Looking Ahead puts the spotlight on runners of interest across Australia and New Zealand. Whether they are a particularly well-bred or high-priced runner having their first or second start, a promising galloper returning to the track or a horse which has trialled particularly well, we’ll aim to give you something to follow.
Saturday’s meeting at the Gold Coast plays host to the lucrative Magic Millions raceday, which has unsurprisingly attracted a couple of well-bred sorts that have shown plenty of promise in barrier trials. We also take a look at $750,000 debutante at Kembla Grange for the Chris Waller stable.
Gold Coast, Race 2, 12.55am AEDT (11.55am local), Magic Millions The Debut 2YO Fillies Plate, $500,000, 1000m
Too Darn Lizzie, 2-year-old filly (Too Darn Hot {GB} x Enbihaar {Magnus})
This seven-figure yearling purchase entered plenty of notebooks when she sauntered to a 4.25l trial win at Warwick Farm last month, and that was deemed good enough by her trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott to send her straight to the races to contest the fillies’ division of Saturday’s lucrative Magic Millions Debut.
A $1 million purchase by her trainers, McKeever Bloodstock and Lord and Lady Webber’s Watership Down Stud, the filly is by the latter’s star racehorse Too Darn Hot (GB), who now stands at Darley having been crowned Champion 2YO and 3YO during his glittering race career.
Too Darn Lizzie as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
This filly will adorn the very same pink silks as Too Darn Hot, who had a colt sell for $1.9 million at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale earlier this week. There is plenty of reason to suggest she should be sharp enough on debut, given that she is out of the G2 Blue Diamond Prelude winner Enbihaar, who found only Written By too good in the G1 Blue Diamond S. on her next outing.
Too Darn Lizzie gets the services of stable jockey Tim Clark for her eagerly anticipated debut, for which she has drawn barrier six.
Gold Coast, Race 3, 1.30pm AEDT (12.30pm local), Magic Millions The Debut 2YO colts and geldings Plate, $500,000, 1000m
Barracuda, 2-year-old colt (Trapeze Artist x Pienkna {More Than Ready {USA}})
The Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott stable also look to have a strong hand in the colts' division of the Magic Millions Debut courtesy of Barracuda, a son of Widden Stud’s second-season sire Trapeze Artist who was secured by the Newgate, China Horse Club, Go Bloodstock and Trilogy combination for $440,000 from last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
Barracuda as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
Out of the winning More Than Ready (USA) mare Pienkna, who is a half-sister to the dam of the stakes winner Another One (Super One), Barracuda has the benefit of two trials under his belt, the latter of which saw him chase home one of the leading contenders for Saturday’s R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic in Highness (Snitzel) over 900 metres.
Barracuda will be ridden by James McDonald, who was on board for the colt’s very first barrier trial at Warwick Farm back in early October.
Kembla Grange, Race 6, 5.08pm AEDT, Oystonhammo’s Christmas Super Mdn Plate, $60,000, 1500m
Princess Kaguya, 3-year-old filly (Zoustar x Nurse Kitchen {NZ} {Savabeel})
Northern Farm’s Katsumi Yoshida doesn’t have too many horses on Australian soil, so there is plenty of intrigue surrounding the debut of his $750,000 yearling purchase Princess Kaguya, a daughter of Zoustar, at Kembla Grange on Saturday.
The Chris Waller-trained filly is out of the G2 Moonee Valley Fillies Classic winner Nurse Kitchen (NZ), who also boasts a Group 1 placing and was purchased for $1.7 million by China Horse Club at the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale in 2017.
Princess Kaguya as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
Her first foal, this filly’s brother, Zousmic, is already a winner, while this is also the family of G1 New Zealand Derby hero Helene Vitality (NZ) (Zabeel {NZ}).
Princess Kaguya, who has the benefit of five barrier trails under her belt ahead of her debut, will be ridden by Grant Buckley in what looks likely to be a capacity field of 14.
Looking Back
At Gosford on Friday, Rennata (I Am Invincible) failed to beat a runner home, while at Cranbourne, Corageous Lass (Capitalist) ran fifth in the second event on the program. Another runner in the same race, Our Malyshka (Russian Revolution), was scratched
