The new 'millionaire' races have been established outside the framework of the traditional Pattern, prompting clashes between feature races in Sydney and Melbourne, in particular in the spring.
The Everest's scheduling in close proximity to existing Group 1 races such as the Manikato S. at Moonee Valley has been cited as one of the key objections to it being approved as a Group 1 race, something that hasn't been possible anyway due to the fact the Racing Australia Pattern Committee has not met since 2018.
For owners and syndicators, as well as their trainers, the political machinations of Racing Australia are of little consequence as they plot the spring paths of their best horses. However, with so much prizemoney available in these new races, none of which have attained stakes status, they are faced with a dilemma, do they target the black type or the prizemoney?
"With so much prizemoney available in these new races, none of which have attained stakes status, they are faced with a dilemma, do they target the black type or the prizemoney?"
This is an issue which has been put into sharp focus by the establishment of The Invitation, a $2 million race for fillies and mares over 1400 metres at Randwick. It is scheduled for October 23, seven days before what has been the traditional 'mares' Grand Final' of the spring, the G1 Empire Rose S. at Flemington which is worth $1 million.
For fillies and mares in particular, black type plays a major role in their residual value, and a decision to chase prizemoney over Group success could prove detrimental to the return a mare might make when sold or bred with after her racing career.
Shout The Bar (yellow cap) winning the G1 Empire Rose S. last year | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
Where do you send a Star?
It took Star Thoroughbreds' Denise Martin 'about 10 seconds' after she heard about the establishment of The Invitation for her to identify rising star mare Kiku (Zoustar) as an ideal candidate for the race.
Kiku, the sister to G1 Newmarket H. winner Zoutori, already has a Group 3 success to her credit but a Group 1 race would supercharge her residual value. However, there is also the lure of a $2 million race seven days earlier.
Martin is always led by her trainer, Chris Waller, on the right races for her horses to target and says there are a lot of factors that play in to the placement of her horses.
Denise Martin | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
"It’s a real balancing act and sometimes you have to assess which competition will go where. If you have a well-bred filly that has been Group placed several times, her owners and connections might decide to go for a Group 1 race and leave the prizemoney for someone else," she said.
"The trainers know as well as the owners do what the competition is likely to be. You take all those factors into consideration before you hopefully make a right decision."
"The trainers know as well as the owners do what the competition is likely to be. You take all those factors into consideration before you hopefully make a right decision." - Denise Martin
With Star Thoroughbreds having sold Invincibella (I Am Invincible), Foxplay (Foxwedge) and Fiesta (I Am Invincible) in recent years for seven-figure amounts after their racing careers, Martin is well-versed in how race performance can impact residual values for mares.
She points to the case of Invincibella, who retired as a Group 1 winner, but also as a winner of over $3 million in prizemoney. She earned $300,000 for her G1 Tatt's Tiara win, but close to $1.8 million from her three victories in the Magic Millions Fillies and Mares' race, which holds no black type.
Invincibella retired as the highest-ever prizemoney earner by I Am Invincible and a Group 1 winner and Martin believes both achievements played a role in her securing a $1.3 million pricetag from Tom Magnier when she was offered through the 2020 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale.
Invincibella when sold at Magic Millions | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
Rich pickings for spring
First Light Racing's Director Tim Wilson is another whose ears pricked up when he heard the announcement of The Invitation.
First Light's 5-year-old mare Rich Hips (Written Tycoon), trained by Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young, would make an ideal candidate for a 1400-metre race, particularly one run for $2 million, but his challenge is with how the race has been 'dropped-in' to the spring schedule, without a clear path of how to get there.
"With a race like The Invitation immediately you think, that'd be great for a horse like Rich Hips, but how do you slot a campaign for her into a race like that? It’s hard," Wilson said.
"We’ve had that spring program, and everything that has been part of The Pattern, for a very long time. It flows through."
"Even though race like The Invitation is highly tempting, until you have a sense of where they sit in the calendar, they become hard races to target." - Tim Wilson
"Even though race like The Invitation is highly tempting, until you have a sense of where they sit in the calendar, they become hard races to target.
"If Rich Hips is flying at the time and the race is there, then we will take the opportunity, but it’s hard to specifically target them."
Rich Hips | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
Wilson has a similar criticism of the scheduling of the All-Star Mile, which First Light had Aristia (Lonhro) run in in 2019. He said there is a danger of jeopardising a horse's campaign by running it in the wrong races because of the prizemoney.
