Rich Queen Elizabeth S. next for G3 Coongy Cup Kingswood
Trainer Gavin Bedggood’s imported 5-year-old entire Kingswood (GB) (Roaring Lion {USA}) won Wednesday’s G3 Coongy Cup by 1.75l with jockey John Allen doing the steering. Berkeley Square (Territories {Ire}) was second with Star Vega (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) in third.
Running in a Group 3 race wasn’t really in the plan, but a lack of other options at a lower grade meant Bedggood sent him here. “All went to script, Johnny popped him out on that three wide line ... He won well, and the second horse is a proper horse too.
Kingswood (GB) clears away in the G3 Coongy Cup on Wednesday | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“Obviously his rating will shoot up and I made a plan in the back of my mind to go to the Bendigo Cup next, and then into the Queen Elizabeth maybe. He’s as good a horse as I’ve had anything to do with. He’s very good stayer and has a good set of lungs.”
Kingswood came off a win at Caulfield last start and took his record to three wins from 11 starts with earnings over $270,000. A winner and Group 3-placed as a 2 and 3-year-old in Ireland, Wednesday’s win was his fourth Australian start and his first win at stakes level. He becomes the seventh stakes winner for his sire, and he is a half-brother to Champion 3YO Stayer in Europe in 2022 and dual G1 St. Leger winner (Ireland and England) Eldar Eldarov (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}). His dam, All At Sea (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), was a triple Listed winner in France and is a daughter of triple Group 1 winner Albanova (GB) (Alzao {USA}).
The Everest sold out
The Everest has created further history with Saturday’s eighth running at Royal Randwick officially sold out with the crowd expected to reach 50,000. Australian Turf Club and Racing NSW closed General Admission ticket sales four days ahead of the event in the interests of safety and comfort for patrons.
“The TAB Everest has become the hottest ticket in town and is attracting new fans in record numbers. “We are delighted to see that more than 30 per cent of ticket sales are aged under 25 and 53 per cent are female, which shows how widespread interest in TAB Everest Day is,” Australian Turf Club's CEO, Matt Galanos told racingnsw.com.au.
“Saturday will set a new modern-day record number of patrons at Royal Randwick, eclipsing even the unprecedented final run of the immortal Winx.”
US Jockey Club to recognise Aus Group 1s
The US Jockey Club will recognise the new Group 1 races The Everest and the All-Star Mile after they were promoted by Racing Australia recently, a Jockey Club spokesperson confirmed to TDN Europe on Tuesday.
“We will treat the Everest and the All Star Mile as Group 1 races,” the spokesperson said. “They have been approved for Group 1 status by the Asian Pattern Committee which satisfies the requirements for Part I countries in Australasia.”
Golden Slipper winner under the radar for The Everest
All the attention has been on Coolmore slot runner Storm Boy (Justify {USA}) for The Everest, leaving stablemate Lady Of Camelot (Written Tycoon) under the radar. “It’s an open year and it’s exciting to see the fact that a third of the field is 3-year-olds,” co-trainer Adrian Bott told racingnsw.com.au.
Adrian Bott | Image courtesy of Ashlea Brennan
“Lady Of Camelot had a really nice trial going into this and she’s going into this fresh. We tried to give her the style of campaign that would suit her best to get to the grand final. Fortunately the slot holders trusted in that style of campaign even though it wasn’t visually what you wanted to see for her last start. It was still the right set up to get her here peaking on the day.”
Queensland Derby winner Warmonger ready for G1 Caulfield Cup
Impressive G1 Queensland Derby winner Warmonger (NZ) (War Decree {USA}) will run in Saturday’s G1 Caulfield Cup and had a strong gallop on Tuesday following an 11th last start in the G1 Turnbull S. “He definitely just put in a flat performance second-up and he seems extremely well within himself, that (would indicate) he can bounce back third-up,” jockey Michael Dee told Loveracing.nz.
