Vale Nathan... - Gai Waterhouse

Transcription

GAI’S GAZETTE
9th Edition / May 2014
Vale Nathan...
Photo by Bruno Canatelli
©Magic Millions
EDITOR-IN-CHIEf
Lea Stracey
CONTRIBUTORS
Gai Waterhouse
Rob Waterhouse
Zeb Armstrong
Lea Stracey
Madison Whant
Emma Pearce
Ric Chapman
Tommy Berry
Petrea Vela
Graphic design & layout
Madison Whant
chief photographer
Bradley Photographers
www.bradleyphotos.com.au
Editorial Photographer
Need for Steed Aus.
www.needforsteed.com.au
Advertisers
Magic Millions
Bluebloods
Marshal White
Musoka Farm
Logans
Bradley Photographers
Scone Race Club
Round Table Racing
Markey Saddlery
Eliza Park Stud
Advertising Manager
Ric Chapman
ric@gaiwaterhouse.com.au
PrINTERS
Graphic Impressions
4
www.gaiwaterhouse.com.au
GAI’S
GAZETTE
O
ur front cover this month honours
the passing of Nathan Berry, one
of Sydney’s much loved and rising
jockey stars. Nathan died on April
3rd from Norse Syndrome, an acute form of epilepsy after collapsing at trackwork in Singapore
two weeks prior. His funeral, held in the Grand
Pavilion at Rosehill Racecourse was one of the
saddest moments I have ever experienced within
the Racing Community. There were many
hundreds of mourners in attendance. An honour
guard of jockeys from all over Australia made a
pathway for his flower strewn coffin, while his
riding crop, helmet and polished boots placed
by the entrance of the Grand Pavilion were a
lonely and poignant reminder of what might
have been….
I never formally met Nathan. I did, however, have a quiet, yet small conversation
with him in the mounting enclosure the day his twin brother Tommy won the Golden Slipper on Overreach. I found myself standing next to Nathan who was waiting
for Tommy to make his way to the winner’s stall after the race. Knowing Tommy, I
watched the same familiar face of his brother Nathan. Nathan could hardly contain
himself and he was grinning from ear to ear, his/Tommy’s familiar twinkling eyes
moistening with tears of joy. I leaned across to Nathan and said, “You must be so proud
of your brother Tom.” His reply was simply “I am. He’s a champion,” to which I
responded, “Tom is so lucky to have a supportive brother like you.” Watching them hug
each other in pure joy and elation was a very emotional experience. Their twin bond
was so palpable in that moment. Thinking back on that image I am so glad I was able
to tell him how special he was too. We are honoured that Tommy has allowed his tribute
to his brother which he delivered with such fortitude and genuine love at the funeral,
to be printed in Gai’s Gazette this month. We thank him for his generosity of spirit and
wish Tom well for his time in Hong Kong where he goes to live the dream that Nathan
hoped to experience. We look forward to seeing you back soon, Tom.
Another farewell this month is to our fabulous Fiorente (I couldn’t resist a final
cuddle with him) who due to injury has been retired from the racetrack to the breeding
barn. We thank you Fiorente for giving us the ride of a lifetime, for becoming everyone’s favourite horse. We look forward to seeing Fiorente’s progeny in future drafts at
the sales. Zeb revisits Fiorente’s successes in a comprehensive article.
I hope you enjoy reading the profiles of Paddy Flood, Mark Newnham, Amanda
Wood and Rachel King in this month’s gazette as much as we enjoyed the interviews.
Madison Whant shares her enthusiasm for the initiative of the new Championships
and I am certain they will be even bigger and better next year. All this and more as you
turn the pages of Gai’s Gazette.
See you at the races
Lea Stracey
Editor in Chief
Contents
Page 22
Page 6 Page 10
Performance of the Month:
The Offer... By Zeb Armstrong
Page 28
Pages 8-9 From the Pen of the Lady Trainer
Page 10
Vale Nathan Berry... By Zeb Armstrong
Page 11
A Brother’s Love... By Tommy Berry
Pages 12-13
One Moment In Time... By Lea
Stracey
Pages 14-15
Champion British Trainer Not So Sure They Will All Come To The
Championships... By Ric Chapman
Pages 16-17
Mark Newnham... Interview with Lea Stracey
Pages 18-19
How to Improve Handicaps and Make Better Racing... By Rob Waterhouse
Pages 20-21
Former Irishman Paddy Flood
Becomes Gai’s First Ever Winning Jumps Rider... By Zeb Armstrong
Pages 22-23
Champion Entertainment at the Championships... By Madison Whant
Pages 24-26
Farewell Fiorente... By Zeb
Armstrong Page 28
Magic Millions National Sales: Be A Part Of It... By Ric Chapman
Pages 30-31
Recent Winners
Pages 32-33
Rachel King A Silent Achiever In Our Midst... By Emma Pearce Pages 34-35 Round Table Racing - A Budding New Chapter Pages 36-37
This Is Your Page... With Gary Beecroft
Pages 38-39 Two Yearlings Demanding Your
Attention... By Madison Whant and Emma Pearce
Pages 40-41 Words From Across the Tasman... By Petrea Vela
Page 42 Track Snaps... By Amanda Wood
Page 10
5
Performance of the Month
The Offer
By Zeb Armstrong
T
waited. He knew The Offer had a 300m
The Offer remained the favourite, but there
he clear winner of this month’s
sprint that would break the hearts of the
was plenty of money for a few of the other
Performance of the Month
field, but he did not want to expose his
runners, as there should have been because
award has to be The Offer
hand too early. Finally after most of the
it was a very deep race. The race panned
(Montjeu x Valdara) who has
main threats had made their runs without
out as planned, with The Offer and Tommy
won three Stakes races since the last issue.
finding a good spot midfield. The old timers much success, Tommy produced The Offer.
The imported gelding had taken a little
The gelding, very casually made his way
will tell you that in a Melbourne Cup, you
time to start to enjoy the Gai way, but now
through the field, and when the passage was
want to wait, and then count to ten, and
that the penny has dropped he is the most
found to be clear, he exploded away in what
in-form stayer in the country and the logical then count to ten again before letting your
was probably his best ever display of speed.
mount go. Despite this race being the SydApril Melbourne Cup favourite.
To sprint like a miler at the end of 3200m
On 29 March The Offer won
is an indication of heart, talent, class and
the Group 3 Manion Cup by 3.3
a will to win.
lengths on a heavy 9 track. This
The Offer is a ripper. He came to Auswas the gelding’s second Australian
tralia with ability and promise. He did
win after he had won the Ballarat
not have the credentials of a Fiorente or
Cup the previous spring. Intera Carlton House, but he has just thrived
estingly, in the Ballarat Cup, like
at Tulloch Lodge and he has been trained
the Manion Cup, The Offer won
to sprint late in his races. His sprint at
on a heavy 9 track by exactly 3.3
the end of two miles is unmatched by
lengths. The week before the Sydany import currently running. Fiorente
ney Cup, The Offer competed in
grinded home with good speed over
the Chairman’s Handicap and this
400m, but The Offer does not grind. He
was the best indication so far in his
goes bang and puts the race away very
time Down Under that he possessed
quickly. If he continues on the path he
the outstanding turn of foot of a
is on and improves as it appears he will,
good Group class miler.
then the Melbourne Cup is definitely a
In the Chairman’s Tommy Berry
realistic goal.
let the gelding balance himself
Congratulations to all the owners of
before unleashing an unbelievable
this stayer. The Offer is the winner of
final 300m to put the race away
the richest Sydney Cup ever run and he
very quickly. This, while it was an
did it by four lengths as effortlessly as
amazing win, was again on a heavy
you will ever see a horse win a Group 1.
track. When the track started drying
It was a special win on a special day for
out in the lead up to the Sydney
Gai, Tommy and everyone else with even
Cup, despite the fact that Gai had
the most remote ties to the stable (the
declared him a certainty, a few in
humble author of this article) included.
the racing media started wondering
Well done also to Tommy Berry on a
if The Offer could perform on the
Above: Tommy Berry and The Offer after winning the Sydney Cup
Photo by Bradley Photography perfect ride three times in a row on this
drier track.
boy. Three staying wins that culminated in a
The Sydney Cup in 2014 was a revamped ney Cup, it is run over the same distance
Group 1 victory over 3200m.
under the same conditions and Tommy
and very exciting event. In the last ten
This was an old style preparation in that
clearly heeded the old timers’ advice about
years, some very slow horses have won the
the distances kept increasing and The Offer
what to do over two miles. The Offer was
Sydney Cup, but now that it is a Chamcontinued to get fitter and better. It was a
bolting in the run. He wanted to get going
pionships race and it has received a huge
perfectly executed preparation from trainer,
when the rest of the field started their runs,
increase in prize money, the better stayers
horse and jockey. Well done to all. ▣
but Tommy knew better. The gun hoop just
are again targeting the two mile feature.
6
From the Pen of the
Lady Trainer
T
8
to get a horse to come around and get their
maiden win. Horses grow and mature and
they enjoy life out of their boxes.
Then there is The Offer (Montjeu x
Valdara) who is at the other end of the
spectrum. He came to Australia as a good
horse and got better in relative terms, very
quickly. He was good, but he was deemed
not quite good enough for Ballydoyle and
as such he went under the hammer at the
Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training Sale.
He was knocked down to Bruce Slade on
behalf of yours truly for 200,000 guineas.
Husband Rob came up with a strategy
that suited our tight budget perfectly. This
entire was not going to be cheap, so Rob
instructed Bruce to get him with one bid.
When The Offer’s lot came up, the auctioneer opened up with ‘20, gimme 20.’ Bruce
Slade popped up and shouted back in a
strong voice ‘200.’ The auctioneer looked
The Offer
at him like he was mad and with his interest
clearly sparked replied ‘just 20 at this stage
20 it is sir.’ Well young Bruce got back up
in a louder voice and repeated ‘200’ and
“I have always felt that
it is best to give every
horse an opportunity
to win. They may not go
on to Group 1 glory, but
even to win a maiden is
a step in the right
direction. ....”
seconds later The Offer was on his way to
Tulloch Lodge to meet the Lady Trainer.
