Exciting win for Rebel Tuesday
Phillip Stokes-trained 2-year-old filly Rebel Tuesday (Rebel Dane) won at Morphettville on Saturday to record her first victory. She had placed twice back in October as a pre-Christmas juvenile.
Sold by Jen Campin Bloodstock at the November 2024 Inglis Digital Sale for $30,000 to JP Bloodstock, she is a half-sister to Listed winner Ganbare (Maurice {Jpn}).
Second season sire Dirty Work’s Dirty Old Town won at the meeting as did second season sire Sandbar’s Gazz.
Yulong’s Ohope Wins flies into Oaks favouritism
The G2 David and Karen Ellis Fillies Classic over 2100 metres was won by recent Yulong purchase Ohope Wins (NZ) (Ocean Park {NZ}) who has cemented her position as G1 New Zealand Oaks favourite.
Yulong purchased her after she won the G2 Sir Patrick Hogan Stakes on New Year’s Day. “It was some performance as she has given them all a big start,” co-trainer Lance O’Sullivan said.
“Coming to the corner I thought she was going to have to be pretty good and when Joe got her to the outside and gave her clear air she showed she is a filly well above average. The plan has always been to go to the Oaks and we certainly won’t be changing that plan. She looks like she will be very competitive in that and I’m thrilled for Yulong who have come on board.”
Tom Kitten on song for second All-Star Mile
Tom Kitten (Harry Angel {Ire}) is on song for the G1 All-Star Mile after winning Saturday’s G3 Kevin Heffernan Stakes. He won the All-Star Mile last year, and Saturday’s victory took his earnings over $6 million. “He'll either go to the Futurity or the Blamey now,” co-trainer Sam Freedman said.
“Likely to the Futurity and then on to the All-Star Mile, then possibly the Australian Cup.” Feroce (NZ) (Super Seth) was second and Veight (Grunt {NZ}) was third.
Williams injured in bad fall
On Friday, exciting apprentice jockey Jai Williams was involved in a bad fall at Beaudesert and sustained a punctured lung. “I feel like I've been bashed by a football team,” Williams told racenet.com.au on Saturday.
He was riding Triskelion (NZ) (Ocean Park {NZ}) and following Boom Break (Spirit Of Boom) when Boom Break slowed suddenly and Triskelion run into him. Paul Shailer reported that Triskelion had pulled up uninjured from the incident. “I landed just next to my horse so I was lucky to come out with only a punctured lung and a little bit of bleeding in the stomach. I'm sore everywhere: the back of my neck, wrists, all my ribs and inside my thighs.
“I feel like a battered person, I was hit pretty solid. It's half my fault because I didn't read the play that well. I was full of confidence and I put myself in a sticky situation. It shows you how quick riding can change. You're on top of the world one second and then down on the ground the next,”
Exciting Alpha Sofie adds G3 Peter Le Grand Stakes
While racing pundits might be thinking the G1 Oakleigh Plate for 3-year-old filly Alpha Sofie (Capitalist), co-trainer Peter Moody was more circumspect after she won the G3 Peter Le Grand Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday. “Let’s not get to far ahead of ourselves but that was really impressive. She couldn't have won more convincingly than that,” Moody said.
“We haven’t got anything set in stone this preparation. We’re going to aim to keep her to the short courses. We toyed with the idea of stretching her out to a mile, but I think we know she’s got that electric turn-of-foot over the short distances. We’ll keep her to that, but we won’t make any decisions on race day.”
Now the winner of four of her five starts, she hadn’t been seen since winning the Listed Atlantic Jewel Stakes in the spring. Wintery (Frosted {USA}) was second, 1.5 lengths back, with former good juvenile Bel Merci (Extreme Choice) resuming after nearly a year off for third.
Light Infantry Man connections donate to Bushfire Relief
The connections of G3 Foundation Cup winner Light Infantry Man (Fr) (Fast Company {Ire}) will donate $20,000 to the Victorian Bushfire Relief fund. “Fantastic to donate to the Bushfire Appeal in Victoria. Special credit to Ethan Brown’s ride, firstly, and to the horse’s effort first-up. This sets him up for a massive campaign,” said trainer Ciaron Maher.
“All-Star Mile in a month, then he’ll probably make his way to Sydney beyond that. He was very good then. It was a brutally run mile. He was vulnerable and should have been vulnerable first-up.” The win took Light Infantry Man’s earnings over $4.4 million.
Listed Premier’s Plate won by imported Komachi
Kingman (GB) added a new stakes winner in South Australia on Saturday when Will Clarken-trained gelding Komachi (Ire) won the Listed Premier’s Plate. Winner of nine races, with one in England, Komachi’s previous best run was when second behind champion and now young sire Baaeed (GB) at his third start.
Komachi took his earnings over $400,000, and was bought by Clarken with D Arnold at the 2021 Tattersalls Ascot November Sale for 42,000 gns (AU$86,000).
Bondi juvenile wins at Ascot
Dan Morton-trained 2-year-old filly Ruthless Angel (Bondi) won on debut at Ascot on Saturday by 0.25 lengths. She is a homebred for her owners Mrs R Fortune and partners. Ruthless Angel is a half-sister to Listed winner Bella’s Idol (Vital Equine {Ire}), and the pair are out of Bella Contessa (Bel Esprit).
