Cover image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
There is no denying spring is most definitely in the air. The first Group 1 of the season, the Memise S. is less than five weeks away, while the G2 Missile S. is set to be contested next Saturday, always an event that attracts a competitive field of gallops on resumption; think Alizee (Sepoy), Pierata and Eduardo (Host {Chi}) who all started their spring campaigns by winning the Missile.
Naturally, with the feature racing on the tip of our tongues, the action at the trials is starting to heat-up, with Friday’s 17 set heats at Randwick playing host to several stars gunning to be players in the spring carnival.
The first Heat of the morning over 1000 metres on the course proper at Randwick attracted a small but selected field of four runners.
The James Cummings and Godolphin-owned Golden Mile (Astern) scored narrowly from the Group 1-placed North Star Lass (Zoustar) representing the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott stable.
Following in behind them was Anthony Cummings’ progressive sprinter Kote (Choisir), and trialling the field home was Waterhouse and Bott’s G1 Sydney Cup hero Knights Order (Ire) (So You Think {NZ}).
Golden Mile will be looking to recapture his form from the spring of last year, which saw the son of Astern claim the G1 Caulfield Guineas, G2 Callander-Presnell S. and the G3 Ming Dynasty H.
Cummings believes the rising 4-year-old is amongst the group of horses in his stable that can take the step-up to open company this spring and shared he has earmarked targets in Melbourne for the colt, “Horses like Golden Mile, In Secret and Pericles, they are certainly capable of taking the step to open company and performing at the highest level.”
“Horses like Golden Mile, In Secret and Pericles, they are certainly capable of taking the step to open company and performing at the highest level.” - James Cummings
The Waterhouse and Bott stable were smitten with the performance of North Star Lass, stable representative and racing manager Emma Reeves told TTR AusNZ, “She has seemed to come back better than ever. The words from her trackwork riders have been incredibly encouraging this preparation, and we are seeing that in her trial.
“To see her run that very good colt (Golden Mile) to the margin she did today (0.5l), I think, really confirmed those trackwork comments.”
Star stayers
Heat 2 was staged over the 1000 metres on the course proper at Randwick and saw a field of five line up.
The Waterhouse and Bott stable was represented by the expensive import Hoo Ya Mal (GB) (Territories {Ire}), who was placed in the G1 The Derby at Epsom Downs; he was joined by the fellow imported stablemates Military Mission (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) and Sir Lucan (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) a full brother to the ill-fated G1 W.S Cox Plate hero Sir Dragonet (Ire).
Rounding out the field was Annabel Neasham-trained Fancy Man (Ire) (Pride Of Dubai) and the John Sargent-trained rising 4-year-old Perfect Thought (So You Think {NZ}).
It was Sargent’s Perfect Thought who denied Hoo Ya Mal narrowly. Perfect Thought showed exceptional talent last spring, taking out the G3 Carbine Club S. in the spring of 2022, but had an interrupted preparation in the autumn and winter with an infection in the side of his jaw that needed attention and treatment from penicillin.
Reeves and the Waterhouse-Bott team were buoyed by Hoo Ya Mal’s second trial after only being seen once under race conditions in Australia in the G1 Melbourne Cup, where he was unplaced.
“He (Hoo Ya Mal) went super,” Reeves told TTR AusNZ.
“He showed something we always knew he had, and we’ve been working really hard to try and get him to settle. We told Tim (Clark) to get some cover and really hit the line, and he did exactly that. We are really thrilled with that performance because he’s got some really big targets this spring.”
“He (Hoo Ya Mal) showed something we always knew he had... We are really thrilled with that performance because he’s got some really big targets this spring.” - Emma Reeves
The team was also happy with the performance of Sir Lucan.
“He (Sir Lucan) has returned a little bit more dour this preparation, which isn’t a bad thing because previously we had worked on getting him to relax so he can get out on in trip.
“But he showed enough speed, and we are pleased with how he’s returned.”
Blood shows his best
It was then time for five-time Group 1 winner Alligator Blood to step out in Heat 3 over 800 metres.
Nobody was disappointed with the rising 7-year-old showing all the right signs and no loss of enthusiasm for racing as he marches towards a second attempt at the G1 W.S Cox Plate in October.
The son of All Too Hard was partnered by Tim Clark and beat the speedy Queen Of The Ball (I Am Invincible) by 1l, while running into fourth was the G1 Randwick Guineas winner Communist (Russian Revolution).