When he first arrived, I opened the stables
to the group of owners who had
Photo by Bradley Photographers
iming is the essence of good
training. A trainer works for
weeks, months and even years
on any particular horse in order
to win a race let alone a Group 1 race. I like
having my charges ready for their grand
finals and it takes much hard work and
dedication from all my team to achieve this
as we have done for twenty years. I select a
given horse as a yearling after inspecting it
months before the sale. Come the last week
in September that I like to refer to as ‘open
day for the two-year-olds’ my youngsters
will be well and truly broken in and would
have been to and from the stables several
times. The Gimcrack and the Breeders’
come along very quickly and from here it is
game on for all the babies.
Anyone who has ever owned a horse
knows quite well that they don’t all win.
This philosophy has remained the same in
the world of racing thoroughbreds since Sir
Francis Drake was defending his homeland.
The road is not always paved with gold and
success. I hate having horses in their boxes.
I have always felt that it is best to give
every horse an opportunity to win. They
may not go on to Group 1 glory, but even to
win a maiden is a step in the right direction.
Horses are not perfect machines, yet I still
prefer to give a horse a chance to win and
another chance after that. You work on a
horse from the day you put your hand up in
the sales ring until the day it is off to stud or
retired or moved on. As I have seen recently
with a good maiden winner I had, they
might be a problem child early in their lives
or they might have a bad action. But with
Botany Bay just around the corner, and the
pool right on my doorstep and the advent of
high performance work, it is very possible
Driefontein
Photos by Bradley Photographers
Diamond Drille
committed to him and I noticed something
very interesting on this day. The very sadly
and recently departed Andrew Ramsden
knew a thing or two about staying horses.
He after all has a two mile race named after
him at Flemington. On this particular day,
when The Offer was led out, I noticed dear
Andrew take a big step forward to get a
closer look. This really caught my attention
and why wouldn’t it? Despite only seeing
the size and shape of the horse together
with the muscle tone and anything else that
the eye could find, Andrew knew there was
a good solid stayer in front of him. How
right he was.
The Offer’s first two starts were a little
lacklustre and the big decision was made to
geld him. Well what a difference this made
and come the spring, The Offer won the
Ballarat Cup by 3.3 lengths in a canter. The
gelding has not put a foot wrong since then
follows… Fastnet Rock, Danehill, Danzig,
Northern Dancer. Four generation shaping
stallions. Further back in the pedigree chart
Sir Tristam makes an appearance and the
simple mention of his name almost immediately adds even more class and brilliance
to the blood that runs through Driefontein’s
veins. People ask me all the time how I got
her so cheap and the truth is that when you
spend as much time as I do looking at the
babies and in the sales ring, the diamonds
soon become apparent. Time spent at the
Magic Millions continues to pay off year
after year. This filly always showed a great
deal of ability and she eventually returned
to the Gold Coast to beat a stablemate
in the 2012 Magic Millions Classic for
two-year-olds. She returned to the Magic
Millions this year to win the Fillies and
Mares Classic with 61kg, which at the time
was almost her career best performance. I
“On this particular day, when The Offer was led out,
I noticed dear Andrew take a big step forward to get
a closer look. This really caught my attention and
why wouldn’t it?”
and now he is a Group 1 winner and such
was the dominance of his win, he was immediately installed as the Melbourne Cup
favourite. I recently received a wonderful
email from Sue and David Nagle (who bred
The Offer) that tells simply how thrilled
they are that he has won NSW best staying
event.
Driefontein (Fastnet rock x Follow
Gold) and purchased for just $75,000.
She has now won $2.1 million dollars in
prize money. This filly’s sire line goes as
decided around a month ago that the mare
should be set for the two Group 1 races in
Adelaide, as she would be extremely hard
to beat. I sent her to my Flemington stable
to shoot the breeze for a little while, and
then she was floated to Morphettville where
she won the Group 3 Irwin Stakes over
1100m. Within 24 hours she was back at
Flemington and back to her surroundings,
which she seems to really enjoy. Then for
the Group 1 Sangster Classic, the mare was
again off to Adelaide and she achieved her
crowning glory and finally broke through
for a Group 1 win and she smashed through
the $2 million dollar prize money barrier in
the process.
The mare Diamond Drille (Al Maher
x Damzelle Pedrille) is, to quote Greg
Kolivos ‘the new Queen of the Turf’ after
winning The Queen of the Turf Stakes in
grand style at Randwick. This mare was a
$200,000 purchase at the 2011 Inglis Easter
Sale and she has never looked anything but
a Group 1 winner in the making. However
after beating Royal Descent during her
three-year-old season, just weeks before Royal Descent won the Oaks by ten
lengths, Diamond Drille hurt her leg and
was sidelined for almost twelve months.
But, as earlier mentioned, it is just a stone’s
throw to Botany Bay and this girl certainly
enjoys her swimming. This is a great arm to
my training and Diamond Drille is a perfect
example of what the water can do for a
horse. Instead of having her hit that dirt
track everyday, I was able to relax her and
keep her happy in the water whether it be in
the ocean or in the pool. Water does exactly
for horses as it does for humans. It eases
pain and relaxes, and when moving through
it using muscles, it makes men / women /
thoroughbred stronger. This daughter of
the very underrated Al Maher did everything right, and like a champion footballer
she completed her rehab and came back
triumphant.
Three Group 1 wins, five wins on Anzac
Day including one of the oldest races in
Australia for the second consecutive year
and this was just in the last week. The time
between my last piece for Gai’s Gazette and
today as we speak has been a raging success
for all the troops and I couldn’t be happier
for everyone involved. xxx ▣
9
Vale Nathan Berry
By Zeb Armstrong
A
s we were going to print,
Tommy Berry rode a
brilliant treble at Randwick
on day two of The Championships. After the passing of Nathan Berry,
a medal in the young jockey’s honour was
created; the winner of this medal was to be
the leading rider of The Championships. All
the hoops wanted to win this medal in its
inauguration and it was the source of great
debate in the Jockey’s Room. After the first
week of The Championships, Tommy was
well back in the running in around fifth
place. It of course would be a fairy tale
for Tommy to be the first ever winner of
the Nathan Berry Medal, but after round
one, he was well back and looked to be
10
perhaps too far back. But then on day two
of the new race series, Tommy aboard all
Waterhouse trained runners managed to ride
a treble!
There were four major Group 1 races on
the day and Tommy won two of them. He
also won the last, a Group 2 race aboard the
speedy Cosmic Endeavour. The three wins
lifted Tommy from out of contention to
the equal winner! The Jockey’s Room has
always been a sacred place that the general
public never gets to see, but imagine the
reception Tommy received after the last on
Saturday April 19 once he had tied good
mate James McDonald for the Nathan Berry Medal! The jockeys are generally a very
united bunch and while they all to a man
wanted to beat Tommy in every race he
rode in, there was not one professional rider
who was disappointed that Tommy stormed
home to grab the medal. It was fitting that
Nathan’s twin Tommy shared the win of the
first Nathan Berry Medal.
The passing of Nathan Berry has united
the racing world in a way that perhaps is
unprecedented. The courage shown by
Tommy to fulfil his commitments during
such a trying time will never be forgotten,
neither will the style and grace that Tommy
rode with, especially on Day Two of the
Championships. Tommy knew Nathan since
the day they were born and he is no doubt
the best person to pen a fitting tribute to the
gun young hoop that was his brother… ▣
A Brother’s Love...
By Tommy Berry
W
Photo courtesy of Magic Millions
hat can I say about my
beautiful brother?
He was a loving
husband, a caring mate,
a wonderful son but most of all, he was the
best brother I could possibly ask for.
Nathan was always the first to put a
smile on my face. He was always there to
cheer me up when I was down. He was
always the first to give me advice, not only
on my riding, but on life itself. He always
put everyone first before himself.
Nathan always liked being around people, always loved being close.
This was something that started at a
young age.
I remember when we were kids we had
this double bunk with a bed up the top and
one down the bottom. You couldn’t separate
us. We always shared the bottom bunk,
until one day mum and dad bought us two
single beds. Well we weren’t having a part
of that! Every night when mum turned the
light off we used to push our beds together and sleep across them so that we were
together. Things had not changed. Only
twelve months ago Nathan and Whitney
flew to Hong Kong to visit Sharnee and me
and while the girls went shopping, Nathan
and I spent the day together. When they got
home, regardless that we had three bedrooms Sharnee and Whitney found Nathan
and I sleeping side by side in the same bed.
Nathan always had a passion for helping
people. He loved supporting many charities
including doing the 4 Tracks 4 Kids Walk
every year and handing out gifts at the
Children’s Hospital every year. Nathan just
had this emotion and excitement in his eyes
every time he used to talk about it - something that I’ve never seen in anyone else.
There has been a hole left in my heart
that will never be replaced but all I can say
is that you were my best mate and I will
never forget you. You touched so many
peoples’ hearts - more then you will ever
know.
I love you mate and even though you are
not here in person you will always be here
in my heart.
Love you mate xxxx ▣
A triumphant Nathan returning to scale on Unencumbered
11
One Moment In Time...
Amanda Wood can often be seen in and around Randwick Racecourse and Gai’s stables
snapping magic moments of our horses with her trusty camera. Many of the photographs
you have been enjoying each month in Gai’s Gazette come from Amanda via her business
“Need for Steed Australia”. We met over a coffee recently, and Amanda shared the story
with me of how she came to combine a passion for photography and the horse with a
chance response to an advertisement to work as a pony rider for Gai….
By Lea Stracey
Amanda Wood
A
manda Wood arrived on
our Australian shores as a
young 23 year old in 1992,
when she came out from
America on the request of her father to
work in his company for three months
and be in charge of sales and marketing.
Her mother’s family were involved with
breeding and steeplechasing in Middleburg,
Virginia. Her mother, grandmother and
great grandmother were “mad fox hunters”
so it was inevitable that as well as gaining a
degree in Fine Arts, Amanda’s leisure hours
growing up were taken up with equitation,
show hunters and fox hunting. Amanda
12
adored Australia and within a few years she
was married with two children. She moved
to the picturesque Southern Highlands from
1997-2011. This facilitated more time
with the horses and Amanda competed in
eventing, dressage and the occasional fox
hunt. In her spare time Amanda continued
drawing and painting the horses and found
herself doing commissions for locals who
admired her creative skills and fine eye for
the horse.
