Brad Rawiller is no stranger to winning Group One races in Perth and the Victorian jockey is excited to head west again chasing his first Railway Stakes success.
Rawiller has two feature race rides for Godolphin trainer James Cummings at Saturday’s Ascot meeting including Best Of Days in the Group One Railway Stakes (1600m).
Three of Rawiller’s 24 career Group One wins have been in Perth, including his first in the Fruit ‘n’ Veg Stakes, now known as the Kingston Town Classic, on Niconero in 2006.
He won the Kingston Town again on Niconero two years later and also won the 2010 WATC Derby on Chartreux when it held Group One status.
Rawiller has been close to winning the Railway, beaten in a photo finish aboard Black Heart Bart in 2017 while he also ran third on Niconero in 2006.
Best Of Days is a Group One winner of the Cantala Stakes at Flemington in 2018 and he was fifth in the same race under 57kg at his most recent start on November 2.
Rawiller also rides Best Of Days’ stablemate Widespread in Saturday’s Group Two WA Guineas.
“It has always been a happy hunting ground for me and I’m excited to go and ride two nice horses for Godolphin,” Rawiller said.
Rawiller was to ride Best Of Days in the Blamey Stakes at Flemington in March but Best Of Days was ruled out a couple of days before the race when he bled from both nostrils after a jump-out.
More than eight months later, Rawiller is set to get his first chance on Best Of Days in a feature race.
“I haven’t ridden him in a race but I’ve done a bit of work on him before,” Rawiller said.
“Obviously he’s a Group One winner and I think he’s coming into form at the right time.”
Rawiller has won on three-year-old Widespread at The Valley and Bendigo this month and while the WA Guineas is a class rise he believes he’s a genuine chance.
“His last two wins have been excellent and I don’t think they’ve been weak races,” he said.
Best Of Days and Widespread were among a group of horses who arrived in Perth on a flight from Melbourne which left on Tuesday night.
The Tony Noonan-trained Manolo Blahniq did not make the trip because of an elevated temperature and has been scratched from the Railway.