“We're going to press on towards the Cox Plate,” Bott told Racing.com.
“I feel it's a good year to have another crack at it. I thought Alligator Blood still ran very well last year, and having had a couple of runs at the 2000 metres, I think he'll be a little bit more seasoned for it this time.
“We can tailor his campaign pretty similar to last time; we may tweak it a little bit, there's obviously been a couple of race date changes and movements there, but he'll potentially kick off in the Memsie through the Makybe Diva the Turnbull and into the Cox Plate and looking to follow that similar pattern, dropping back to the mile for Champions Day, I think that was very effective for him last time.”
“We're going to press on towards the Cox Plate (with Alligator Blood)... he'll potentially kick off in the Memsie through the Makybe Diva the Turnbull and into the Cox Plate.” - Adrian Bott
Intriguing imports
Although Heat 5 over 1045 metres contained no Group 1 winners, the Waterhouse and Bott stable unleashed an intriguing import for the first time.
Just Fine (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) is a 5-year-old gelding formerly trained by Sir Michael Stoute. The gelding was a last-start winner at Leicester and hails from the family of Cascadian (GB) (New Approach {Ire}).
Just Fine was purchased by McKeever Bloodstock and Waterhouse Bott Racing from the 2022 Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training Sale for 300,000gns (AU$607,800).
Just Fine (Ire) | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
Adam Hyeronimus rode the import and ran into third behind Green Shadows (Menari) and Capital Asset (Capitalist).
While Waterhouse and Bott had their 4-year-old Japanese import Foujita (Jpn), a son of Duramente (Jpn), make a show in Heat 8.
Clark rode the gelding and narrowly beaten by Miss Couver (Vancouver).
Reeves relayed that the team was pleased with Just Fine and Foujita’s first Australian appearances.
Foujita (Jpn) | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
“This was their first Australian starts, and as has been proven repeatedly with imports, they just take a little bit of time to acclimate,” Reeves said.
“And once acclimatise, get that sun on their backs, hard grain into them; they just explode.
“Just Fine and Foujita are both horses we are really looking forward to getting to the trials and onto the races. Just Fine was given a rating of mid-80s, so it’s a nice time of year to get him up and going over some distance.”
Other trials of interest
Heat 9 was the first for the juveniles and was contested by some promising types, including John O’Shea’s hulking Cafe Millenium (Not A Single Doubt).
The 2-year-old colt made a splash on debut at Randwick when he won the Pierro, but it looked to be a case of it all too soon for Cafe Millenium when he was unplaced in his next two starts.
Cafe Millenium | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
Champion jockey James McDonald hopped into the saddle of Cafe Millenium in Friday’s 1045 metre heat and showed some of his old form to narrowly beat the progressive The Little Pumper (Shalaa {Ire}).
The Little Pumper trained by Waterhouse and Bott has won his last two starts, and the team have indicated bigger things in store for the son of Shalaa (Ire), with possible tilts at the G1 Golden Rose and G1 Caulfield Guineas flagged.
“We are looking at a 3-year-old benchmark race in two weeks, and he’ll get a lot of weight there, but it leads him into races like the Up and Coming and the Ming Dynasty,” Reeves explained.
“Those two races will dictate what path The Little Pumper takes from there.”
The Little Pumper | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
The speedy Platinum Jubilee (Zoustar) continued her build-up towards a tilt at the Princess Series in Heat 11 over 1045 metres.
Although only winning by a narrow margin from Capital Heart (Capitalist), the Waterhouse and Bott stable continues to be pleased with the daughter of Zoustar’s efforts.
Reeves said, “She’s always been pretty push button. We were thrilled with her trial on Friday morning.”
Widden Stud’s first-season sire, Written By, appears to have a winner in waiting when the Michael Freedman-trained Write This Way backed up his trial performance at Randwick earlier in July with another victory on Friday morning.
Write This Way | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
While in Heat 15 and Heat 16, the Champion Sire Written Tycoon was represented by two progressive juveniles Critique and Queen Of The Mile, both returned in fine order.
The Waterhouse and Bott stable rounded out a successful morning, sending out Alot A Lip (Exceed And Excel) in the final heat (17). Alot A Lip was a $475,000 yearling purchase by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott and Kestrel Thoroughbreds at the 2022 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale. The filly is a half-sister to the progressive Tass (Kingman {GB}) who was placed in the G3 Alexandra S.
