After a review of its programming for 2-year-olds and receiving feedback from trainers, participants, and other racing bodies such as Racing Victoria, Racing SA decided to move the G3 Sires’ Produce Stakes as part of the restructured Adelaide Racing Carnival 2-year-old program.
The G3 Sires’ Produce Stakes, won by the progressive Air Assault (Justify {USA}) in May last year after the horse contested the G3 Breeders’ Stakes over 1200 metres, will now be held on Saturday, 20 July. Saturday’s 1400-metre Listed Oaklands Plate will provide a perfect platform leading into the race.
Air Assault | Image courtesy of Racing SA
Racing SA Operations Manager Greg Rudolph explained to TTR AusNZ, “I came across to South Australia three years ago and was initially with the stewards panel. However, for the last two years, I’ve been the head of racing and we’ve just done some tweaking to the programming in South Australia.
“It has been working really well. There are a lot of horses around because even our midweeks are strong as well. We’ve got 200 nominations for Murray Bridge next Wednesday (nine races) and nine races at Gawler.
“But we just wanted to review and amend our 2-year-old program, making it work towards the back end of the season where our feedback indicated these 2-year-olds were a little bit slower to develop. It would be more advantageous to pull the Sires’ Produce out of the April/May carnival and work it so that there’s a proper lead-up for it.
“We just wanted to review and amend our 2-year-old program... Our feedback indicated these 2-year-olds were a little bit slower to develop. It would be more advantageous to pull the Sires’ Produce out of the April/May.” - Greg Rudolph
“The Oaklands Plate sat by itself in July, and when I got here, I thought that just didn’t look right. Now, with the Sires’ Produce being moved to July, at least we’ve given the 2-year-olds some sort of flow in the program and a pattern where there are two black-type races towards the end of the season. This will also provide a good springboard into the spring for South Australian horses competing locally or in Melbourne.”
Form franked
With the strength of Saturday’s Listed Oaklands Plate acceptances, featuring a full field of 14, including several emergencies and a strong blend of local and interstate trainers, Rudolph feels the change has been vindicated. He expects the G3 Sires’ Produce S. to follow suit with similar enthusiasm.
Rudolph was also keen to remind people that the Listed Oaklands Plate was won by Coco Sun (The Autumn Sun) last year, who went on to win the G1 South Australian Derby. The G1 Robert Sangster S. victress, Instant Celebrity (Not A Single Doubt), also won the Listed feature.
Other notable winners include Precious Lorraine (Encosta De Lago), who later won the G3 SA Fillies Classic and became a stakes-producing dam of Meuse (Snitzel), who won the Listed Laelia S. in South Australia. Crevette (Danehill {USA}) is also on the honour roll of the G3 Oaklands Plate and found fame as the dam of the dual Group 1 winner Cosmic Endeavour (Northern Meteor).
Greg Rudolph
“I think it’s a race on plenty of radars. We’ve got interstate acceptances from the Victorian trainers. Probably a bit of a stretch for the New South Wales-based trainers to come across, but we certainly had good representation from them during April and May.
“The focus at this time of year tends to be on Brisbane. However, at least there will be some focus on South Australia with some end-of-season black-type racing. It also gives South Australia another point of difference: having the last black-type 2-year-old race of the season is something unique to this state.
“But the Oaklands Plate is a good race. The form has previously held up and produced some good horses, such as Coco Sun coming back and winning the South Australian Derby, and horses like Instant Celebrity.
“But the Oaklands Plate is a good race. The form has previously held up and produced some good horses, such as Coco Sun coming back and winning the South Australian Derby, and horses like Instant Celebrity.”
“I think the Sires’ Produce Stakes will now be a likely target, and I think the size of that field will show that in a few weeks.”
On potential disadvantages of changing the time slot of the G3 Sires’ Produce S., Rudolph said, “The weather is always a factor here. We’re normally on wet tracks in July, but that suits some later-developing 2-year-olds as well, and it also exposes them to the conditions because they’re going to encounter one of those tracks sooner or later.”
Trainer approach changed
Another factor that has facilitated the Sires’ Produce S. time slot change is a different approach from trainers in terms of programming their 2-year-olds.
“Trainers have changed and adapted their methods. The criticism was, ‘Well, we can’t turn a horse around in the spring with a 2-year-old race in July,’ but you actually can. You can back off them or get a few late winter runs into them, and there’s residual fitness for the spring.”
Although held for the sprinters, the winter program also includes the Listed Lightning S., open to two- and 3-year-olds. The event has been won by the Champion Sprinter Nature Strip (Nicconi), who defeated a then 2-year-old Sunlight (Zoustar), who won the G1 Coolmore Stud S. that spring.
Another factor that has facilitated the Sires’ Produce S. time slot change is a different approaches from trainers | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
Other notable winners include the Group 1 winner Viddora (I Am Invincible), the classy sprinters Wild Rain (Manhattan Rain), and Avoid Lightning (Blevic).
“It’s a signature race for good horses, and the 2-year-old element does give it some interest at the back end of the season. Again, it’s just about trainers adapting their approach and keeping horses they have earmarked for the race fresh for sprinting.
“But overall, our approach and decision were based on the fact that the G3 Sires’ Produce S. being in May didn’t fit the 2-year-old program and didn’t fit the Adelaide Racing Carnival. You had two sets of 2-year-olds: the sprinters coming through the Without Fear S. and into races like the Breeders' and the David Coles. So, there were three sprint 2-year-old races, and then you had the Sires’ sitting there as a 1400-metre race, so it was a different set of horses and historically the field size varied.
“The criticism was, ‘Well, we can’t turn a horse around in the spring with a 2-year-old race in July,’ but you actually can. You can back off them or get a few late winter runs into them, and there’s residual fitness for the spring.” - Greg Rudolph
“With the Sportsbet sponsorship of racing in South Australia, it has been a real boost to the carnival itself. Our role is to look at the schedule as a whole and see where we could make it better. The Oaklands Plate, which historically sat by itself, looked like it could be bolstered, and the field size could make it a better race day.
“We received feedback from local and interstate trainers who were on board, and it’s all been validated by tomorrow's field. We also worked with Racing Victoria. We looked at their program, and they have a meeting at Flemington on 20 July with a 1000-metre 2-year-old sprint race and the Byerley, which is an 1800-metre race and a bit of a lead-up to the Derby.
“Those late-season 2-year-olds can have a crack over a trip, but we in South Australia can hit that sweet spot in the middle. I think we will get horses from Victoria that don’t go for the 1800 metres or aren’t sprinters.
South Australia 2-year-old racing | Image courtesy of Race Images
“It’s a gamble, but it’s a well-calculated one, giving us something different and a little ray of hope going into the spring.”