Circumstances changed, and Amanda returned to Sydney with her teenage children
to begin a new chapter in her life. For a
time she worked in Real Estate, but it was
the temptation to continue her association
with the horses that prompted Amanda to
respond to the advertisement for a pony
rider at Gai Waterhouse Racing. The hours,
though unnaturally early at the time, were
embraced with enthusiasm by Amanda.
Inspired by the environment of beautiful
horses thundering down the track and the
amazing colours of the sunrise at dawn,
she took her camera with her and started to
capture images that were unrehearsed and
immediate. When the other riders asked her
what she did with the photographs she took,
Amanda started a Facebook page of her
photos. As their popularity grew, she saw
an opening for turning her passion and hobby into a business. She called the business
“Need for Steed Australia” and uploaded
her photographs onto a website for all to
see and purchase if they so desired. When
people think of their horses being photographed it is always the traditional image
of the winning photo that comes to mind.
Amanda’s photos document the process to
the final achievement of that winning shot,
that is, for example, she snaps a working
or relaxing moment - your horse enjoying
a swim at the pool, a morning gallop on
the track or a barrier trial. She captures
the character and essence of your horse in
his routine and all aspects of his day. It is
fleeting moments that she wants to share
with you, the owners and racing enthusiasts. When looking at Amanda’s photos,
many are unscripted and a special moment
has been captured.
Amanda told me that she was lucky
enough to have as a mentor Geoffrey Wharton A.C.S., who among many other movies,
worked as a junior cameraman on the set
“Phar Lap”. He introduced her to photography and credits him for not only his
expertise, but his endless patience. They
have sat together editing thousands of photos from which he would comment on how
things could be improved and certain techniques could be used. Amanda concedes it
must have been fairly painful for him in the
beginning!
“She captures the
character and essence
of your horse..... It is
fleeting moments that
she wants to share with
you...”
did not escape Gai and part of Amanda’s
working brief now includes her photography for Gai and her clients. Her audience
has recently grown with the start of Bruce
Slade’s Round Table Racing. Amanda told
me she is inspired by Gai, particularly her
tireless work ethic and acknowledges the
wonderful opportunities Gai has provided
with her horses. She tells me she loves
embracing the challenges and is always
striving to do more and to do it better.
Amanda calls it her “dream job.”
A goal for the future would be to have an
exhibition of her photographs and something tells me this goal is a very achievable
one.
As we rose to leave I asked Amanda
what she would consider to be the most
challenging photograph. Her quick reply?
“Gai, because she never stops moving!” We
all know what she means – it’s all about the
moment….. ▣
When asked about favourite horses to
photograph at Tulloch Lodge, Amanda says
she is fond of them all but feels privileged
to have photographed the likes of Fiorente,
Travolta and Sweet Idea. She is also fond
of the horses that are quirky and enjoys
photographing their journey as they develop
into their role as a racehorse. Most of all
she loves that every horse has its own
unique character and personality.
Amanda’s skills apart from pony riding
13
Champion British
Trainer Not So Sure They
Will All Come To The
Championships
By Ric Chapman
“
14
Now, let’s look at his sobering claim in
perspective.
Mark Johnston, comes to the conversation table, armed with enormous clout
and credibility. He has achieved things in
British racing that defy comprehension.
For instance, he runs a powerful team of
horses from his Middleham base.
A team so well regarded and respected
that he is racing royalty in England.
He is one of England’s premier trainers,
because he became the first Flat trainer
to send out more than 200 winners in a
season (2009) and then repeated the feat the
following year. What that equates to here
would be Gai winning 250 city races in a
season!
He has trained more than 100 winners for
19 consecutive years, achieving success in
the highly regarded Classics and numerous
Group 1 races. Some of the best horses to
ever have a bridle on them, were trained by
him. Shamardal, the Darley super stallion
being one of them.
Johnston was born in Scotland, and
moved to his now formidable base in Middleham in 1988, buying the Kingsley House
yard which began an astonishing success
Mark Johnston and Marshgate Lane at Kingsley House
Photo by Mikaelle Lebreton
The unexpected Australian success of Irish sprinter Gordon Lord
Byron and The Offer’s Sydney
Cup romp, may just be anomalies
that have no significant ripple effect on The
Championships going forward,” claims
leading English trainer Mark Johnston.
Which, if true, would be a stunning and
telling blow to the race meeting’s organisers
who see The Championships as being a
rather attractive carrot for Northern Hemisphere owners and trainers.
And, why wouldn’t the organizers hope
for all that? After all, the Schweppes Group
1 Sydney Cup was won by Gai’s The Offer,
an Irish born-import, who brilliantly
outstayed Chris Waller’s English import
Opinion. Before that we all saw what
Gordon Lord Byron did in the rain–affected Group 1 George Ryder Stakes,
and then Carlton House, the Queen’s
horse, was oh so brave in running third
in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes.
Europe starred in Australia in April,
so why is Johnston skeptical of a potential European invasion in the future?
“Well, ok, yes the prize money is
really appealing,” said Johnston. “And
his (Gordon Lord Byron’s) success has
certainly been noted up here. I am sure
it will make some other trainers think
about the options and a few might even
send a horse down, but I don’t think
there will ever be large numbers. I have
no idea what the plans are with Gordon
Lord Byron but I suspect that most
horses making such a trip will be on a
one way ticket and would be sold to race
in Australia.”
story that has extended to two further yards.
In turn this has created a major complex
covering 270 acres. His first century of
winners came in 1994. He has won both the
coveted Group 1 - 1,000 and 2,000 Guineas,
as well as the Ascot Gold Cup three times
and the Goodwood Cup five times.
His finest horses include Mister Baileys, Shamardal, Attraction, and Double
Trigger. He and wife Deirdre, his teenage
sweetheart, have two sons, Charlie and
Angus. He is the living description of a
success story - in life and in business. As a
result, he sees things with a clarity that few
seldom possess.
The Championships have resonated
throughout Europe as massive prize money
pots of gold tend to do. But according to
Johnston, that may not be enough to entice
a wave of class European’s Down Under.
Royal Ascot still has too much drawing
power.
“I don’t think they will go there, but I
could be wrong,” he mused.
“Frankly though - and I hate to say it Royal Ascot, and British racing in general,
is not about prize money. If owners of
top horses could be lured away with prize
money such as what is on offer at The
Championships, British racing would be
in a sorry state as our prize money is so far
behind yours, Japan’s, and even countries
like France which are on our doorstep.
It is the quality of our tracks, the status of
our races and resale/stud value that keeps
our racing where it is. We are heavily dependent on owners (mostly foreign) that are
willing to race for poor returns.”
This is a very intriguing mindset.
The British are very aware of the plundering of their staying stock in recent years
and horses like Fiorente and The Offer
doing so well just propel the notion that
European stayers are superior in strength
and ability.
Johnston heard about the races in April
down here.
“We all know that we have a strong dominance in the middle distance and upwards
categories and those horses are always
going to be popular for export to Australia,”
he said.
But will they come down here, still
owned and trained in Britain, for The
Championships, especially if their connections want them back for Royal Ascot two
months later?
Is it even possible to achieve as a trainer?
Can British horses run well in Australia in
April and be at their best for Royal Ascot?
“It is certainly not impossible but I think
it is improbable,” answered the successful
trainer. “It is such a long trip, and such an
expensive one, that I can’t see many, if any,
audience in Europe will be the trainers who
have stayers. This is based on two counts,
it’s the prize money and the chance to race
against horses down here that are perceived
to be inferior to their own.
“They are attractive carrots, yes but, for
all the reasons I have already given, they
won’t attract many,” reiterated Johnston.
“Races like the Dubai World Cup and the
Japan Cup are more valuable, and they
are subsidised, yet still don’t attract many
participants.”
Irrespective of Mark Johnston’s views,
and he may well be right in regards to
British owners and trainers, The Championships were a stunning success story in their
inaugural year and John Messara and his
board need to be congratulated.
It will prosper and it will attract inter-
“We all know that we have a strong dominance in
the middle distance and upwards categories and
those horses are always going to be popular for
export to Australia...”
owners and trainers being willing to risk it,”
he continued.
The potential stud value of a stallion
would be incredibly advanced if it did happen. And connections of It’s A Dundeel are
looking at it in reverse.
One can only imagine what sort of stud
fees world champion and British legend
Frankel would have commanded if he had
been able to come to The Championships
and won.
The old saying that money speaks all languages may be more powerful than Johnston estimates and it will not be for lack of
trying that we get horses from Britain here
for future Championships.
Sprinters may be harder, but stayers in
particular should come in droves. The target
nationals. The Kiwi invasion showed it is
worth coming and I suspect, the shuttling
of stallions between the hemispheres will
always be a major draw card for champion
middle distance entires to come here.
Royal Ascot has helped increase the purses of some astute stallion owners from here.
Europe now has an even bigger opportunity
to do the same.
Johnston remains doubtful though. “It
very much depends on an owner having
a real desire to try and do it. It’s very
expensive to travel down there. For us now,
it is usually horses owned by wealthy Arab
connections that are being, at least partly,
sold to Australians, who go.”
Perhaps… but money, remember, speaks
loudly! ▣
15
Gai and Mark at morning track work
Mark Newnham
By Lea Stracey
Photo by Need For Steed Aus.
Mark Newnham was a jockey for Gai’s stable for fifteen years and rode more
than three hundred winners, to be precise, 332, four in one day, before hanging
up his spurs, cap and riding crop to assist Gai from the ground rather than on the
back of a horse. It seemed a natural progression…
I
t seems to me that most people in the
racing industry who start life with parents with connections in the industry
grow up to be involved in it too. A
sweeping statement, I know, but there you
have it.
The question as to why this is so would
certainly make for an interesting dissertation, but that’s for another time.
Mark kindly took some time out to
answer some questions about his working
life in Racing:
Do you come from a racing family?