"These races are very lucrative but you have to go there with as a bona fide top-three chance, because given the time of year they are at, you are blessed with alternative options. With Rich Hips and The Invitation, you are probably bypassing the Empire Rose. You want to make sure you are making the right call, because you are giving up on a Group 1," he said.
Respecting tradition remains key
What was universal among those spoken to by TDN AusNZ is the importance of tradition alongside innovation and the value of The Pattern to the Australian racing landscape.
For Wilson, it speaks to the great passion which drives the industry.
"One of the great unbridled joys as an owner at the start of the spring is looking ahead and plotting a path. I'm a historian and these races are time-honoured. I love nothing more than seeing See You In Spring line up in the Quezette on Saturday and looking through the great 3-year-old fillies that have won these races," he said.
"The Pattern is incredible for the industry, not just from a breeding perspective, but from an ownership journey perspective and I am fully supportive of what the bloodstock agents are trying to achieve in getting The Pattern to be addressed and prioritised.
"We have to get everybody together and get the right Pattern that supports the industry, supports prizemoney and supports owners and then flows on to support the breeding industry going forward by giving you genuine races by which you can value your stallions and credential your mares."
Gift a better option?
There are instances when the scheduling of these new races has provided a preferable option for owners and trainers.
One of these appears to be the Golden Gift, the $1 million race for 2-year-olds held at Rosehill in early November. Darby Racing has 'built a business on 2-year-olds' with horses such as G1 Golden Slipper S. winner She Will Reign (Manhattan Rain), while they regularly have juveniles targeted at the early 2-year-old features in Sydney, the G3 Gimcrack S. for the fillies and the G3 Breeders' Plate for the colts and geldings.
"I'm hearing a lot more from our trainers with our 2-year-olds coming through that they will look to target the Golden Gift a month later rather than a Gimcrack or Breeders'," Scott Darby said.
Scott Darby | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
"We're going to have to watch how that impacts things. We have thrown $1 million at a race that sits a month after those other races and many trainers aren't looking to target both races.
"There seems to be a shift away from getting horses ready that early. We have also now got races like the Inglis Nursery here in Sydney in December.
"We have built our whole business on 2-year-old racing and have been lucky enough to have a couple of Gimcrack winners. We love getting them there, but this is the first year where we may not have any horses heading towards those first trials."
Group 1 in all but name
Triple Crown Syndications has benefited more than any other syndicator when it comes to these new races, with its champion sprinter Redzel (Snitzel), winning the first two editions of The Everest, helping him amass over $16 million in prizemoney.
Triple Crown's Chris Ward believes the fact that The Everest isn't afforded Group 1 status doesn't diminish what Redzel was able to achieve, nor does it negatively impact the value of any horse that was to win a race of its standing.
"If you are looking at the Group status of various races and you are thinking what value that might have for the breeding life of a horse, the breeders are pretty intelligent and I don’t think it takes Einstein to work out a race like The Everest is a Group-quality race," he said.
"The breeders are pretty intelligent and I don’t think it takes Einstein to work out a race like The Everest is a Group-quality race." - Chris Ward
"Any breeder who buys a colt or a mare that has won a race of that status is going to treat it as a horse that has won a Group 1 and I think the market would generally reflect that as well."
Michael and Chris Ward
That's something that another syndicator, Tricolours Racing's James Moss, agrees with, having run their star mare Fasika (So You Think {NZ}) in the Golden Eagle in 2019.
"Races like the Golden Eagle and The Everest, even though they aren't Group 1 races at the moment, they are going to end up being considered Group 1 races when you go to take a mare to stud anyway," Moss said.
"I can't see owners losing anything at the end of their racing career because these races will be held in such high esteem. I think they are the equivalent of Group 1s and the races have shown that. I think the whole racing community appreciates the value of those races."
Igniting an interest
The majority of the syndicators that TDN AusNZ spoke to also agreed that the new races, especially The Everest, had re-invigorated interest in ownership and brought new clients to their businesses.
"The impact of those races has been huge. They have been great selling tools. They are exciting and they are new and in syndication we are capturing a lot of new owners every year," Darby said.
Triple Crown Syndications has clearly benefited from the exposure The Everest granted it through Redzel's heroics and Ward feels the new innovations have caught the imagination on a broader range of people.
"Without a doubt. I think racing has done a great job with them. I don’t think you want to flood the calendar with them, but there is certainly a place for them. I think they do grab the broader public's attention and that's so important in introducing new people to the sport and showcasing what we have got," Ward said.
