After winning the Top End and Country trainers’ premiership for a 12th straight year and claiming the Darwin Cup Carnival’s leading trainer title for the 11th time, Gary Clarke was pleased to have a break.
Darwin Cup Day was August 5, and despite taking a small team to Katherine a fortnight ago, Clarke has had plenty of time to recharge the batteries.
Pink Panther was second in the Katherine Cup behind Kerry Petrick’s Venting.
They’re back racing at Fannie Bay on Saturday, with the Darwin Turf Club hosting six races.
It’s National Jockeys Celebration Day, and the 1000m feature (BM76) honours the late Melanie Tyndall, who passed away following a fall at Fannie Bay on August 31, 2019.
Clarke’s Doc O’Connor and Rising Sphere take on Chris Nash’s Ideas Man and Lisa Whittle’s stablemates Expert Witness and Canton Kid.
Rising Sphere broke the 1000m track record (55.96) winning the Simone Montgomerie Lightning Plate on Darwin Cup Day.
Doc O’Connor, who defeated Rising Sphere in the 2023 Montgomerie Lightning, set a cracking pace before getting overrun and finishing third in this year’s edition, while Expert Witness was second and Canton Kid was sixth.
Ideas Man was third in the Palmerston Sprint (1200m) on August 3 after finishing second in the same race a year ago.
“As far as having a break, it’s an instant relief straight after the Darwin Cup,” Clarke said.
“We had another successful season, it was good.
“We’ve built a big business, but it took a long time to get to where we are now.
“We employ up to eight people, so we have to keep the wheels turning.
“Jarrod and I haven’t lost our appetite for success, Jarrod’s still pretty hungry.
“To win 12 premierships is not something I aimed for, but I would have liked to have won at least one premiership.”
Jarrod Todd has won the jockeys’ premiership for the past five years and was the leading rider during the Darwin Cup Carnival for the eighth occasion.
Clarke (68) and Todd (60) topped the charts at the end of the 2023/24 season, while Clarke (13) and Todd (11) dominated during Cup Carnival.
“Doc O’Connor was unlucky in the Lightning, but you can’t dwell on those things, and for Rising Sphere to break 56 seconds was extraordinary,” Clarke said.
“It’s a cracking race on Saturday, all five horses have a chance.
“Whoever steps cleanest out of the gates and gets the best run could win it.
“I also like Adelaide Fever, but I’ve also got a new one in the same race in Devil’s Delight who doesn’t go too bad over 1000m.”
During Cup Carnival, Clarke and Todd won the NT Derby (Masatora), Metric Mile (Wolfburn) and Dabble Cup (Shakattak).
Wolfburn (Todd) was second in the Chief Minister’s Cup and Darwin Cup, Pink Panther (Aaron Sweeney) was second in the Metric Mile, and Lumber Punk (Sweeney) was second in the Palmerston Sprint.
“Wolfburn stuck his head in front twice up the straight in the Darwin Cup and Hadouken kept kicking back,” Clarke said.
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