My maternal grandfather was a trainer and
a jockey and my father was a sporting editor of the Sydney Morning Herald. From
a very young age my maternal grandfather
had me on the back of a horse and my
16
father regularly took me to the races on a
Saturday. One school holiday, I went for
work experience with the horses and at age
fifteen, never went back to school. That was
that and I was hooked.
How did you come to be a jockey?
The minimum weight for a jockey at that
time was 49kg and I was 51kg and I never
imagined I would make a jockey. I became
a travelling foreman for Bart Cummings,
and, on one of my trips to Perth I met my
soon to be wife, Donna who was working
at the West Australian Turf Club. I was
22 and had gone there for the Christmas
Carnival – specifically the Railway and the
Derby.
Twelve months later, Donna moved to
Sydney and my lifestyle changed from beer
and takeaway food to homecooked meals.
At age 23 having married Donna, I knew it
was time to follow my calling and with the
support of Donna and her careful menus, I
became the first jockey to do a mature age
apprenticeship. Up until then, you had to
have finished your apprenticeship by age
21. I did two years of my apprenticeship
with Graeme Begg and another two years
with Ronnie Quinton.
Your journey to the Waterhouse
stable?
Was pretty direct! Six months after my apprenticeship finished, I rode three seconds
at Kembla, all behind Gai Waterhouse runners. Come Monday morning I went to see
Gai for a job with the old adage ringing in
my ears “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em”.
Gai, Mark and breaker Ryan Pendergast
What is your favourite thing to eat?
I love jelly snakes. Now, if I feel like having one, I do!
A jockey’s life seems to be one of
self discipline and rigour. Do you
miss it? What is good about now?
I never wanted to do anything else than be
a jockey. I consider myself lucky to have
been able to work and earn money doing
something I loved. I have been able to
travel the world. I have ridden in Macau
and Korea and was the first Australian
jockey to ride a winner there. I have ridden
in England and Ireland. In fact Donna
and I still love going to race meetings on
our holidays. If I compare being a jockey
Golden Sunrise (Dieu D’or x Purify ), a
gelding, became my first winner for Gai
and it was at Gosford on 20 February 1997.
might do when I retired as a jockey. I knew
I wanted fulltime work in the industry and
upon retirement, Gai suggested I come and
work at Tulloch Lodge fulltime.
What qualities does a person need
to be the partner of a jockey?
When was your last ride for Gai and
how did you fare?
Your first winner for Gai?
Patience and understanding. They need to
lead your lifestyle when you are wasting.
A jockey can’t be in racing part time, it’s a
seven day a week job and you need a family
life that fits in with that.
What is your position now with Gai?
In a nutshell, I assist Gai. I assist at race
meetings with raceday procedures, I’m
involved with the gallops and trials, I book
the jockeys. Sometimes I horse and staff
manage. I supervise trackwork at Randwick
when Gai is away interstate with the horses.
It is a diverse job and I enjoy its challenges.
Occasionally I might put on my jockey gear
to give my comments on how a horse is
presenting.
My last ride was Saturday September 10,
2011 at Kembla Grange. I won on Powerbroker and started working fulltime for Gai
the following Monday.
What is the best part of working
with Gai?
I would say without a doubt being exposed
to her enthusiasm and optimism!
Excluding racing, who do you admire most in sport?
Steve Waugh. He is a great leader and
captain.
“I never wanted to do
anything else than be a
jockey. I consider myself
lucky to have been able
to work and earn money doing something I
loved...”
to my work now, being a jockey was like
having a “hobby” and I could play golf and
fish regularly around my rides. Working
fulltime has definitely limited my time on
the golf course and I can’t remember the
last time I went fishing and I love those
things! Life as a jockey is demanding but it
doesn’t take up as much of your time. On
the other hand, I love what I do now – my
life personally is not so restricted. I can
have a beer or a drink or icecream when I
want. I miss the competition but not the
preparation. ▣
Mark on Powerbroker
You must still retain a certain level
of fitness to do that?
I still go to the gym twice a week. I box
and run or swim to keep myself fit, as much
for relaxation and stress release and clearing the mind as anything else.
I knew it wasn’t something I could do forever and while I was riding I always took
a genuine interest in what was going on in
the stables. Once, when I was off with an
injury, Gai had me clocking the horses and
it was then that we would speak of what I
Was it hard to give up being a
professional jockey?
17
How To Improve Handicaps
and Make Better Racing
By Rob Waterhouse
A
ustralian Racing suffers
because of the narrowing
of the weight scale. The
compressing has been inexorably increasing for the last 30 years. It is a
tragedy for racing.
This narrowing constricts betting. There
would be more turnover and, consequently,
more prize money to distribute, if the range
were widened.
There used to be always a ten kilo spread
of weight. Long ago, much more. Now-adays, it is only four or five kilos between
top and bottom. Even in many Group Ones,
it is this tight.
In the UK, Hong Kong and Singapore it
is the old-fashioned but excellent 10kgs or
so. Great racing.
American horse racing at its best
18
Ironically, we’ve inadvertently copied
American racing’s weight spread. This is
strange because there is little any of us like
about US racing.
The reasons the bottom weights have
risen:
• the ‘old’-jockey lobby has convinced the Australian Racing Board to
en. We’ve just had one who, at age 52,
has come back from a serious stroke
and 13 months’ break and won at Canterbury. Good on him, but amazing he
can get connections to give him a ride.
• owners feel foolish, complaining
their horse has too much ‘pudding’
when it is on the bottom weight, 54kg.
“Ironically, we’ve inadvertently copied American
racing’s weight spread. This is strange because there
is little any of us like about US racing....”
raise the limit to 54kg. This has been a
huge help to ‘elderly’ jockeys. Witness
how the average age of riders has ris-
But is it often very poorly handicapped. Owners should be marching
in protest!
“Some might say he
suffered the same fate
as his eponym (another
great name by Suzanne
Philcox, Tupac Amaru
being out of the mare
Peruvian), the last Peruvian king, who was also
slaughtered...”
bottom weight. But, just the same, he was
slaughtered at the weights.
The big picture is:
1.
2.
3.
Nowadays, few three-year-olds start in
the staying Cups – they were the most
prolific winners once. The connections
of three-year-olds just don’t bother.
In general, because racing in distance
races is so unattractive, very few threeyear-olds are trained to be stayers –
unlike yesteryear.
Racing is diminished losing these great
points of interest three-year-olds bring.
I feel sympathy for the connections of
three-year-old Tupac Amaru in the Sydney
Cup. In yesteryear, he would have been able
to carry a ‘feather weight’ as his benchmark
rating was only 70 at the time of weights.
Tupac Amaru, had only won a maiden and
as a three-year-old, he should benefit from
the 4.5kg weight-for-age disadvantage.
Instead, he received but one kilo from Gai’s
The Offer, an older multiple-group winner.
“Quite right and thank goodness”, says Gai!
Some might say he suffered the same fate
as his eponym (another great name by
Suzanne Philcox, Tupac Amaru being out of
the mare Peruvian), the last Peruvian king,
who was also slaughtered.
But Tupac Amaru’s connections didn’t
complain – he was on the limit, meaning
Victoria has a different approach. The Cox
Plate always has three-year-old – 49kg for
colts, 47kgs for fillies. This year’s Lightning Stakes, the two two-year-olds carried
46kg (senior riders Dean Holland and Dean
Yendall at the light weight).
Statistically, in Sydney top-weights win
26% of races. A bottom weight has one
chance in 25 or 4%. Hardly handicapping.
Jockey Jeff Lloyd
Obviously unfair. Very telling.
A solution, assuming there is no taste
for raising the top weights’ mark, is for the
handicapper to issue weights (at least for
all Group races), say with 50kg limit (I’d
prefer lower), but allow to connections
“declare overweight” up to 54kgs without
penalty or criticism. Easy to do. It would be
great for racing. ▣
Tupac Amaru being quartered
19
Paddy and Tenby lady scoring a maiden hurdle win at Warnambool on April 29
Becomes Gai’s First Ever
Winning Jumps Rider
By Zeb Armstrong
G
20
ai Waterhouse is a Hall of
Fame trainer but she is also a
trainer that traditionally hits
the ground running. The term
‘slow build up’ rarely applies to anything
Gai does. Gai won with her first ever
starter, a horse named Gifted Poet in March
1992. In October 1992, a stayer named Te
Akau Nick was Gai’s first ever runner in a
Group 1. The race was the 1992 Metropolitan Handicap and Te Akau Nick won, thus
giving Gai a winner with her first starter
ever in a Group 1 race. A few weeks later,
Te Akau Nick went close to winning the
Melbourne Cup at 150-1, but that is a story
for another day.
Australia. The lucky rider of this gelding,
Irishman Paddy Flood, will be forever mentioned at racing trivia nights from now on
and he will always hold a special place in
Australian racing folk law as the man who
rode Gai’s first ever jumps winner.
Paddy is a loveable knockabout bloke
from the The Curragh in Ireland. He took
a few minutes recently to answer a couple
of questions about all things about jumps
racing. Keep an eye on Valediction as well
as Gai’s other nominated jumpers in the
coming weeks. Warrnambool is almost
upon us and Gai will be there with bells on.
Don’t be surprised if her first starter in a
feature jumps race achieves a win.
Almost exactly twenty-two-years after
Gai saddled up her first runner, the Lady
Trainer saddled up her first jumps runner
and it of course won. The horse is the
talented gelding named Valediction (Zabeel
x Madam Valeta) who Gai owns with as
she describes ‘a few good mates.’ Valediction won with authority in a lowly maiden
hurdle in Warrnambool at the traditional
lead-up meeting to the massive May Races
which is the premier jumps carnival in
Q. How does it feel to have won on
Gai’s first ever jumps race runner?
Gai is of course a Hall of Fame trainer who now has won with her first
starter, her first city starter, her first
Group 1 starter and now her first
jumper. You are part of a unique
piece of history.
I was absolutely over the moon to win on
Gai’s first jumper. I must admit that I felt
a bit of pressure seeing as her record with
getting the job done first time is impeccable. When I crossed the line in front, ‘relief’
and ‘elation’ would be the two words that
come to mind.
Q. How did Valediction go? How
does he compare to other nice
jumpers you have ridden?
The race didn’t pan out as the form read
and I ended up in behind off a slow speed.
