Eagle Farm to invest in new grandstand
On Saturday, the Queensland state government announced a $25 million contribution to a new stand at Eagle Farm to replace the condemned John Power Stand. “Eagle Farm is Queensland thoroughbred racing's spiritual home, and the Crisafulli Government is delivering a facility befitting of the state's premier track,” Racing Minister Tim Mander told racenet.com.au.
“The grandstand is nearing end of life, and by delivering this initial $25 million, the demolition of the John Power Stand can begin at the conclusion of the Winter Carnival.” The full redevelopment is expected to cost $100 million.
“Working with RQ, we will make sure there is as little disruption as possible for participants and punters from the end of the 2026 Winter Carnival through to the start of the 2027 Winter Carnival. The new stand will maintain Eagle Farm's standing as a world-class racetrack,” said Brisbane Racing Club chairman Richard Morrison.
Racing Queensland acting chief executive Lachlan Murray said, “It gives us the certainty to have tenders in place to get the demolition work started in August. Once completed, the new stand will provide an exceptional experience for the racing public.”
Magic Millions Shoot Out won by Sun Worshipper
Trainer Matt Kropp’s 4-year-old mare Sun Worshipper (Sun City) earned a ballot free entry into the Magic Millions Subzero in a fortnight with victory in Saturday’s The Shootout at Eagle Farm. “It was a terrific turnaround,” Kropp said referring to her last start ninth at the same track.
“I couldn't be prouder of her and nice to see her being ridden where she's comfortable. It was a great job for Emily (Lang) and she'll be staying on for the Gold Coast. Who knows what will turn up to the Subzero? But a wet track, you never know.
“She's been struggling with those hard tracks here, although today has a little bit of give in it, which she appreciated. If we can get a wetter track that'd be great. If she comes through this well, she'll definitely be down there.”
Need Some Luck adds Magic Millions Buffering
Peter Snowden-trained Need Some Luck (Rubick) earned a ballot free entry into the Magic Millions Cup on January 17 with victory in the Buffering on Saturday at Eagle Farm. The half-brother to Group 1 winner Chautauqua (Encosta De Lago) took his record to seven wins from 17 starts with earnings over $700,000.
Cause She Can too strong at Toowoomba debut
Worthy Cause juvenile filly Cause She Can lived up to her name in the second race on the Toowoomba night racing card, scoring victory at her first outing by a short neck. Trained by Kevin Kemp, she is a homebred for her owners out of Let Sara Rock (Mahisara), a winning full sister to nine-time winner and Listed-performed Linthorpe Lad. Let Sara Rock has left a yearling full sister to follow.
Wolf nabs Super Fatale in tight Pinjarra finish
After meeting his match on debut when running into He’s A Machino (Maschino) before Christmas, juvenile Wolf Whistle Zel (Rommel) was sent by trainer Jim Taylor to the $80,000 2YO Plate at Pinjarra on Saturday in search of a breakthrough win. He delivered just that - by the skin of his teeth - by fending Super Fatale (Super One) by a whisker.
Wolf Whistle Zel was bred and retained to race by Neil Irvine’s Rapid Equine Breeding, out of Whistling Zel (Snitzel), an unraced daughter of G3 Eulogy Stakes winner Whistling Dixie (NZ) Whistling Zel has a yearling filly by Gingerbread Man who will be offered as Lot 304 in Balmoral Park Stud's draft at the Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale.
Lloyd takes Sydney Jockey’s title lead with treble
Jockey Zac Lloyd continued his dominance in Sydney taking his season to 40 victories and giving him a strong lead on the Sydney Premiership with a treble at Randwick on Saturday. He won on Mount Bona (Night Of Thunder {Ire}), Alabama Fox (Alabama Express), and Countyourblessings (I Am Invincible). “When you are on form, you get those bobs and when you are not winning, you don't get them,” Lloyd said after winning on Countyourblessings.
“That was a fortunate win because I didn't think I'd won. We will just keep going and worry about it (the premiership) later. When James (McDonald) is out of town, you obviously get better rides and I am just happy I can win and capitalise.”
