Changes made to The All-Star Mile
Racing Victoria have made several key changes to the 2024 The All-Star Mile. Previously the field was declared through a voting system from the public. However, the voting process has been removed and updated to three ‘win and you’re in’ races and up to nine wild card selections.
Reportedly The All-Star Mile was plagued with issues around the non-commitment of runners taking their place in the final field and Racing Victoria hopes the new format will address the issue. The removal of the voting process is slated to also save Racing Victoria funds. Although the owner-ambassador initiative will remain. The 2024 The All-Star Mile will be held at a revamped Caulfield which will see the field size increased from 15 to 16.
The first of the ‘win and you’re in’ races will be held on Saturday - the G1 Sir Rupert Clarke S.
Royal Ascot wants Imperatriz
Ascot’s Director of Racing and Public Affairs Nick Smith admits he’d love to get the Te Akau Racing superstar, Imperatriz (I Am Invincible) to Royal Ascot in June next year.
“She goes straight to the top of the list,” Smith told News Corp.
“It’s really exciting because she’s a New Zealand-owned and-trained mare. She’s really exciting and looks like a reasonably straightforward horse.
Imperatriz | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“Imperatriz has shown a lot of consistency and that’s what you want with travelling horses. A lot of the horses that have one good run and jump on the plane aren't as successful but you know she’s the best horse and she suits all sorts of circumstances.
“It’s definitely one step at a time but there has been some interest expressed. She’s far from being on the plane and that’s how it should be anyway because she’s got the autumn ahead of her.”
Shooting For Gold ready to fire
The Steve O’Dea and Matt Hoysted-trained Shooting For Gold (Shooting To Win) is set to contest the Listed Swiss Ace Plate on Saturday at the Sunshine Coast with an eye towards the Magic Millions in January.
“Shooting For Gold’s general pattern is to get back but with Prince Of Boom and Zoustyle in, we can’t be giving them too big a head start,” Hoysted told News Corp.
“If he can hold his spot midfield, we’d be happy, he did it when he won the Group 3 at Caulfield last. He hasn’t won for a while but he has run well in some really good races.”
McDonald features in star-studded Longines IJC
On Monday, the Hong Kong Jockey Club unveiled a stellar lineup of jockeys who will contest the Longines International Jockeys’ Championship (IJC) at Happy Valley Racecourse on Wednesday, December 6.
Australian-based superstars James McDonald and Rachel King are set to compete, while three previous IJC winners - Ryan Moore, Tom Marquand and Zac Purton - will chase the crown. Great Britain's Hollie Doyle, who finished joint second in the 2021 IJC, will return, as will the four-time German Champion Jockey Bauyrzhan Murzabyev.
James McDonald | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Andrew Harding, the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Executive Director, Racing said, “The Longines International Jockeys’ Championship is one of the most exciting and prestigious events in the international racing calendar, and this year is no exception. We have a spectacular lineup, and in particular I am excited to welcome Bauyrzhan Murzabayev and Rachel King to participate in the event for the first time.”
One more Victorian Group 1 for ‘Ollie’
Champion rider Damien Oliver will have his final Thousand Guineas ride aboard the Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr-trained Vibrant Sun (The Autumn Sun). The 3-year-old filly was an 8l maiden winner at Geelong last Friday, and before that was placed behind the subsequent stakes winner Roll On High (Shamus Award).
It has been confirmed Oliver will ride one of three Godolphin runners in the G1 Sir Rupert Clarke S. The stable will be represented by Vilana (Hallowed Crown), Golden Mile (Astern) and Tamerlane (Golden Horn {GB}). However, which horse Oliver has been engaged to partner has yet to be confirmed.
Emissary on ice until 2024
Rupert Legh, owner of the 2022 Melbourne Cup placegetter Emissary (GB) (Kingman {GB}), has confirmed the talented galloper won’t be seen until the spring of 2024.
After several below par runs and a distant last in the G1 Caulfield Cup, the gelding was gone over with a fine-tooth comb. However, scans revealed no serious injuries, just some minor hot spots.
“We had Emissary thoroughly checked,” Legh told Racing.com.
Emissary (GB) | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
“He just needs time in the paddock to get his joints and feet acclimatised to our racing conditions. I had a scintigraphy done on him and it came back and said it’s not career-threatening at all.
“The vet report said the prognosis for return to racing is excellent, there’s no impact whatsoever, as long as you give him a good spell in the paddock. So, we won’t bring him back until next spring.”
Moroney pleased to have Shinn aboard
Flemington-based horseman Mike Moroney admits he and connections were given a bit of a scare to find a new jockey when Coeur Volante’s (NZ) (Proisir) regular rider Blake Shinn was suspended during Cup Week. Shinn received an eight-meeting suspension on Thursday, and on Saturday received an additional 21-meeting ban for separate incidents.