“Not so much in his work, but just around the parade ring he was up and about, he was bouncing out of his skin. Any horse that goes by themselves on the outside fence at Caulfield, with so much to look at, you can’t read too much into them not smashing the clock here. He had his ears pricked, he felt good, so I’m happy with how we got around.
Warmonger (NZ) | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“He definitely prefers to get his toe in, so a little bit of rain on Thursday and Friday certainly will help his chances. I just keep going back to that first-up run where he was very good finishing off, so if he can bounce back to something like that, he’s going to be finishing off very strongly in a Caulfield Cup.”
Joliestar not for sale
Cambridge Stud’s The Everest runner Joliestar (Zoustar) is not for sale. “We’ve fielded some pretty substantial offers, really big money, but we’re continuing to build our broodmare band at Cambridge Stud,” Brendan Lindsay told Loveracing.nz.
Joliestar | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
They purchased her from Segenhoe Stud’s draft at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale for $950,000. “Chris (Waller) has been very positive about her, and she’s had a freshen-up, it’s been five weeks between runs for her. It’s pretty obvious she does go better on that side, she won the Arrowfield and the Show Country when fresh.”
Softer track to suit Coco Sun in G1 Caulfield Cup
Co-trainer Tony McEvoy thinks the potential for rain will help his star 4-year-old mare Coco Sun (The Autumn Sun) in Saturday’s G1 Caulfield Cup. “The track was too firm for her with the upgrade and the 2000 metres is not her go, so all in all, it was quite a sound run,” McEvoy said of her fifth placing in the G1 Might And Power S.
Tony McEvoy | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“She was at her top for the last 1000 metres and had a really hard gallop and that was her final gallop before going into the Caulfield Cup. We’d like her to go around again. She seems quite normal and bright and that issue with the jaw was very minor. The forecast is for some rain and if the rain comes, it gives her a chance. A softer track, the rise to 2400 metres on a low weight (50.5kgs) should give her a chance to run well.”
Cuddles For Kimmy gives Spirit Of Boom an early juvenile winner
Doomben’s Wednesday meeting opened with the win of 2-year-old filly Cuddles For Kimmy (Spirit Of Boom) for trainers Corey and Kylie Geran. Ridden by apprentice Cody Collis, she won by 0.65l from 2-year-old gelding Secret Sort (Tassort) and 2-year-old filly Geitz (Better Than Ready).
Passed in at the sales by part-owner Hopetoun Farm, Cuddles For Kimmy is the third winner from ten foals for Listed-placed juvenile Cuddles For Naara (General Nediym) who is a half-sister to Listed winner Noesis (Exceed And Excel).
NZ TAB customers can win $10m on The Everest
NZ TAB customers who can correctly pick the finishing order of this year’s edition of The Everest, the world’s richest race on turf, at Randwick in Sydney on Saturday, will win NZ$10 million. The contest is free to enter for NZ TAB customers, and the NZ$10 million pool was won last year by an Auckland customer who correctly placed all 12 runners in order.
Around The Nation: Wednesday’s highlights
At Warwick Farm, all the talk was about 2-year-old filly Icarian Dream (Blue Point {Ire}), while later on the card jockey James McDonald rode a treble on 3-year-old colt Manos (Snitzel), Confess Our Dreams (Shalaa {Ire}), and Tavi Time (NZ) (Tavistock {NZ}).
Caulfield saw two stakes races with the aforementioned G3 Coongy Cup won by Kingswood (GB) (Roaring Lion {USA}) and the Listed Debutant S. won by 2-year-old filly Miss Celine (Magnus). Alabama Express 3-year-old filly Treasurethemoment showed she was too good again in taking her record to three wins from five starts.
Doomben’s meeting on Wednesday opened with 2-year-old filly Cuddles For Kimmy (Spirit Of Boom) winning for trainers Corey and Kylie Geran. I Am Artie (Artie Schiller {USA}) made it five in succession.