Ruthless Angel | Image courtesy of Western Racepix
Her yearling half-brother by Aysar is Lot 131 at the upcoming Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale.
Double for Flying Artie at Kembla Grange
Flying Artie sired a double at Kembla Grange on Saturday. Jason Attard-trained 3-year-old filly Charlina was impressive in winning her maiden by 2.8 lengths. John O'Shea and Tom Charlton-trained 3-year-old filly Chix took her record to two wins from three starts. She was a $100,000 purchase from Newgate Farm’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale draft.
First emergency wins G2 Waikato Guineas
Autumn Glory (NZ) (Ocean Park {NZ}) was the first emergency for the G2 Waikato Guineas but one scratching saw trainers Roger James and Robert Wellwood leap at the chance for black type. She repaid their belief in spades with a long neck victory. “We felt this (Guineas) was a softer option than the fillies race and we wanted to get her back on track with a bit of confidence post that Taranaki run, so it was good to get the job done,” Wellwood said.
“It was nice to get a result for the Smithies boys (Monovale Farm), they have been great supporters, and she is a nice one for the broodmare paddock.” She’s now won two of her three starts.
Lucky Vega’s son wins Karapiro Classic
Chris Wood-trained 3-year-old colt That’s Gold (Lucky Vega {Ire}) won Saturday’s NZ$350,000 Karapiro Classic over a mile. While this race doesn’t carry black type, the colt had previously won the G3 Bonecrusher Stakes in early December. He took his record to three wins from 14 starts with earnings over NZ$280,000.
Savabeel adds new stakes winner in south
The Listed Hazlett Stakes at Otago was won by Witz End (NZ) (Savabeel) who becomes the 157th stakes winner for his Champion Sire. Witz End, trained by Terri Rae, took his record to six wins from 21 starts with earnings over NZ$280,000.
Previously trained by Tony Pike, where he placed in the G2 Wellington Guineas at three, he was a NZ$200,000 purchase by Pike from Trelawney Stud’s New Zealand Bloodstock Ready To Run Sale draft in 2022. Savabeel had a double at the meeting with The Princie One (NZ).
Brown and Yuen gain Hong Kong contracts
Australian jockey Ethan Brown and home-grown apprentice Nichola Yuen have been granted contracts from the Hong Kong Jockey Club for the remainder of the season. “Over the moon having secured a 4 month contract over Hong Kong’s summer months this year. Looking forward to this new challenge,” Brown said on his socials. He begins on April 26.
Yuen joined Hong Kong’s apprentice program in 2016 and moved to South Australia in 2021. She has since ridden in New Zealand and South Africa. Apprentice jockey Britney Wong has been cleared to ride after recovering from a broken leg.
Space Invasion tops Tattersalls February
The racing programme in the Gulf region is becoming ever busier, with this Saturday's $1m Abu Dhabi Gold Cup the latest valuable contest to be enter the fray, followed by a double bill next weekend of Qatar's Emir's Sword Festival and the blockbuster Saudi Cup meeting.
The various horses-in-training sales at Park Paddocks have long been a lure for owners from that part of the world, and the final day of the Tattersalls February Sale proved to be no exception, with the top lot, Space Invasion, going the way of Bahrain's Sheikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa for 230,000gns (AU$469,000).
The 3-year-old colt from the first crop of Space Blues was bred and raced by Steve Parkin's Clipper Logistics and has won his last two starts at Lingfield under the care of trainer Richard Hannon to earn a rating of 88.
Figures rallied through the second session to put the median and average on par with last year, though the turnover dipped slightly to 3,639,000gns (AU$7.3 million). The clearance rate of 83% was achieved through the sale of 204 horses from 246 offered.
At the conclusion of this first sale as managing director of Tattersalls, Matthew Prior said, “The Tattersalls February Sale is undisputedly Europe's premier midwinter sale, and once again we welcomed a typically diverse domestic and international group of buyers to Park Paddocks in Newmarket. While the key metrics fell narrowly short of last year's figures, buyers from more than 20 countries and a turnover in excess of 3,500,000gns represent a positive start to 2026.
“We saw the second-highest-priced colt ever sold at this fixture, with Space Invasion realising 230,000gns following an intercontinental bidding duel, while consignments from leading Newmarket-based operations Godolphin and Juddmonte again featured among the highlights of the Tattersalls February Sale.”
More Than A Diva tops Inglis USA Digital
The 2026 Inglis Digital USA February Sale closed on Friday, February 6, and the online event was led by broodmare prospect More Than A Diva who brought US$50,000 (AU$71,000), the company said in a press release on Friday afternoon.
Robert Chasanoff secured the sales topper More Than A Diva, a winning daughter of More Than Ready, out of a half-sister to classic winner and prominent young sire Tiz the Law (by Constitution).
“We had some really solid trade in the middle of the market,” said Inglis Digital USA CEO Kyle Wilson. “I'm excited for our customers, because I think they got some really nice mares. We're working on getting a few more moved, so overall, we're pleased with our start to 2026.”
