingly impossible position to win a Caulfield Guineas and on Tuesday his younger brother did likewise, albeit in a Benalla maiden. Rocket Scientist overcame being severely checked on the home turn, when travelling in the second half of the field, to unwind a powerful burst and win… Read More »
Ballarat trainer Mitch Freedman says he would like to one day call Attrition the best horse he has trained during his brief career. Attrition heads to the Group 3 C S Hayes Stakes (1400m) at Flemington on Saturday with the possibility of a Group 1 start in the Australian Guineas (1600m), also at… Read More »
It’s a race that’s been highlighted in many country-based trainer’s calendars for some time, and this year’s running of the Newhaven Park Country Championships final at Royal Randwick on April 1st is no exception. With three winners and a second from his past eight runners, Coffs Harbour-based conditioner Aiden St Vincent is… Read More »
Trainer Gavin Bedggood remains mystified by the performance of Boss Queen after the mare finished a long last at Moonee Valley. That performance was on New Year’s Eve and six-and-a-half weeks later Boss Queen is set to run in the Evergreen Turf Handicap (1300m) at Sandown. It was the same course and distance Boss Queen had… Read More »
It could have been better, but it could have been a whole lot worse. The risks involved in race riding were very much to the fore on Saturday with four riders hitting the deck in Queensland alone, in a variety of circumstances with a variety of injury outcomes… thankfully, none… Read More »
Jamie Mott’s opportunity aboard Roch ‘N’ Horse came about due to a fellow rider being suspended, but he is hoping to cement his position in the saddle aboard the mare who could be bound for England later in the year. Mott will partner Roch ‘N’ Horse in this Saturday’s $1 million… Read More »
The Newhaven Park Country Championship Series kicked off with a popular local winner at Tuncurry on Sunday, with the Terry Evans trained Sir Ravanelli taking out the first series qualifier ahead of the Grant Jobson trained Imatruestar, with both runners earning their place in the $500 000 Championship Final which… Read More »