The horse actually did a remarkable job
because he really didn’t see his hurdles
clearly during the run. His talent and will
to jump and win gave me a great feeling. If
he had jumped the last flight cleanly I think
he would have won by over 3 lengths. He is
the most talented horse I’ve ridden so far in
Australia and he really has a very big future
over jumps.
Q. How would you compare jumps
racing in Victoria to the industry in
Ireland?
The European way is very different than in
Australia. Back home, we have our horses
jumping from when they are broken in as
three-year-olds and their sole purpose is
jumping.
Photo by Todds Photographics
www.toddsracephotos.com.au
Former Irishman Paddy Flood
We race over jumps all year round, and we
have tracks that are just natural land that
racecourses are set up on. Our jump tracks
are very wide and horses tend to settle a bit
better, plus we don’t jump out of barriers
ever for a jumps race!
Q How did you come about riding
this horse for Gai?
I schooled the very talented The Offer
(Sydney Cup winner) before the Ballarat
Cup that he won last year. Gai’s foreman
Roger Elliott told me Gai might have a few
jumps horses coming down to Flemington.
Naturally I kept on at Roger that whenever
he needed my services I’d make myself
available no matter what! I was very happy
and excited to be schooling Gai’s horses, let
alone racing them.
The week before the debut jumps race at
Warrnambool, I got a text from Gai to see if
I was available to ride Valediction. I could
not type the buttons on my phone quick
enough to reply YES!!
Q. What have been some of your
bigger successes in Europe?
Photo by Todds Photographics
www.toddsracephotos.com.au
I have won five Group 1 jump races in
Ireland/England including an Irish Grand
National. Also, I have had four winners on
one day including two Group 2 races. One
of the best horses I have won on would
have to be Hardy Eustace, who was a nine
time Group 1 winner. This immortal jumper
won back-to-back Champion Hurdles at
Cheltenham.
Another great jumper that I have won on
is Ninety Minutes. I won a Group 1 on this
boy at Cheltenham.
What else… I’ve ridden in four English
football field with posts and rope put up as
the track. Anyway my first ride on a Sunday
was at a place called Salt Hill in County
Galway. I won that and was hooked from
there. I ended up riding for Dessie Hughes,
“The week before the debut jumps race at
Warrnambool, I got a text from Gai to see if I was
available to ride Valediction. I could not type the
buttons on my phone quick enough to reply YES!!”
Grand Nationals and fortunately completed
them all. I won a Group 1 lead up race to
the Grand National over the big fences at
Aintree called the Beacher Chase. This was
on a horse named Vic Venturi.
Another good Group 1 win that stands
out was in the Champion Novice Chase on
Rare Bob at Punchestown in Ireland.
Q. What led you to become a jumps
rider?
I grew up on the Curragh in County
Kildare where Dermot Weld and a lot of
exceptionally good trainers are based. I was
hunting pony when I was nine-years-old
three times a week and just fell in love with
jumping from there. My Dad bought me a
very small race horse when I was elevenyears-old and in Ireland we have pony races
every Sunday in the summer months. It was
a bit crazy. Sometimes we raced around a
a legendary jumps trainer. I was sixteen and
rode a lot of winners straight away, so it
became my life after that.
Q. Why did you venture Down
Under?
The year before I came to Australia, I broke
my right shoulder four times in the one year
and had done a lot of damage. Surgery was
needed and a seven month break required.
Unluckily for me (and everyone else) the
financial crisis hit the racing industry in Ireland very hard and by the time I was back
riding things had become very bad. Prize
money had gone and owners couldn’t afford
horses. People were just not spending their
money, so my fiancée Emma Maher and
I decided to pack our bags for the better
weather.
I’ve got my sights set on being a champion rider here one day. ▣
Paddy riding Valediction to victory at Warnambool
21
Champion Entertainment at
the Championships
By Madison Whant
This year, with the combined efforts of the ATC, Racing NSW and Destination
NSW, Sydney’s Racing Industry opened its arms to the all corners of Sydney.
Foodies, wine lovers, punters and members of Sydney’s social set, were all invited to the Grand Finals of Racing. I was thrilled to be part of the scene...
A
rriving around midday at
Randwick racecourse on
April 19, my friend and I
entered a bustling crowd of
new and old race attendees dressed from
head to toe in the latest racing fashion.
Bright green and yellow fascinators,
beautiful black and white ensembles and
even wide brimmed hats, broke up the
black and blue tailored suits of the men.
Already in full-swing, the second day of
the Championships had dawned bright and
sunny, promising to be a spectacular show
of racing and fashion at its finest.
After the slanting rain of the first day,
it was pleasing to see expected crowds of
25,000 plus people pouring in to Royal
Randwick Racecourse for the spectacular
Grand Finals of racing.
The Australian Turf Club’s latest initiative, with multiple macro and microeconomic objectives, injected more than
$18million worth of prize money into ten
feature races over the two autumn days.
22
“Boosting the economy of New South
Wales with increased visitation to NSW, increased betting turnovers whilst simultaneously promoting the sport for thoroughbred
racing were the primary objectives behind
the initiative,” reveals the ATC’s Executive
General Manager of Sales and Commercial,
Tony Partridge.
“John Messara was the driving force
behind the concept of The Championships while the Government grant was the
stimulus that allowed us to get it going. It
was a very big project. It took the combined
efforts of the ATC, Racing NSW, and Destination NSW to make it happen.”
Reaping the benefits on a micro level is
the ATC, boosting participation, attendance,
membership, sponsorship and hospitality
for race days outside of the carnivals.
The features of these benefits were seen
in every level of The Championships. The
name itself, ‘The Grand Finals of Racing’, can be attributed to the Racing NSW
marketing committee who felt they needed
to place the significance of The Championships in a context mainstream sports fans
would understand. The ATC focused on
digital and social media accessibility, promoting the fashion associated with the races
through hashtags - social media’s latest fad
- like #SpotTheDiva.
As we moved further into the grounds,
set up in scrupulous detail was the Rose
Garden Lawn. To my right, the Theatre of
the Horse was packed, with punters, owners
and the general public watching the day’s
early prospects.
As we came to the entrance to Little Sydney, I felt a sense of celebrity as we walked
up the walkway where security and hosts
greeted us.
Inside, Little Sydney, already a buzzing
hive of activity, fanned out in a horse shoe
shape around a viewing platform offering
an exclusive view of the Theatre of the
Horse. Five marquees featuring Sydney’s
top restaurants were packed with food
Photos by Need For Steed Aus.
aficionados and fashion lovers, all eager to
be a part of this exciting new trend. “It was
important to create a playground for corporate clients and those people more interested in celebrity and fashion than necessarily
racing. It is similar to the Birdcage at Flemington except we wanted to have a uniquely
‘Sydney slant’ to it, and there is nothing
fantastic.”
The sentiment seemed to be a general
consensus. Tammie Mason and Ben Creek
had this to say, “[Little Sydney] has been
great fun. The weather is much better than
last week, so the party vibe is in full swing
today. It really is a great day.”
Partridge also revealed, “The location
“I think we have converted them to racing and we
intend to make it a long term feature of the BMW
Sydney Carnival...”
more Sydney than great food and wine and
doing things in style,” says Partridge.
Partnered with Australian Gourmet
Traveller, the ATC certainly lived up to
our expectations with Merivale, Icebergs,
Four in Hand, Chiswicks and Longrain
featuring some spectacular displays of
cheeses, breads, fruits, meats and wines.
Each marquee was packed with racegoers,
some of whom had never met before, all
contributing to the bubbly vibe.
Partridge reported of Day 1, “Our
research shows that many people in Little
Sydney were foodies that typically would
not attend the races. The feedback has been
of Little Sydney was very deliberate. The
all-day sunshine and access to the Theatre
of the Horse was very important.”
O
utside of Little Sydney
thousands of people milled
around the grounds. I found
tucked behind the grandstand, marquees with bars and cafés were
also packed making finding a seat more a
game of musical chairs. On the lawn by
the track the atmosphere was electric with
the deafening roar of hundreds of people
cheering their horses on as they came down
the straight.
It certainly seems the combined efforts
of the ATC, Racing NSW and Destination
NSW paid off. Pre-sales were strong, and
attendance, especially on Day 2, was even
stronger.
“I think we have converted them to
racing and we intend to make it a long term
feature of the BMW Sydney Carnival,”
Partridge said, “the most important thing
to do now is communicate with those new
customers that came and invite them to
enjoy racing outside of carnival time. We
have a digital strategy that will see us doing
exactly that, featuring special ticketing and
membership offers that will continue.”
The ATC has even more in store for
Sydney racing, with the announcement of a
number of initiatives that will be aimed at
every layer of the crowd during the winter
racing season. There will be initiatives
for families, punters, and members that
will seek to reward loyalty – for those that
attend more often – and generally provide
something for everyone.
For me, the atmosphere at The Championship’s was electric and was a wonderful
backdrop for Gai’s fantastic stable wins.
The ATC’s campaign was certainly a success and we can look forward to what they
have in store for us in the future. ▣
23
Farewell Fiorente
The champion entire Fiorente (Monsun x Desert Bloom) is off to stud and while
it is sad to see him go, he more than did his job on the racetrack
By Zeb Armstrong
I
n eleven starts on Australian
tracks, Fiorente earned $6,068,500.
That is an average of well over
half a million dollars for each of
Fiorente’s eleven racetrack appearances.
Overall, including during his European
career, Fiorente had twenty starts for six
wins and seven placings. In total, the entire
banked $6,265,611 for twenty starts. 97%
of Fiorente’s career earnings were made on
Australian racetracks. Now money is not
everything, but to put it into perspective,
Fiorente is one of the highest earning horses
in Australian racing history, and he made
six million dollars on the track in far less
starts than some of his fellow champions.
Here are some of the other greatest earning
Australian racehorses (that earned roughly
the same as Fiorente) and their total starts…
Fields of Omagh - 6.5 million – 45 starts.
Tie the Knot – 6.2 million – 62 starts.
Takeover Target – 6 million – 41 starts.
Black Caviar – 8 million – 25 starts.
Fiorente – 6.3 million – 20 starts.