Coastal Classic won by Precious Charm
Jockey Harry Coffey was impressed with the toughness of Symon Wilde-trained Precious Charm (Per Incanto {USA}) in Saturday’s Coastal Classic at Geelong. Winner of the Werribee Cup two starts prior, she dug deep to win by a head. “To be honest, I thought Verdad had us covered and I was thinking, ‘she's going to run a nice place' and she was just sort of doing enough,” Coffey said.
“She might have been feeling that firm ground on the back-up, so it took a lot of urging to get her to win, but she may have been looking after herself. She showed a real will to win.” She took her record to nine wins from 23 starts with earnings over $400,000. She was a NZ$80,000 purchase by John White Bloodstock, Wilde Racing, and Pinhook Bloodstock from Beaufort Downs New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale draft.
Derby target for Hereward
Trainer David Payne will look at a Derby target for 3-year-old gelding Hereward (Saxon Warrior {Jpn}) after he made it two wins in succession at Randwick on Saturday. “He is an above average horse and I think he will just improve. Hopefully he can be a Derby horse. We will just let him get his mind right because he is a bit of a handful,” Payne said.
He is the second foal of Bona Dea Tapit (Tapit {USA}) who was conceived in America and born in Australia. She is out of Anatole (USA) (), who is a half-sister to Group 1 winner Man From Wicklow (USA) (Turkoman {USA}).
Double for Playing God at Pinjarra
On Saturday, Playing God celebrated a double at Pinjarra with 3-year-olds Vatican Storm and Wild Things. Stefan Vahala-trained gelding Vatican Storm was having his third start and was a $100,000 purchase by Kyle Sutherland from Yarradale Stud’s Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale draft.
Wild Things, a Dan Morton-trained filly, won at her fifth start having placed in her two starts leading into this. Morton Racing purchased her for $110,000 from Alwyn Park Stud at the Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale.
La Dorada returns to form in G2 Levin Classic
Group 1 winning juvenile La Dorada (NZ) (Super Seth) returned to form with victory in the G2 Levin Classic on Saturday at Trentham for Te Akau Racing. Sent to their Australian stable as an early 3-year-old, she was well beaten in the G1 AJ Moir Stakes and G3 Scarborough Stakes before returning to her homeland to run fourth last start. “It was a massive relief, I can’t thank the team enough at home that have done a fantastic job with her,” co-trainer Sam Bergerson told Loveracing.nz.
“We were scratching our heads after Te Rapa. She did have a good blow after it and we thought there was improvement in her. We kept the work up to her, she has thrived and done really well. We made sure we were up to the mark and it was fantastic to see her bounce back like that.” She will head to the R.Listed Karaka Million 3YO next.
Fourth G3 Phar Lap Trophy for jockey Cameron
Jockey Matt Cameron won his fourth G3 Phar Lap Trophy on Saturday aboard Fraser Auret-trained Khanshe (NZ) (Mongolian Khan). Fan favourite Doctor Aksar (NZ) (Derryn) was second from Enrico (NZ) (El Roca). Cameron previously won the race with Glad (NZ) (Pins) in 2013, Abidewithme (NZ) (Redoute’s Choice) in 2014 and Seize The Moment (NZ) (Pins) in 2017.
Raced by the estate of her breeder Rick Orr, Khanshe took her record to five wins from 15 starts and was previously a Listed winner at three. She is a half-sister to Listed winning 3-year-old Circus Dancer (NZ) (Circus Maximus {Ire}), and both are out of unraced O’Reilly (NZ) mare Folies Bergere (NZ).
Marton Cup winner heads to Wellington Cup
Robbie Patterson-trained Group 1 winner One Bold Cat (NZ) (The Bold One {NZ}) won Saturday’s Listed Marton Cup and will head to the G3 Wellington Cup next. “It’s just fantastic to have a good old horse like him back. He has been going quite well in Group Ones and I knew he would go well today. He is such a beautiful, relaxed horse and they were going so go hard. He is as honest as the day is long,” Patterson told Loveracing.nz.
“I can’t wait for the Wellington Cup. I don’t know whether I will run him in the Trentham Stakes, I don’t know I have to, he is not carrying a lot of condition, he is pretty hard fit so I will make up my mind whether he goes straight to the Wellington Cup. He won’t get two miles on pedigree, but he will get two miles because he is such a good horse and such a relaxed horse.”