In South Australia, at Balaklava, 3-year-old gelding Dunreal (Dundeel {NZ}) won on debut for trainer Matthew Seyers who also won the second on the card with 3-year-old filly Scandalist (Pariah). Jockey Justin Potter rode a treble on Splash Landing (Sir Prancealot {Ire}), Rekero (Ire) (Fastnet Rock), and A Thousand Degrees (Nicconi).
Over in Western Australia, 3-year-olds won the first three on the card, being Rosie Can Run (God Has Spoken), and the Simon Miller-trained pair of Diamond Dancer (Long Leaf) and Flower Of Gold (Bull Point).
Guineas unlikely for Levakia
Trainers Ken and Bev Kelso will probably skip the G1 NZ 1000 Guineas with 3-year-old filly Levakia (NZ) (Proisir) despite her strong win on Wednesday. “She is still in the 1000 Guineas at Christchurch, but my feeling is that she probably has a bit too much to learn for that. Hopefully there are stakes races in the future for her as a 3-year-old filly. I think she has got a lot of growing to do too, she is a big filly,” Ken told Loveracing.nz. Wednesday was her first win and she placed in all her three prior starts.
Kev and Bev Kelso | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Mister Wolfgang to press on to Geelong Cup
Trainers Peter and Shaun McKay will push onto the G3 Geelong Cup with Mister Wolfgang (NZ) (Puccini {NZ}) following his Australian debut when sixth in the G2 Hebert Power S. at Caulfield last Saturday. “We are looking at going to the Geelong Cup next Wednesday. Mick (Dee) is going to ride him again, so that is encouraging. It probably could get a little bit stronger field with a few of them trying to get the last qualifications to get into the Melbourne Cup,” Peter McKay told Loveracing.nz.
“It (this trip) was more testing the ground to see where he does stand and if he was competitive enough this time around, we may put a bit of a plan in place next year and put in a bit of a campaign. So far, that run was good, and if he can do the same type of run, and hopefully run a bit closer, I will be very pleased.” Mister Wolfgang has won six of his 35 starts and is Group 3-placed.
Ellerton recovery going well
Almost four months after suffering a life-threatening stroke, trainer Mathew Ellerton continues to make big strides in his recovery. “He's been very strong considering what he went through and it's been fantastic to see that his health has really improved lately,” his wife, Leah, told racing.com.
“The strength in his legs has returned and he's walking well. It's allowed him to go into work every morning to be back at the track and with the horses. He's still got an issue with his left shoulder though and had an MRI today to continue to try and work out how to best heal it. But it's his non-dominant arm thankfully and he's been very strong, we're very lucky for what could have been.
“He's doing really well and is looking forward to getting back to the races soon hopefully, especially just to be able to thank everyone who has been so supportive over the past few months, it means so much.”
Tattersalls October continues to boom
Alex Elliott lauded Tattersalls for its “hold my beer” flex during Book 1 and 2 of the October Yearling Sale after the leading bloodstock agent signed for the 600,000gns (AU$1.2 million) Too Darn Hot (GB) joint-top lot on Tuesday for Amo Racing and Al Shaqab from Appletree Stud. “These horses, I've never seen anything like it,” he said. “It's a bit like being back in the States. I thought Saratoga was the strongest yearling sale that I have ever been to but step aside. Tatts has almost gone, 'hold my beer.' I never thought it would be this strong.”
All of the key figures were up again at Tattersalls on day two of Book 2. Despite a marginally smaller offering (1 per cent), turnover climbed 36 per cent to 24,639,000gns (AU$50.1 million) while the clearance rate stood at a massive 91 per cent with 214 lots sold of 234 offered. The median was up 14 per cent to 75,000gns (AU$153,000) while the average was up 31 per cent to 115,136gns (AU$235,000).
Irish Oaks winner to be sold at auction
It was announced on Tuesday that Irish Oaks winner You Got To Me (GB) will be offered at the forthcoming Tattersalls December Mares Sale, which takes place from December 2-5. The daughter of Nathaniel (Ire) will feature in the third edition of the Sceptre Sessions, which will be held over the first two days of the sale.
