Back Yourself!
Sign-up and start betting with Ladbrokes in 2 minutes!
Back A Winner with Neds!
Sign-up and start betting with Neds in 2 minutes!
Daily Racing Specials!
Sign-up and bet with Australia's best new bookmaker!
#1 Ranked New Bookie
Sign-up and bet with Australia's #1 ranked new bookmaker!
Best Of The Best Odds!
Bet With Palmerbet and get Paid Top Fluc or Top Tote!
Massive Odds on All Races!
Sign-up and start betting with PlayUp in 2 minutes!
Imagine what you could be buying instead.
Set a deposit limit.
Search
 
Image: Steve Hart
Rothfire will be out to established himself among the best of his generation

Robert Heathcote has almost lived two lives and both of them have been extraordinary.

Leaving Australia for Europe in his early 20s, he spent 15 years working for major international travel companies, staying in hotels on the Grand Canal in Venice and losing himself in the back streets of Rome.

Following a stay with his UK-based brother Wayne, who he credits for his interest in racing, Heathcote returned to Australia to manage his sibling’s bloodstock interests.

Market 💰: View the Odds for the Golden Rose

“After six months I said, ‘Wayne, give me a go at this training caper’,” Heathcote said.

“So then I read a few books. I never learned from another trainer, I had no knowledge of horses and away we went.

“I have been lucky because 15 years travelling and then I got into racing, so I have had two labours of love my whole life.”

Despite having no previous experience with horses, Heathcote has gone on to become one of Queensland’s most successful trainers, his best galloper the outstanding Buffering who won seven Group One races.

He never thought he would get another horse as good, then along came Rothfire.

An odds-on favourite for Saturday’s $1 million Golden Rose, the Heathcote-Rothfire story was almost over before it started.

The trainer bought him sight unseen because he liked Rothfire’s sire, Rothesay, and at $11,000 the horse was cheap.

But Heathcote’s payment was intercepted by a Nigerian phishing scam and couldn’t be recovered, so he had to fork out again.

“I paid $22,000 for ‘Buff’ and I paid $11,000 for Rothfire but I had to pay it twice. Oddly enough, they both ended up costing the same,” Heathcote said.

Rothfire has since established himself among the best of his generation, winning seven of his eight starts and more than $850,000.

He has also been snapped up for a slot in the $15 million The Everest.

Heathcote is bullish about the three-year-old’s chances in both races but it is the Golden Rose that holds most immediacy.

Despite his short odds and a Group One win over 1400 metres, there is a theory some of Rothfire’s rivals will be better suited than him over the Golden Rose distance.

Heathcote does not share that view.

“I’ve got news for them, so too is Rothfire because I actually believe he is a better 1400 metre horse than he probably is a 1200 metre horse,” he said.

“In the J J Atkins, he might not have beaten a stellar field of two-year-olds but it’s how he did it. He sat on a hot speed and he sprinted away and ran a very comparable time to the open horses in the Stradbroke 30 minutes later.”

Heathcote might not have grown up with thoroughbreds but his time as a student of the world has prepared him well for his next chapter as a horse trainer.

He sees his journey with Rothfire as another adventure and takes none of it for granted.

“It’s been a fun ride for a little cheapie. He is already a Group One winner and a dual Group Two winner and we’re going in at tomato sauce odds for another Group One on Saturday, so it’s pinch yourself stuff for me.”

 
*Existing customers only. 2nd Racing bet. Excl SA & WA. T’s & C’s apply. Gamble responsibly.
Imagine what you could be buying instead.
Set a deposit limit.
Featured News

FREE BETS – Claim $1000’s in Bonus Bets at the TOP Betting Sites

We take a look at the BIGGEST and BEST Free Daily Racing Offers and Betting Promotions from Australia’s leading online...

Golden Slipper Likely Field – 2024

The biggest two-year-old race of the year will jump this Saturday in arguably one of the best fields in recent...

Former trainer handed a five-year ban for pulling stewards pants down

Former trainer Todd Balfour has been handed a five-year disqualification by Racing SA stewards after a misconduct incident at the...

Melbourne Cup champion Verry Elleegant passes away

Verry Elleegant, one of the great mares in the history of Australian racing, has died while giving birth to her...

Watch 📺 Jockey banned from all racing premises over ride

Jockey Dylan Kitts has been penalised with a disciplinary officer exclusion directive due to non-compliance with an inquiry regarding his...

Group 1 winner returns positive swab

Racing Victoria stewards are investigating a positive swab from Group 1-winning mare Prowess, the racehorse trained by Roger James and...

Alligator Blood injured, career in doubt

Cult galloper Alligator Blood may have run his last race, with trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott confirming the star galloper had...

Nikita Beriman returns to the saddle

July 1, 2023 to January 26, 2024 … that period represents the just shy of seven months that Nikita Beriman...

Australia's Best Betting Sites

New Betting Sites Australia + Top List Bookmaker Apps $$$

Betting in Australia has never been more popular thanks to a large increase in new betting Agencies and Apps available...

Top 10 – Funniest Race Horse Names

Horse racing. Known as the ‘Sport Of Kings’, an industry worth billions, a very serious business…but to some, it’s a...

Best Horse Betting Sites in Australia

Best Horse Racing Betting Apps and Betting Sites – March 2024

We take a look at the best online betting apps to bet on horse racing in Australia for the month...

Golden Slipper

The Golden Slipper is one of the biggest and most prestigious horse races in Australia. Taking place each April at...

Australian Bookmaker Reviews – Online Bookie Ratings $$

Which bookmaker should you bet with? We Review each of the leading online Australian Bookmakers and rate them in order...

 
 
Imagine what you could be buying instead.
For free and confidential support call 1800 858 858 or visit gamblinghelponline.org.au