New winner for Sword Of State
First season sire Sword Of State added a new winner in New Zealand when 2-year-old filly State The Obvious (NZ) won at her second start for trainers Graham Richardson and Rogan Norvall. Part-owned by English cricket coach Brendon McCullum, the win comes after England’s first test victory in Australia in 15 years.
She becomes the third winner for Sword Of State. Purchased by McCullum and Graham Richardson for NZ$170,000 from Cambridge Stud’s New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale, State The Obvious is the first foal of Listed placed Pullyoursocksup (NZ) (Thewayyouare {USA}) who is a full sister to Listed winner and Group 1-placed Prince Mambo (NZ).
Vale Ian Balding
Ian Balding, who has died at the age of 87, made an indelible impression on the turf, not only as the trainer of some wonderful horses including Mill Reef, but also as mentor to many young people who subsequently graduated to success in the sport. Most notable is his son Andrew, who succeeded him at the helm of Kingsclere in 2002 and who has subsequently ensured that Kingsclere remains synonymous with both success and class.
Ian Balding will be remembered as the trainer of some very special horses but the one who will always be at the top of anyone's list is Mill Reef (Never Bend). A champion at two, three and four, Mill Reef was beaten only once (by Brigadier Gerard in the 2,000 Guineas) and won some of the greatest races including the Coventry, Gimcrack and Dewhurst Stakes at two, the Derby, Eclipse Stakes, King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at three (in a season which Ian Balding ended as champion trainer); and the Prix Ganay and Coronation Cup at four. He retired to the National Stud, from which he twice became Champion Sire (in 1978 and 1987) thanks to his Derby-winning sons Shirley Heights (who in turn sired the 1985 Derby winner Slip Anchor) and Reference Point.
While Ian Balding trained some notable horses for the Queen, including the 1970 Doncaster Cup winner Magna Carta (Charlottesville), Mellon's 'black, gold cross front and back; black cap, gold stripe' stands as the livery most synonymous with the trainer, and not solely thanks to Mill Reef. Several sons of Mill Reef carried them with great distinction including the multiple Group 1-winning full-brothers Glint Of Gold and Diamond Shoal, as well as King Of Clubs.
Ian Balding will deservedly be remembered as one of the great trainers of the modern era, notable for training his horses kindly and being adept at nurturing them for long careers, even those who started out as precocious 2-year-olds. Aside from the horses' many great victories, further sources of pride for the family have been the outstanding careers developed by his and Emma's children Clare (whose broadcasting achievements need no introduction) and Andrew. The latter succeeded his father at the end of the 2002 season and has fully maintained Kingsclere's position as one of the world's greatest and most successful stables.
Ian Balding is survived by Emma, their children Clare and Andrew, and by their grandchildren Jonno, Toby and Flora. TDN and TTR join the entire racing world in offering this very popular family our condolences.
Vale Diane Crump
Diane Crump, the first female to ride a pari-mutuel race in America and also the first female to ride in the GI Kentucky Derby, passed away Thursday evening after battling an aggressive form of brain cancer. She was 77.
According to Equibase, Crump rode only 228 winners in a career that spanned 1969 through 1988. But her mark on the sport goes well beyond the number of races she won. Female jockeys were widely rejected in the late sixties. It got so bad that when she left the jockeys room at Hialeah to ride in her first ever race on Feb. 7, 1969, she had to have a police escort to make it to the paddock.
After she received clearance to ride a horse named Bridle 'n Bit in the race at Hialeah, six male jockeys took off their mounts. That a female was riding in a horse race was such an oddity that she was mobbed by reporters from newspapers and television stations and photographers. The horse finished 10th, but Crump received a positive review in the New York Times, which noted, “Even the most bitter opponents of girl riders had to admit she looked good on Bridle 'n Bit.”
“I think I was a very good rider,” she told the TDN in 2020. “I won races I never should have won. I think I rode a good race and I had the potential to be a really good rider. I never got to show it because I was never put on a top horse. I won races on horses that paid $100, horses that were 99-1. I beat top riders coming down to the wire. You need to ride a certain amount of horses to get proficient at it. It took longer for me because of how few horses I got to ride. That my biggest disappointment.”