“We had a bit of a scare with Blake (Shinn) getting put out, but luckily he’s taking the suspension after the Thousand Guineas, so it’s worked out really well,” Moroney told News Corp.
“Coeur Volante is coming along really well she did a piece of work Saturday morning. She did a piece of work Saturday morning, she’ll have a major one on Tuesday, and she seems good, has put on nice weight and looks well.”
Kah’s Racing Tribunal Hearing begins
Jamie Kah’s Victorian Racing Tribunal Hearing began on Monday. Kah was required to give evidence to the Tribunal regarding the imagery and videos of Kah and two other licensed persons appearing to use an unidentified white powder at Kah’s residence.
During the hearing, Kah confirmed that licensed stablehand, Ruby McIntyre filmed the video that was leaked to the media.
“People say I should’ve known, but I didn’t know she was taking that video,” Kah told the Tribunal. “I got the screenshot of the video, the night before it went public to the press. If I had known a video was being taken in a polite way, I would’ve kicked her (Ruby McIntyre) out and been very upset that the video was taken. I would have made sure it was deleted or gone and not sent to anyone.”
Kah declared she had no knowledge of a video. However, was aware of a photo selfie that was taken by McIntyre but stated, “She was not sure where that photo was going to go.”
Kah also informed stewards she would volunteer a drug test, “Drug use is not something I’d do or would be doing when I’m trying to get back to race riding.”
Earlier in the hearing, the prosecution provided messages between Kah, her manager Emma Shelley, McIntyre and the other licensed person present, Jacob Biddell. The messages from Shelley read for Kah to “deny, deny, deny,” and “get our eggs in a row”.
The messages were sent between Wednesday, June 21 and Thursday, June 22, several days before the imagery was revealed in the media.
The hearing continues.
Magic to tackle Sir Rupert Clarke
Grahame Begg’s smart mare Magic Time (Hellbent) will tackle Saturday’s G1 Sir Rupert Clarke S. on Saturday.
“The Sir Rupert Clarke S. wasn’t on the radar earlier, I could have left her in Sydney and ran her in the G2 Hot Danish S., but I just felt with 53kgs on her back it was a good opportunity to get into a big handicap on the limit weight,” Begg told RSN.
Magic Time | Image courtesy of Sportpix
The Sir Rupert Clarke will only be Magic Time’s second run in Victoria this preparation, “Magic Time is owned in New South Wales, but that’s just the way it’s worked out. She was late starting off in the autumn, so we took her up there and she had a couple of runs in the autumn then we put her away again.
“She spelled down at Milburn Creek, and has been home for about 10 days and really taken the next step.”
Williams happy to have dodged Jenni
Warrnambool-based horseman Matthew Williams believes an untimely foot abscess ultimately ended-up a blessing for his talented mare Wrote To Arataki (NZ) (Wrote {Ire}). The 5-year-old mare was scheduled to tackle the G1 Empire Rose S. at Flemington. However, a foot abscess prompted Williams to scratch from the event that was won by the now dual Group 1 winner Pride Of Jenni (Pride Of Dubai). Williams has instead set his aim on Saturday’s G1 Sir Rupert Clarke S.
“I think the mile race (Empire Rose) would have been very hard for her (Wrote To Arataki) the other day, chasing Pride Of Jenni,” Williams shared with RSN.
“Potentially she would have been one of the ones trying to cart the field up, so I wasn’t too disappointed that we missed that and we now get to stay at 1400 (metres).
“She galloped on the Tuesday after (the Empire Rose Stakes) and felt fine and she worked again on the treadmill on Saturday morning," he said.
Wrote To Arataki is one of 27 nominations for the Sir Rupert Clarke S., which will be run for the first time in a November timeslot.
Vale Cochrane
New Zealand Racing Hall of Famer, Rex Cochrane, has passed away at the age 94. Cochrane retired in 1994 to Alexandra with his late wife Betty after a hugely successful career.
Cochrane was twice a winner of the New Zealand Trainers’ Premiership in 1969/70 and 71/72. He was also the first trainer to send out 1000 winners. Cochrane’s achievements were formally recognised in 2014 when he was inducted into the New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame.
Rex Cochrane | Image courtesy of Tayler Strong
Brian Anderton, a fellow trainer and Hall of Famer told loveracing.nz, “I knew Rex for a long, long time and he was one of nature’s gentlemen and a magnificent trainer.
“He was the first to get to 1000 winners, but apart from that he was a guy that never had horses bought for him. He tried the mares, whether they were any good or not, and then sent them home and their foals later came to him.