When Gai saw Fiorente in Australia at
the Werribee Quarantine Centre, the Lady
Trainer labelled him ‘The Parachute horse’
and with good reason… It was almost as
if Fiorente was pushed out of a plane and
parachuted to the starting gates at Flemington. When the gates sprung open for
the 2012 Melbourne Cup, Fiorente, ridden
by James McDonald jumped as a 30-1
outsider. Yes, he was beaten in this race, his
first Aussie start, by the well weighted and
very in-form Lloyd Williams owned Green
Moon. Fiorente ran second, and although
he was beaten on his merits, he could have
maybe got a little closer had it not been for
a big bump at the 800m, a point where the
horses were starting to get going. The 2012
24
Melbourne Cup was a clear preview as to
what was to come for this striking son of
Monsun.
After a lovely summer slumber, Gai
brought Fiorente back for one race only
in the autumn, the 2013 All-Aged Stakes
over 1400m at WFA. The one run strategy
in the autumn is becoming a popular tactic
with potential Melbourne Cup horses. Gai
knew that to protect Fiorente from the
handicapper, and keep him fresh and happy,
one run would be more than enough. On 27
April 2013, despite being ever so slightly
‘fat’ Fiorente stormed home from last in
this race to run third beaten just 1.8 lengths
by the boom colt All Too Hard. The 2013
All-Aged Stakes was the only race Fiorente
ever contested at his home track Randwick.
The fast finishing third in this race was
another clue that the 2013 Melbourne Cup
Fiorente had returned in fantastic fashion,
and was right on track for another tilt at the
race that stops a nation.
In Australia more often than not, a
staying horse can run brilliantly over
an unsuitable distance first up, but then
be slightly flat second up. This is due to
stayers having so much residual fitness
once they come back from a spell. Fiorente
did not succumb to ‘second up syndrome’
and instead, he finally broke through for
his first Australian win. The race was the
old Feehan at Moonee Valley over 1600m
at WFA. As a general rule, Melbourne Cup
horses rarely win at Moonee Valley over a
mile. The straight is short, the track is tight
and usually a Cup prospect will get nabbed
by a fit miler or will run on well for a placing. Makybe Diva was beaten in this race
in what was her only defeat in her last Cup
“In eleven starts on Aussie tracks, Fiorente earned
$6,068,50... an average of well over half a million
dollars...”
was at Fiorente’s mercy. After the All-Aged
Stakes, it was back to the paddock for
Fiorente and for his many connections, the
first Tuesday in November could not come
quickly enough.
Fast forward to 31 August 2013, the last
day of winter and Fiorente was back. It was
the Memsie Stakes over 1400m at WFA.
This was also the race in which Atlantic
Jewel made her comeback. Atlantic Jewel
won like a champion, and Fiorente ran
on beautifully from last on the turn and
with a touch of luck he might have even
run second to the champion mare. This
run at Caulfield showed all concerned that
campaign. Fiorente came from 8th at the
400m, and was still near last with a furlong
to run. But with Nash Rawiller aboard,
the entire displayed his trademark closing
sprint and also what looked to be a newly
developed ‘will to win.’ This was Fiorente’s
first win Down Under. Of course it was not
his last, but in this win, he refused to be
beaten. This was a trait he carried for the
remainder of his career.
Next it was to the Turnbull and Fiorente
was now well found in Melbourne Cup
markets and he too was all the talk around
Flemington. Many great racing folk over
the journey have declared that the spring
Photo by Lisa grimm
Damien Oliver on Fiorente with strapper Des FIsher after his Melbourne Cup win
does not start until the Turnbull. A horse
can be an early spring star but lose momentum once the majors come around, or they
can build through the Turnbull then peak
in the majors. We all know which route
Fiorente took in 2013.
The champ was beaten in the Turnbull albeit by about 15 inches after being dead last
and many lengths back after the field had
balanced and let go down the famous Flemington straight. It would have been great if
Fiorente had won this race. He would have
joined the likes of Makybe Diva, Sunline,
Northerly and back in the day Rising Fast
and Redcraze, as a winner of this race. He
was beaten, but not defeated. The way he
extended in the straight at the end of 2000m
gave everyone in the camp a great deal of
confidence moving forward. The good horses in the Turnbull struggled to hold him out
over 2000m. Many of the same horses now
looked as if they would find it impossible to
stop the big entire over 3200m.
Next up it was the Cox Plate and in a
tremendous display of tenacity, Fiorente
held on to run third, beaten half a length by
the front running colt Shamus Award and
the Turnbull winner Happy Trails. Fiorente
drew the widest barrier in the 2013 Cox
Plate and found himself three wide for a
good percentage of the race. Blake Shinn
had the ride in this race and he did the
best he could with the hand he was dealt.
Fiorente would have been forgiven if he
had dropped out after such a hard run.
Instead, Fiorente came again at the lightly
weighted three-year-old and again, this run
despite resulting in defeat, indicated that
come Grand Final day aka the first Tuesday
in November 2013, Fiorente would be well
and truly ready to rumble.
Only Saintly, Makybe Diva, Nightmarch,
Phar Lap and Rising Fast have won the
Cox Plate and the Melbourne Cup in the
same year. Yes, again it would have been
wonderful to have had Fiorente join this
list, but it was not to be. But as Gai has said
ten to fifteen times per year for the last 20
years, Grand Final day is Grand Final day.
Anything that is won on the way to the
Grand Final is a bonus, but a horse will be
set for its Grand Final.
Fiorente’s Grand Final was of course the
2013 Melbourne Cup. But here was the
problem in regards to the proud history of
this great race: only three male horses had
ever placed in the Melbourne Cup, then
come back the next year to win it and two
of them were Carbine and Phar Lap, the
two best stayers Australia has ever seen.
Fiorente would have to be not just a champion, but an immortal champion to join this
list. Well, join it he did, and he won the Cup
25
Photo by Lisa grimm
with almost as much authority as Phar Lap
and Carbine had done in the glory days of
racing. Now the list of male horses to place
in the Melbourne Cup then come back to
win it consists of Carbine, Phar Lap, Gold
and Black and Fiorente.
In the run in the 2013 Melbourne Cup,
you would not have wanted to be on any
other horse. Damien Oliver gave Fiorente a
perfect ride and with 300m to run, Fiorente
was on terms with the leaders. Old Red
Cadeaux, like a cagey old pro, hit the lead
and refused to give in. He is after all, one of
the best stayers in the world. But with each
giant stride, Fiorente was taking ground of
this grand campaigner and with a hundred
yards to run, the celebrations had started.
The early crow has brought plenty of horses
undone over the years, but not this day!
Fiorente was flying over the ground at the
end of two miles and the lucky owners in
the grand stand started roaring and cheering, and a small lady in the middle of it all
in a blue / green outfit, raised her hands in
triumph.
The Cup was won. A 364 day plan had
come to fruition and Gai was a Melbourne
Cup winning trainer and Damien Oliver
was a three time Melbourne Cup winning
jockey. But the job was not done. Well, it
was done for 2013, but Fiorente still had
plenty left to give.
The humble author of this very article
also types up Gai’s trackwork notes each
and every morning. These notes end up
appearing on Gai’s website every week day.
Gai has a unique way of rating the morning
gallops. A jockey nominates their best and
second best of the morning and then Gai
writes ‘best’ next to a particular horse’s
name on the trackwork sheet. When a horse
really impresses Gai, the Lady Trainer
draws a big smiley face next to the horse’s
name. Well I can tell you (as the one who
26
translates the cryptic clues written on these
sheets every day for the general public),
that when Fiorente arrived back to Tulloch
Lodge after his summer 2013 / 2014 spell,
not a day went by where the Cup winner
did not receive a ‘best’ call or a Waterhouse
drawn smiley face. The champ had clearly
come back in tremendous fashion for the
third time and he was sent straight to Melbourne for a crack at the Australian Cup.
First up in Melbourne on 22 February
2014, Fiorente won the 1800m Peter Young
Stakes. He was second last at the top of the
medium length Caulfield straight and not
even the most confident of owners could
have predicted that their champ would win
this race from there. But he did, and he did
pretty easily despite the 0.1 length victory
margin. Fiorente had picked up right where
and Fiorente. The Australian Cup is not the
Melbourne Cup, but it is a Classic race with
decades of tradition and to get one back on
Green Moon was great. To see the last two
Melbourne Cup winners going toe to toe at
Flemington was a real treat for anyone who
was at headquarters that day, not just the
respective connections of the two champs.
Fiorente came out on top and from here it
was straight back to Sydney where Fiorente
would try to back up for the first time after
a Group O1 win.
At Rosehill over 2000m in the Ranvet,
Fiorente ran into a very in-form mare
named Silent Achiever and was soundly beaten. This was the only flat run of
Fiorente’s career and it was not entirely
unexpected. This was also the first time he
had not gone up in distance between runs.
“When a horse really impresses Gai, the Lady Trainer
draws a big smiley face next to the horse’s name...
when Fiorente arrived back to Tulloch Lodge after
his summer 2013 / 2014 spell, not a day went by
where the Cup winner did not receive a ‘best’ call or
a Waterhouse drawn smiley face...”
he had left off. He had retained his finishing
burst and his will to win looked to have
increased over the summer.
Next it was to the Group 1 Australian
Cup where Fiorente would again meet his
Cox Plate conquerer Shamus Award who
had won the Australian Guineas in the
meantime.
The 2014 Australian Cup was pitched
as a two horse affair and a chance for
Fiorente to gain revenge for his Cox Plate
defeat by Shamus Award. It did turn out to
be a two horse war over the last 400m of
the 2000m WFA Classic, but the war was
fought between two old foes, Green Moon
Fiorente then ran in his last race, the 2400m
BMW. The track was heavy, and even in
his previous life as a European, Fiorente
had never run a race on a heavy track. He
was again beaten by Silent Achiever, a mare
who loves the wet but he was not beaten far
and it turned out that he hurt himself in the
run. And that was that. The parachute horse
had done his job many many times over.
Fiorente graced Australian racetracks
from 6 November 2012 to 5 April 2014.
Fifteen months, eleven starts on Australian
race tracks, twenty starts overall and $6.3
million dollars in prize money. He will
never be forgotten. ▣
27
Magic Millions National Sales
Be A Part Of It...
