Eagle lands first winner
Armidale Stud's Alpine Eagle has sired his first winner, with the Mark Ganderton-trained Alpine Wolf romping to a 4l victory on debut in a 1009 metre 2-year-old maiden at Devonport.
The homebred gelding had won a recent Devonport trial and took that form to the racetrack, coming from just off the pace under Daniel Ganderton and then surging clear late to defeat Lacerate (Charge Forward) with Gee Gees So True (Wordsmith) in third.
Alpine Wolf, who is out of three-time winning West Quest (Can) mare, Copper Dancer, was one of four of Alpine Eagle's first crop in the race.
The son of High Chaparral (Ire) had had seven previous runners for one placegetter. He stands for $6050 (inc GST) at Armidale Stud for 2021.
Hayes brothers get first Victorian success
Well-bred gelding Elteecee (Pierro) has given Lindsay Park's new training combination Ben and JD Hayes their first winner in their home state with an all-the-way success at Spendthrift Australia Park at Werribee.
Elteecee, ridden by Patrick Moloney, was having his third start, but first since January and showed substantial improvement, jumping to the front and repelling the late challenge by the Team Hawkes'-trained Greaves (Stratum Star) to win by 0.75l in the 11000 metre maiden. Grizzles (Vancouver) finished third, another 2.25l adrift.
Elteecee
Ben and JD Hayes recorded their first winner since starting their partnership when Zayydani (NZ) (Savabeel) won the Listed Tattersall's Gold Crown at Eagle Farm on Saturday, but this is their first success in Victoria.
A $140,000 buy for Lindsay Park and Andrew Williams Bloodstock from the Segenhoe Stud draft at the 2020 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, Elteecee is out of the seven-time winner Adorabubble (Ferocity).
The extended family on this pedigree page includes some top horses such as The Everest winner Classique Legend (Not A Single Doubt) and multiple Group 1 winner Racing To Win (Encosta De Lago).
Incentivise leaves impression on Moody
Bolstered by the first impression his new stable acquisition Incentivise (Shamus Award) left on him at Eagle Farm on Saturday, Peter Moody is looking forward to the spring with the promising stayer.
Incentivise claimed his first stakes win in emphatic fashion, winning the Listed Tattersall's Cup by 12l and rocketing to the top of markets for both the G1 Caulfield Cup and G1 Melbourne Cup in what was his final run for Steve Tregea.
"I think most people were quite flabbergasted," Moody told Racing.com. "I was too.
"He was taking on much better-performed horses, so it was pretty special."
Tregea sold a controlling share in the 4-year-old earlier this month to prominent owners Brae Sokolski and Ozzie Kheir, with Moody to now take control of him, having first seen him in the flesh on Friday.
"He’s quite a big horse, a tall horse who is still furnishing out," Moody noted. "Steve (Tregea) said he’s done better every time he’s been to the races this time around.
"He’s quite a narrow horse. He looked unbelievably healthy. He’s over 500 kilograms so he’s a fair lump of a horse but with a bit of furnishing to do behind the saddle.
"He’ll have a freshen up at Steve’s for a few weeks and over the next few weeks we’ll nut out a path and work out when we need to have him in."
Another honour for Waller
Chris Waller has claimed the honour of being Australia’s Group 1 champion trainer for the ninth consecutive season.
Waller finished with 15 Group 1 victories for 2020/21, his equal second-best alongside his 2015/16 tally and is only bettered by the 18 he secured during Winx’s (Street Cry {Ire}) final racing season in 2018/19.
Chris Waller
Waller's stable runners have earned more than $40 million for the third season in succession.
“It’s been a good year,’’ Waller told the Daily Telegraph.
“I do spend a lot of time explaining to people on the other side of the world how lucky we are in Australian racing."
Perth Cup suits for Naughty By Nature
A long-term plan to target the G2 Perth Cup is on the agenda for the Jason Miller-trained Naughty By Nature (Trade Fair {GB}) after her win in the G3 Strickland S. at Belmont on Saturday.
The 4-year-old claimed her fifth win from 21 starts and her first at stakes level having been placed in black-type races on four previous occasions.
"We've always had a plan to try and target a race like that, so it's good when it works," Miller said after the win.
Miller completed the rare hat-trick of having been a winning jockey, owner and now trainer across three different editions of the Strickland S.
He confirmed the Perth Cup in January looks an ideal target race in the Perth summer carnival for his mare.
Double delight for Kearneys
Ross and Corrine Kearney's broodmare Signorina (NZ) (Conatus) has produced two winners in a week after Bankers Choice (NZ) (Mongolian Khan) won by 7l at Tauranga on Saturday just three days after his older half-sister Jodelin Gal (NZ) (Swiss Ace) had won at Pukekohe.
Bred and raced under the Kearneys’ Okaharau Station banner, Bankers Choice made it two wins in a row after breaking his maiden status at Matamata earlier in the month.
“We’re running around on cloud nine,” Ross Kearney said. “He’s a horse who has taken some time to mature but he looks like he has figured it out now.
“To get a win was wonderful but to have two in the same week for the mare is just amazing.”
The Kearneys are relative newcomers to the thoroughbred breeding game, having moved to a property in Okoroire in 2018.
“We’ve got nine mares and six weanlings on the farm, with five of our mares due to foal this season,” Kearney said.
“Signorina, the dam of Bankers Choice is in foal to Mongolian Khan and has a Time Test weanling colt at foot."
500 up for Hughes
Riccarton trainer Kevin Hughes brought up his 500th career winner when Russian Fable (NZ) (Zacinto {GB}) won at Riccarton on Saturday.
Hughes, who trains in partnership with his wife Pam, is 81 and was rapt to have reached the milestone.
“It’s been a while coming but certainly nice to get it,” he said.
“We were lucky in that it was race one and the track was at its best as she is a mare that can handle wet ground but not the really tough, heavy going.
“It was a good win and made special as the owner has been with us for a long time, so it made for a very nice moment.”