“It is very rare for Classic-winning fillies to be offered for sale in the year of their Classic triumphs and You Got To Me will be the first Irish Oaks winner to grace the December Sale stage as a three-year-old for a very long time,” said Tattersalls chair Edmond Mahony.
“She is by a wonderful sire in Nathaniel from a fabulous Moyglare Stud family and not only does she have all the credentials to be an outstanding broodmare, she also looks set to be amongst the very best of her generation as a race filly on the global stage next year.”
Disqualification for whip offenses rule gets used for only third time
It was confirmed on Tuesday by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) that Alphonse Le Grande (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), first past the post in Saturday's Cesarewitch H. at Newmarket, has been disqualified after apprentice jockey Jamie Powell was found to have used his whip above the permitted level. The race has been awarded to the original runner-up, Manxman (Ire) (Cracksman {GB}).
Brant Dunshea, chief regulatory officer for the BHA, added, “Disqualification was introduced as a deterrent against flagrant misuse of the whip, in order to safeguard the fairness of race results and perception amongst the sport's fans. It has since been adopted by other major racing nations.
“It sends a clear message that we do not tolerate misuse of the whip. There is simply no excuse for using the whip four times or more above the permitted level. It is encouraging that there have been so few instances of this being the case since the rule was introduced, with this being only the third time a winner has been disqualified for egregious overuse of the whip.
“We understand that some customers will question why this matter cannot be resolved on raceday, especially those who backed the on-the-day runner-up Manxman. However, this would present its own challenges, and the consultation process of the whip review revealed a strong preference from several key audiences that these matters should be handled away from raceday.”
Into Mischief fee unchanged for 2025
Spendthrift Farm's unstoppable Into Mischief (USA), the five-time leading sire who is on target for a sixth consecutive title in 2024, will again lead the farm's stallion roster for the upcoming breeding season. He will stand the 2025 season for US$250,000 (AU$373,000) stands and nurses, the same fee he held in 2024.
“Into Mischief continues to push into uncharted territory in the long and rich history of stallions in this industry,” said Spendthrift General Manager Ned Toffey. “He's not only on track to claim his sixth consecutive champion General Sire title, but he's also reinforcing that high level of success on the racetrack while maintaining remarkable results at the sales. Of his five Grade 1 winners in 2024, four are new Grade 1 winners this year, bringing his career total to 22. He's truly a once-in-a-generation sire.”
Into Mischief (USA) | Standing at Spendthrift Farm, USA
Spendthrift will stand 28 stallions in addition to Into Mischief, including three new stallions for the upcoming breeding season. G1 Belmont S. and G1 Haskell S. winner Dornoch (USA) was retired at the end of September following a training setback; GI Stephen Foster Stakes winner Kingsbarns (USA) was retired in August; and breeding rights to G1 Preakness S. and G1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational winner National Treasure (USA) were acquired by Spendthrift early this year.
Weanling filly tops Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Fall Mixed Sale
A filly from the first crop of multiple Grade 1 winner Cyberknife (USA) (Gun Runner {USA}) (Hip 301) topped the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Fall Mixed Sale when selling for a record-tying US$230,000 (AU$344,000) in upstate New York Tuesday. The weanling, out of D'Fashion (USA) (D'wildcat {USA}), is a half-sister to stakes winner and Graded-placed Strategic Dreams (USA) (Archarcharch {USA}). She was consigned by Gracie Bloodstock on behalf of her breeder, Dr. Jerry Bilinski's Waldorf Farm and was purchased by Diamond I.
Hip 301 - Cyberknife (USA) x D'Fashion (USA) (filly) | Image courtesy of Fasig-Tipton
During the one-session auction, 148 horses sold for US$3,939,500 (AU$5.8 million). The average was US$26,618 (AU$39,700) and the median was US$15,000 (AU$22,400) – both down slightly from 2023 figures which had an average of US$29,282 (AU$43,700) and a median of US$20,000 (AU$30,000).