Crump retired in 1988, but her work had already been done. She was the one that led the way for a generation of talented female riders, including Hall of Famer Julie Krone, Rosie Napravnik and Donna Barton Brothers.
Two chances for Size on Sunday
Thirteen-time Champion Trainer John Size will have a two-pronged assault on Sunday’s G3 Bauhinia Sprint Trophy on Sunday with Wunderbar (Rich Enuff) and Stellar Express (Zoustar). “It has taken Stellar Express a while to get to his peak form – he’s a pretty gross horse so his preparation took a while,” Size told scmp.com.
John Size | Image courtesy of The Hong Kong Jockey Club
“He’s arrived now and with the light weight, he is going to run well. Wunderbar is coming back from Group 1 racing and they are always dangerous. The weight is always an issue and there’s a big disparity from top to bottom, though. I wouldn’t be trying to split them in terms of who has a better chance at the moment. They both have their positives and negatives.”
Forever Young leads Saudi Cup entries
The nominees for the 2026 G1 Saudi Cup meeting feature 57 Group/Grade 1 winners from 22 different countries, among them GI Breeders' Cup Classic and 2025 Saudi Cup hero Forever Young (Real Steel).
Besides trainer Yoshito Yahagi's star in the main event are fellow Breeders' Cup Classic winner White Abarrio (Race Day), GI Preakness Stakes hero Journalism (Curlin), as well as GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile victor Nysos (Nyquist), and GII Clark Stakes winner Magnitude (Not This Time). G1 Champions Cup heroine W Heart Bond (Kizuna) and G1 Tokyo Daishoten one-two Diktaean (King Kamehameha) and Mikki Fight (Drefong) add depth to Japan's challenge.
HRH Prince Bandar bin Khaled Al Faisal, chairman of the Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia said, “This is only the seventh time we have staged the Saudi Cup meeting and it has already delivered countless memorable races and performances.
“We are delighted and honoured that so many people have chosen to aim their horses for the 2026 Saudi Cup races and, on behalf of everyone at the JCSA, I would like to extend our gratitude to those owners and trainers.
“It has been especially pleasing to see the races recognised by the international authorities, too. The Saudi Cup has held Group 1 status since 2022 but we will now be staging our first ever Group 1 race on grass, the Neom Turf Cup, after its consistent level of performance.”
King Of Charge joins Tweenhills Stud
The promising young stallion King Of Change (Farhh) has left Ireland to stand at Tweenhills Stud for the forthcoming season in a move which stud owner David Redvers has described as “potentially game-changing for us”.
Runner-up to Magna Grecia in the G1 2000 Guineas, King Of Change won three of his six lifetime starts, closing out his career by winning the G1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on QIPCO British Champions Day.
His first two crops of racing age have collectively numbered 76 foals, 37 of which have run to date, including the four Listed winners Lady With The Lamp, Shayem, Miss Of Change and Onemoredance, making King Of Change the leader among the second-crop sires of 2025 with a cumulative figure of 12.9 per cent stakes winners to runners. He is listed as having covered 125 mares in 2024 and 38 in 2025.
Godolphin sets USA owners earnings record in 2025
Godolphin LLC, who campaigned 13 North American graded stakes winners during 2025, including dual classic winner Sovereignty (Into Mischief), set a single-season record in earnings as the leading owner for the fifth consecutive year, according to final year-end statistics released by Equibase Company on Friday.
Godolphin–with 104 North American wins from 448 starts–amassed record earnings of US$22,395,556 (AU$33.4 million), surpassing their previous mark of US$20.2 million (AU$30.1 million) set in 2024. When including earnings from the Dubai and Saudi Cup days, Godolphin's earnings for the year were US$23,355,556 (AU$35 million).
Two jockeys pass $40 million for first time
In America in 2025, two jockeys had their progeny earn over US$40 million (AU$59.7 million) for the first time in a single season.
In a tight battle between Ortiz and Flavien Prat, the former maintained the narrowest of margin in the final days to finish the year on top with earnings of US$40,497,847 (AU$60.5 million), less than US$2,000 (AU$2990) ahead of Prat's total of US$40,496,178 (AU$60.5 million). Ortiz reached the winner's circle 351 times from 1,631 mounts in 2025, while Prat won 310 races from 1,256 mounts.