By Ric Chapman
Fashions AfieldLot
winning
506 Northern
the 2010
Meteor
FlightxStakes
Lady Cat
J
ust prior to last year’s Melbourne
Cup, I asked Gai if she would ever
consider breeding horses.
“Yes... one day, but I’m too
busy and too happy training at the moment. Breeding is something I’ll do in my
dotage!”
Well, she may reconsider that claim when
she reads the scrumptious catalogue that
Magic Millions has offered for consumption in May.
Over almost a fortnight from May
25 to June 6 this year, Magic Millions
Queensland are offering the National
Weanling Sales, National Broodmare Sales,
National Yearling Sales and National Racehorse Sales including The Teeley Dispersal
and the Jynnbrook Birchall Dispersal. The
last two Dispersal sales offer mouthwatering opportunities.
With Teeley Assets offering Estelle
Collection the dam of Lankan Rupee
(Redoute’s Choice) whose most recent wins
included six on the trot with last two being
the Newmarket at Flemington and the TJ
Smith Stakes in the recent Championships
28
at Randwick. Also offered is last year’s
Group 1 Blue Diamond winner Miracles
of Life (Not A Single Doubt x Dashing
Gazelle).
Jynnbrook Birchall offer Group 1 winning broodmare Ellicorsam in foal to So
You Think and Believe’n’Succeed in foal to
Street Cry.
For those interested in pinhooking there
is also a bumper crop of weanlings in the
National Weanling Sale Catalogue. They
feature an outstanding lineup of stock
including weanlings by Sebring, Northern
Meteor, Fastnet Rock and So You Think, as
well as freshman sires Foxwedge and Smart
Missile. This catalogue is sure to produce
many racetrack stars of the future.
The National Broodmare Sale Catalogue
also provides a tempting smorgasbord of
choice for the discerning buyer. Some examples of these are: Group 1 winning mare
Aqua d’Amore (Danehill x Romantic River) trained by Gai and owned by Coolmore
while racing, is in foal to Pierro. Fashions Afield (Redoute’s Choice x Attire),
Madame Nash (Flying Spur x Quest For
Fashions Afield
winning the Flight
Stakes in 2010
Life) and Cavalry Rose (Charge Forward x
Alberton Rose).
“This is without doubt one of the best
ever catalogues for a broodmare sale I’ve
seen,” Magic Millions Managing Director
Vin Cox said. “Whether it’s a filly with a
bright stakes future ahead or a mare who’s
produced a Group 1 winner and is carrying
a full relation - this catalogue has it all.”
Having perused the Broodmare catalogue
we tend to agree with Vin Cox’s comments.
There will certainly be spirited bidding for
new ownership of some of these ex-champions of the turf and their progeny. As
successful as the Gold Coast Yearling Sales
are in January when families are on holiday
enjoying the Queensland summer, so too
the Magic Millions National Horse Sales
provide another opportunity for escaping
the winter chill of the southern states.
The hospitality and professionalism of
the Magic Millions staff will ensure that
your experience at the sales is a positive
and successful one. We look forward to
welcoming the future star graduates from
these sales. ▣
29
RECENT
The Offer
(Montjeu x Valdara)
SCHWEPPES SYDNEY CUP
3200m
19 April, 2014
Day 2, The Championships
SCHWEPPES CHAIRMAN’S
HANDICAP 2600m
12 April, 2014
Photo by Bradley photography
AMBASSADOR TRAVEL N E
MANION CUP 2400m
29 March, 2014
Cosmic Endeavour
DRUMMOND GOLF
SAPPHIRE STAKES 1200m
19 April, 2014
30
Photo by Bradley photography
WINNERS
Dream Empress
(Holy Roman Emperor x Every Dream)
Photo by Bradley Photography
Kokoda Handicap 1200m
Warwick Farm
25 April, 2014
Diamond Drille
(Al Maher x Damzelle Pedrille)
Photo by Bradley Photography
CELEBRATIONS QUEEN OF THE TURF
STAKES 1600m
19 April, 2014
31
Rachel King
A Silent Achiever In Our Midst
Rachel King is a new name in the ranks at Tulloch Lodge but it was her
illustrious race riding career prior to her arrival in Australia which led her
around the world and to victory at the 2014 HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak
Darley Awards in Hollywood
By Emma Pearce
Rachel jumping Dream Empress
R
achel King is a 23 year old
English national who landed
in Australia back in December
2013 when she took a break
from her race riding commitments in the
UK over the winter. King was due to return
to her home in Lambourn in the glorious
south west of England two months later to
begin her apprenticeship with trainer, Eve
Johnson Houghton. By this stage, she had
been bitten by the Australian racing bug.
“Eve was fantastic. She was completely
supportive of my decision to stay in Australia and even encouraged me as she knew
what a great opportunity it was. That really
32
meant a lot to me,” said King.
Rachel’s father owned and trained hurdlers and steeplechasers. “I have been rid-
began her race riding career as an amateur
jockey when working for trainer, Clive
Cox in the UK and was selected to be part
of the prestigious FEGENTRI (Fédération
Internationale des Gentlemen-Riders et
des Cavalières) Series in 2011. In English
this translates to International Federation of Gentlemen and Lady Riders. The
FEGENTRI was founded in 1955 by
enthusiastic amateur riders from France,
Germany, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland
and today the membership consists of 25
different countries. The series consists of
two World Championships; one is confined
to gentlemen riders and one to lady riders.
There are approximately 60 races across 13
different countries to include Thoroughbred
races and Arab races. “I had never ridden
in an Arabian race until the FEGENTRI.
My first ride was in Qatar and I won, my
second ride was in Oman and I won again.
Arabian horses can be a little quirky and I
just seemed to get on with them.”
King rode around 32 winners in Ara-
“I always knew that I wanted to be a jockey and now
the ultimate goal would be to make it as a jockey in
Australia...”
ing ever since I can remember and always
had ponies. I always knew that I wanted
to be a jockey and now the ultimate goal
would be to make it as a jockey in Australia,” commented King. Rachel
bian races over three seasons which last
approximately five months. This is a great
achievement as the races are not as common
as those for thoroughbreds. Rachel was one
of around 15 lady jockeys who rode
the Arabian race circuit and last year she
became Champion Lady Jockey in the UK.
King attributes much of this success to the
great support that she received from owner,
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Deputy Ruler of the Emirate of
Dubai and owner of Shadwell Stud. Many
Rachel riding Hariir
will recognise Sheikh Hamdan’s colours
as the blue with the white epaulettes which
were carried to victory by Jeune in the 1994
Melbourne Cup but it is amongst the Arabian racing ranks that Sheikh Hamdan has
the greatest presence. Last year, King was
retained as second rider for Sheikh Hamdan
whose horses are trained in Newmarket
by Gill Duffield. A great honour for any
jockey.
It was this great accolade, becoming
Champion Lady Jockey, which led her to
Hollywood in early April of this year. Every
country with Arabian racing is asked to
nominate the highest achieving lady breeder, owner, jockey, journalist, photographer
and television presenter to participate in the
HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak
“Last year, King was
retained as second
rider for Sheikh Hamdan whose horses are
trained in Newmarket
by Gill Duffield. A great
honour for any jockey...”
Darley Awards. Sixteen lady jockeys from
across the globe were put forward and
invited to the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood
which is better known as the location where
the Oscars take place. Rachel King was
chosen by a panel of judges as the winner.
“It really was a special moment for me. I
was so honoured to have been chosen to
go to Hollywood, let alone win the award.
As the winner of my category I walked
down the Hall of Fame just as they do in the
Oscars and the whole ceremony was aired
on Dubai Television. The following evening
we had a big dinner at the Beverly Hills
Hotel. It was a weekend that I will never
forget.”
When asked what her latest aspirations
are, King replied, “I really want to make a
success of it over here in the thoroughbred
racing industry. I love riding for Gai and
being around some of the most well performed horses in not only the country but
also the world. It would be such a thrill if I
were able to race ride in Australia for Gai.”
What an amazing silent achiever we have
in our midst! ▣
33
Round Table Racing - A
Budding New Chapter
Photos by Need For Steed Aus.
Our inaugural Round Table Racing yearling
parade was a massive success and that all comes
down to those people who took the time to attend the evening.
A big thank you goes to each and every one of
you.
The evening could not have been put on without
the help of Team Gai Waterhouse, Team James
Harron, MC Jason Richardson, the ATC, and my
extraordinary girlfriend Natasha Kent. Thanks
team.
Finally, the stars of the show were every bit of
the Group 1 class that I would expect of horses
set to wear our black and yellow colours. Each
of them looked sharp under saddle, racehorses
of great promise for the future.
By the time the 2015 RTR Yearling Parade takes
place I am sure the class of 2014 will be already
doing us proud.
Bruce. ▣
34
Hayley Devlin and Bill Mitchell
Hamish McKintosh and Paul Fleming
“The parade was a good showcase
of Bruce’s ability in conjunction
with Gai. The venue was excellent,
it was an outstanding parade of
the horses and the quality of what
was purchased. Very Eloquent...”Hamish McKintosh
Luke Ricketson and Bruce Slade
Rob Kirby and Rob Waterhouse
Gai & Ross Visalli
“The parade was most impressive. It was great to
get together with many other owners, some of
whom I’ve known for many years, and we all look
forward to being a part of the new Round Table
Racing.” - Rob Kirby
Frank and Tina Colacicco
I think it was amazing. First time I’ve
ever experienced it, and it was very
professional. I really enjoyed everyone’s company. The whole event was
first class. Congratulations to Bruce,
Gai & the team for such a fantastic
event.” - Frank Colcicco
35
This Is Your Page...
It occurred to your Gai’s Gazette team recently that if it weren’t for you, the owners
and enthusiasts, the Racing Industry would not be half as successful as it is today.
Gary Beecroft, passionate race goer and keen photographer is our first contributor
to ‘Your Page’. So send us your stories, your triumphs and your favourite pictures
and each month we will place them here for the rest of our audience to share and
enjoy.
Congratulations Gary, we love your casual shots of our racing family.
Email us at: gai@gaiwaterhouse.com.au
Tweet us @ GaiWaterhouse1
36
A Letter From You...
