Gringotts has narrowly defeated established stars Fangirl and Ceolwulf in a thrilling George Ryder Stakes to claim his first Group 1 win and show he’s also going to be a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming Doncaster Mile.
The Ciaron Maher-trained Gringotts ($6) was the only runner in Saturday’s star-studded 11-horse field that had not won a Group 1, but under the urgings of jockey Tommy Berry the up-and-coming galloper held off Fangirl ($5) to win the 1500m weight-for-age race by a nose, with dual Group 1 winner Ceolwulf ($3.90 equal betting fav) another nose away third.
Gringotts won both the $3 million Big Dance and $1 million The Gong last spring and Maher said the gelding had been building to being a genuine Group 1 contender.
The five-year-old resumed with a slashing third first-up under a big weight in the Group 3 Liverpool City Cup (1300m) this autumn and then stepped up again to win Saturday’s George Ryder.
“He’s been building and he’s onto the Doncaster next,” Maher said.
“I think he blew the clock up the last 600m last start. Stepping up in trip today was ideal. You could feel he was building.
“Fangirl was obviously very hard to beat, she always is, but that was fantastic.”
The win was a special one for Berry, who notched his first Group 1 win since the spring of 2022.
The star jockey spent time on the sidelines through a disqualification in 2023 and in January this year he feared he might miss the autumn after suffering a neck and shoulder injury in a fall at Randwick.
But he was able to return to the saddle late last month and was thrilled to get a big-race win on Gringotts, who he rode throughout his spring campaign last year.
“It’s felt like a long road back here, and with the injury I didn’t think I was going to be back for this carnival,” Berry said.
“So it’s just so good to be back.
“I’ve had a lot of faith in this horse.
“His first-up run was massive under the big weight and it’s like he toys with them. He hits a bit of a flat spot around the 100m mark and when they come to him he responds. Gee, that’s a good feeling.”
Berry said he had his head down at the finish and was initially unsure whether Gringotts had held off Fangirl and Ceolwulf on his outside.
“The barrier boys told me around the back straight that I’d got there,” Berry said.
“It’s not a good feeling when you’ve got to wait another two-and-a-half furlongs to know if you’ve won. But it was well worth the wait.”
Berry said he was excited to also ride Gringotts in the Group 1 Doncaster Mile (1600m) at Randwick in two weeks.
Gringotts has 55.5kg in the Doncaster and was the equal favourite at $6 after Saturday’s win, alongside Randwick Guineas winner Linebacker.
