Benedetta, ridden by Daniel Stackhouse, wins the Cockram Stakes at Caulfield Racecourse on September 2. (Picture: Pat Scala/Racing Photos) The Group 2 Bobbie Lewis Quality (1200m) has drawn a competitive field of 11 gallopers, with $300,000 on the line for the Flemington straight-six feature. Benedetta will be looking to continue her unbeaten record for the preparation, opening as a clear +150 favourite after scoring a dominant victory in the Group 3 Cockram Stakes (1200m) on September 2. The Clinton McDonald-trained gelding Star Patrol (+400) is set to make his return…
Month: September 2023
Amelia’s Jewel headlines Let’s Elope Stakes field
Amelia’s Jewel, pictured winning the Northerly Stakes, is a hot favourite for the Let’s Elope Stakes this weekend. (Photo: Western Racepix) Amelia’s Jewel is set to line up as a -125 favourite in the Group 2 Let’s Elope Stakes (1400m) when she makes the trek to Flemington for the first time this Saturday. The Western Australia-based four-year-old comes over with a near-unblemished record of seven wins from nine career starts. She took out the Group 1 Northerly Stakes (1800m) on December 3 last year before returning to contest The Quokka…
Te Akau team on song for Taupo
Te Akau Racing co-trainer Sam Bergerson is still coming down from the high of winning his first Group One at Hastings on Saturday, but his attention has swiftly turned to a busy week of racing. “It was pretty surreal. You don’t have many days like that and to have it so early on in my training career I am very fortunate,” said Bergerson, who trains in partnership with Mark Walker. The Matamata operation will take seven runners to Taupo on Friday, headlined by last start Group One winner Romancing The…
New partnership aiming for Jericho
A trio of in-form stablemates will represent a new training combination when they start their quests on Saturday for a place in the Jericho Cup (4600m) in Victoria later this year. Extreme distance contenders Right Now (NZ) (Wrote), Jesko (NZ) (Atlante) and Sailor Jack (NZ) (Jakkalberry) will contest the first New Zealand qualifying race when they do battle in the NZB Airfreight Road To The Jericho (3210m) at New Plymouth. They will be the first runners for Awapuni-based trainer and leading jumps jockey Shaun Fannin and his fiancé Hazel Schofer,…
Sydney calling Pennyweka
A trip to Sydney is on the cards for Oaks darling Pennyweka (NZ) (Satono Aladdin). The winner of last season’s Gr.1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m) and Gr.1 Australian Oaks (2400m) had her first run as a four-year-old when 13th in last Saturday’s Gr.1 Tarzino Trophy (1400m), a distance well short of her best. Trainer Jim Wallace was pleased with what he saw from his mare and has decided to bypass the Gr.1 Arrowfield Stud Plate (1600m) and Gr.1 Livamol Classic (2040m) in favour of chasing the spring riches on offer in…
Pennyweka being set for Sydney spring
Pennyweka winning the Group 1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m). Photo: Peter Rubery (Race Images Palmerston North) Pennyweka, the Oaks sensation who triumphed in both the Group 1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m) and Group 1 Australian Oaks (2400m) last season, is set to make her way to Sydney for an exciting campaign. Her first outing as a four-year-old saw her finish 13th in the Group 1 Tarzino Trophy (1400m), a distance considerably shorter than her preferred range. Trainer Jim Wallace, who also co-bred and co-owns the mare, expressed satisfaction with her…
Romancing The Moon primed for Taupo return
Romancing The Moon winning the Group 1 Levin Classic (1600m). Photo: Peter Rubery (Race Images Palmerston North) Te Akau Racing co-trainer Sam Bergerson is still basking in the glory of his first-ever Group One win at Hastings last Saturday, but his focus has swiftly shifted to a busy week of racing ahead. Bergerson, who operates in partnership with Mark Walker, expressed his elation, saying, “It was pretty surreal. You don’t have many days like that, and to have it so early on in my training career I am very fortunate.”…
Fannin & Schofer chasing Jericho Cup ticket
Shaun Fannin and Hazel Schofer will line up three contenders in Saturday’s NZB Airfreight Road To The Jericho (3210m) at New Plymouth. Photo: Race Images Three in-form stablemates are set to make their bids for a place in the Jericho Cup (4600m) in Victoria later this year, representing a new training partnership. Right Now, Jesko, and Sailor Jack, all contenders for extreme distances, will participate in the first New Zealand qualifying race, the NZB Airfreight Road To The Jericho (3210m) at New Plymouth. These three horses will be the inaugural…
Group 1 winner Lickety Split retired
Group One winner Lickety Split has been retired. Photo: Bruno Cannatelli Group One winner Lickety Split has officially ended her illustrious racing career, culminating in a last-place finish at the Group 1 Tarzino Trophy (1400m) at Hastings last Saturday. Trained by Andrew Forsman, Lickety Split had been a remarkable representative for her sire, Turn Me Loose. Her victory in the Group 1 Sistema Stakes (1200m) early in her juvenile season marked Turn Me Loose’s inaugural Group One win as a sire. Following that early success, Lickety Split went on to…
Tiz Invincible, Kimochi vying for Tea Rose Stakes favouritism
Zac Lloyd lifts Tiz Invincible to victory in the Group 2 Furious Stakes. (Photo: Racing NSW) The Group 2 Tea Rose Stakes (1400m) has lured a field of 16 fillies for the three-year-old feature at Randwick this Saturday afternoon. This is considered the third leg of the Princess Series, with the Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott-trained Autumn Ballet quoted at +800 after taking out the first leg in the Group 2 Silver Shadow Stakes (1200m) on August 19. The Waterhouse & Bott stable has a strong hand with three more…