Gai,
Thank you for allowing my sons
and neighbour to part of your
day, “A Sunday at the Stables with
Gai,” to celebrate my birthday.
Thanks to my sons for purchasing
this opportunity at the McDonalds Ball. I must congratulate you
and i admire your passion. Many
times on TV I see you and say ‘how
good is Gai for racing!!!!’ Today
further reinforced my thoughts,.
Well done and even though you
do not need it but good fortune
and happy days ahead for you....I
will keep buying my lotto tickets
so one day I can parade my horse
on Sunday....thanks Gai.
Regards,
Ray Pell
Photos by Gary Beecroft
37
Two Yearlings Demanding
Your Attention
By Madison Whant and Emma Pearce
Lot 404 Sebring x Demanding
W
38
comfortably, the Breeders’ Plate, the Group
1 Golden Slipper and the Group 1 Sire’s
Produce. He only missed out on the twoyear-old Triple Crown by a narrow margin.
It’s no wonder Sebring’s latest progeny
Lot 506 Northern Meteor x Lady Cat
ith the major sales for
the year all done and
dusted, and the end of
the Sydney Autumn Carnival, one resounding name has persisted
in the ranks – Sebring. The first day of The
Championships saw Criterion (Sebring x
Mica’s Pride) win the Australian Derby after a previous Randwick meeting saw Dissident (Sebring x Diana’s Secret) take out
the Group 1 Randwick Guineas. Outside of
Randwick, Bring Me The Maid (Sebring
x Maid For Me) won the Group 2 Magic
Night Stakes and subsequently finished a
terrific third in the Group 1 Golden Slipper,
with Believe Yourself (Sebring x Private)
coming in a close fourth.
“Sebring was always going to be a terrific
stallion, he had the physique, the attitude
and the raw ability and it seems that many
of his offspring have inherited these traits,”
says the Lady Trainer. Sebring was Champion Two-Year-Old colt in Australia in
2007-2008. He won the Canonbury Stakes
are doing well on the track, and arriving
of course, at Tulloch Lodge. The stable’s
newest addition, Lot 404 Sebring x
Demanding, has just been broken in. With
only three rides outside the stables, around
Randwick’s bullring, breaker Ryan Pendergast is very happy with his progress. “He
has a really nice action, travelling very low
to the ground. He has settled into the stable
routine very quietly, taking everything in
his stride. He is also a quick learner.”
Demanding has produced five winners,
including Listed winners, Spaceraft and
Phenomenons. Demanding, who is a half
sister to multiple Listed winner Victory
Dash and Group 2 placed Tempest Command, won twice on the track. The most
recent pedigree addition came from Lot
404’s half brother, Washington Heights
(Commands x Demanding) who ran first
up in the Group 3 Kindergarten Stakes,
amongst a well performed field of two-yearolds, and ran second.
Lot 404 is an imposing colt with a fantastic shoulder and a determined walk,
something Gai typically looks for in a
yearling as this attitude translates into their
track work.
A much earlier addition to Tulloch Lodge
was Lot 506 Norther Meteor x Lady
Cat. This Champion Sire’s progeny have
also featured in this year’s BMW Sydney
Carnival.
This precocious filly was one of the
first of the Magic Millions purchases to be
broken in at Tulloch Lodge. After returning
from a brief spell, she has already grown
taller and stretched out nicely. She has set-
of the year, the very prestigious and highly
sought after Breeders’ Plate. The fillies’
equivalent is the Gimcrack Stakes and both
of these races tend to give a guide to the
most lucrative two-year-old races throughout the year, the Golden Slipper lead-ups
and the Slipper itself.
“She is a well-grown, relaxed filly. She
has a lot of scope and is by one of my favourite sires, Northern Meteor,” says Gai.
Lot 506 was a top buy bought with a
single bid. She has an outstanding attitude
to her work which will translate into her
performance on the track and she could just
be the next Cosmic Endeavour, Northern
Glory or Bound For Earth. ▣
“He has a really nice
action, travelling very
low to the ground. He
has settled into the
stable routine very quietly, taking everything
in his stride. He is also a
quick learner.”
tled straight back into the routine. Breaker
Ryan Pendergast reports, “This filly carries
herself well, with a nice forward action.
She is very precocious and exhibits a good
attitude to work.”
Northern Meteor was leading first season
sire in 2013. His greatest offspring so far,
Zoustar, held six wins from nine starts
including winning the Group 1 Golden Rose
and Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes. Zoustar
returned to Widden Stud just last year as
one of the most sought after stallion prospects in the world. Northern Meteor played
his own silent hand in the Sydney Autumn
Carnival this year with Veuvelicious (Northern Meteor x Debutante) winning the Listed ATC Fernhill Handicap, a two-year-old
event at Randwick, and Cosmic Endeavour
(Northern Meteor x Crevette) concluding
the day with a tough pillar to post win in the
Group 2 ATC Sapphire Stakes.
Lady Cat is a proven Group 3 winner in
Peru. She is the dam of Listed winner, and
Gai Waterhouse trained two-year-old Law.
Just like this Northern Meteor filly, Law
rose to the top very quickly in his preparation and thus won the first two-year-old race
39
Words From Across the
Tasman
Petrea Vela is the Co-Managing Director of New Zealand Bloodstock. She joins us
this month in Gai’s Gazette to inform us of the New Zealand bred successful performers during our Sydney Autumn Carnival. We warmly welcome her story
By Petrea Vela
I
t’s an honour to be invited by Gai
to share the happenings from New
Zealand’s shores. Just a small
industry by comparison to Australia, but with horses, people, ambitions and
successes inextricably linked to your own,
we love the opportunity to share stories and
views back and forth across the seas.
This month the Kiwis are revelling in the
glory of a pretty fine display at the Sydney
Carnival. When The Championships were
first mooted it was widely welcomed in
New Zealand as an exciting opportunity for
owners, trainers and breeders here, given
that many of the feature races were events
NZ horses have proven to excel.
Take the Group 1 Doncaster Mile and
ATC Derby on Day 1 as examples: with
Sacred Falls’ (NZ) (O’Reilly) win in this
year’s Doncaster, New Zealand horses have
claimed six of the last seven victories in
the race, while in the Derby Criterion (NZ)
(Sebring) became the sixth NZ winner of
the last eight events.
Day 2 of The Championships also provided
some Kiwi highlights, with the filly Rising
Romance (NZ) (Ekraar) stealing the show
with a comprehensive victory in the staying
test of the Group 1 Australian Oaks. Three
of the first four fillies home were New
Zealand-bred, including the gallant Forever
Loved (NZ) (High Chaparral) finishing
fourth for Gai.
The Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes was
40
Breezing Up at Ready to Run Sale (Lots 135 and 141)
billed as the headline act at The Championships, laying claim to being the richest
2000m turf race in the world. Kiwi star (It’s
a Dundeel) (NZ) (High Chaparral) signed
“On the horizon we are
looking towards the
Queensland Winter
Carnival...”
off on his impressive career on a winning
high, holding off the fast-finishing Sacred
Falls for a Kiwi quinella in the $4 million
feature.
In all, New Zealand horses won four
of the eight Group 1 races on offer at The
Championships – a great start to what we
hope will be a special place in the shared
history of Sydney’s newest show in town.
On the horizon we are looking towards
the Queensland Winter Carnival which
is another one that has proven to suit the
Kiwis. Many of Gai’s own successes there
have been provided by horses from NZ
including the likes of Hey Pronto (NZ),
Winning Belle (NZ), Tullamore (NZ), Kontiki Park (NZ), Zacheline (NZ) and more.
The Group 1 Queensland Derby and
Group 1 Queensland Oaks have been the
happiest hunting grounds for New Zealand
in recent years with NZ winning two of the
last three Derbies and the last four Oaks’ in
a row.
Looking ahead, here at New Zealand
Bloodstock Headquarters at Karaka we’re
in planning mode for the new season. By
far and away the biggest event on our calendar is the National Yearling Sales Series
at the end of January and that forms the
backdrop to most of what goes on here over
Gai and Petrea at Day 2 of The Championships
“One thing I love about
racing is how it reaches
the most scattered
corners of the world
and ties an eclectic
group of people
together by a common
(and often irrational)
passion...”
the coming months, with (believe it or not)
entry forms going out in the next couple of
weeks.
Less well known is another burgeoning
market here in NZ which is our Ready to
Run Sale of two-year-olds (this year on 19
& 20 November). It’s a market here that
grew out of a very real need for something
to supplement the poor prize money that
was on offer. The result over its 30-year
history is now a well-established band of
experts in the field of preparing young
horses into ready-made racehorses.
The Ready to Run Sale has provided
four Group 1 winners this season (Albany
Reunion, Atlante, Sangster & Nashville),
and fourteen Group 1 wins in the last five
seasons. With the benefit of the reduced
time and risk associated with buying two-
year-olds here, it’s a market we think has a
lot of merit, and one we hope we can continue to grow over many years to come.
One thing I love about racing is how it
reaches the most scattered corners of the
world and ties an eclectic group of people
together by a common (and often irrational) passion. Kiwis and Aussies love their
sporting rivalry, but there’s also a colourful
interwoven history that we share. My random Kiwi/Aussie trivia of the day (which
may or may not be gospel, but so says the
internet so it must be true….) is just the
kind of thing. So they say, Nicole Kidman’s
hubby Keith Urban was apparently named
after our own very colourful, legendary
racecaller Keith Haub – owner of
Mr McGinty who some will remember racing against your champion Strawberry Road
back in the ‘80s – and who also happens
to be Urban’s godfather. Who knew. The
Kiwi/Aussie ties are wide and varied!
Finally, on behalf of NZ, huge congratulations must go to Gai for winning multiple
Group 1 races at The Championships. NZ
proudly claimed the deeds of Kiwis like
James McDonald, Roger James, Donna
Logan and many others as our own, but as
familiar as we all are with the rollercoaster
highs and lows our beloved sport brings, to
anyone that shared in winning glory
over the Carnival, a very deserved congratulations from your friends across the
Tasman. ▣
41
42

Vale Nathan... - Gai Waterhouse

Transcription

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