“He won races with a lot of horses that weren’t well bred, he just got the best out of all of them.”
Mills picks up two at Keeneland
Australian-based bloodstock agent Sheamus Mills, of Sheamus Mills Bloodstock (FBAA), was active at Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale on Monday picking up two hips.
Mills striked to secure Hip 1480 Fire Island (USA) for US$240,000 (AU$376,600), an unraced daughter of More Than Ready (USA). Fire Island is a daughter of Enchanted Rock (USA) (Giant’s Causeway {USA}), a US$2,000,000 (AU$3,200,400) purchase by White Birch Farm from the 2017 Keeneland November Breeding Sale. Fire Island is a full sister to the G1 Haskell Invitational S. and the G1 Wood Memorial S. victor Verrazano (USA). Furthermore, this is the family of the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup winner Olympiad (USA).
Mills then purchased Hip 1824, Breaker Of Chains (USA), a daughter of Bernardini (USA) for US$150,000 (AU$235,300). Breaker Of Chains finished fourth in the Listed Tropical Park Oaks and is a daughter of the Listed-winning War Chant (USA) mare Amansara (USA). While she is a half-sister to the six-time winner Siem Riep (USA) (Tapit {USA}).
Book 3 concludes with numbers down at Keeneland November
The two-session Book 3 section of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale concluded Sunday evening with figures well off the corresponding section from the 2022 auction. During sessions at Keeneland Saturday and Sunday, 494 horses grossed US$30,888,000 (AU$48,500,200) for an average of US$62,526 (AU$98,200) and a median of US$50,000 (AU$78,500). The average is down 22.1 per cent from the 2022 Book 3, while the median declined 16.7 per cent. There were 15 horses to sell for US$200,000 (AU$314,100) or over during the two sessions, down from 25 a year ago.
“It is quiet,” Sarah Sutherland of Indian Creek said of the market Sunday at Keeneland. “But I don't think it's unfair. Obviously, we are seeing a little bit of a correction, but I think if you are willing to accept that and adjust how you're valuing horses, there are plenty of people here to buy them and you can get them sold. Obviously, the top is the top and it's always strong, but we've been very realistic with our reserves and we've had no trouble selling horses.”
Indian Creek sold the top-priced weanling of Sunday's session when a colt by Maxfield (USA) sold for US$240,000 (AU$376,900) to Avocet Bloodstock. KatieRich Farms was responsible for the session's top mare when Dixiana Farms paid US$270,000 (AU$423,900) for Taking Aim (USA) (Trappe Shot {USA}).
Taylor Made Sales Agency was the leading consignor at Sunday's session and continued to lead through five sessions of the auction with 148 heads sold for US$20,714,500 (AU$32,500,500).
“I've read a lot in the press–and it's a fact–that the mares are down and the buy-back rate has been up,” said Taylor Made's Mark Taylor. “But just on the days that I've been selling, like today and the second day of Book 2, I actually thought the market was pretty fair. If you bring up anything with any quality–we just sold a mare for US$250,000–there is money there.”
During Saturday's session of the November sale, Peter O'Callaghan, annually a major buyer of weanlings, lamented a lack of quality foals on offer at the auction.
“I do agree with what Peter O'Callaghan was saying, that, for us internally, we had fewer foals,” Taylor said. “I think there are fewer really high-quality foals on offer and a lot of the pinhookers that are here want quality. So if you are trying to get a US$20,000 foal moved, there doesn't seem to be a big crowd around looking for it. Now, if you have one that is a legitimate US$150,000 foal, everybody is going to follow it up and you might get US$225,000.”
Sea The Moon's Wonderful Boy outclasses rivals in Krefeld feature
Markus Klug trainee Wonderful Boy (Ger) (Sea The Moon {Ger}) who was last seen shedding maiden status at Cologne in September, stamped his authority on Sunday's G3 Herzog von Ratibor-Rennen at Krefeld and hit the line with a wide-margin buffer for a career high.
“I was hoping to be placed and am a bit surprised just how well he ran,” said winning rider Andrasch Starke. “He worked well enough at home, but not to suggest this kind of performance. He is still developing and, on this heavy going, he ran like a really good horse. He was quite keen in the early stages, but then settled well and eventually responded beautifully. I always thought he was a horse for next year and I think we can really look forward to 2024 with him.”
Wonderful Boy, who becomes the 18th Pattern-race winner for his sire, is the lone reported foal produced by Listed Grosser Soldier Hollow Preis runner-up Wonderful Gorl (Ger) (Areion {Ger}), herself kin to G2 Union-Rennen victor Wonderful Moon (Ger) (Sea The Moon {Ger}).
