Chief Stipe

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$2.3m on four legs. Photo: Darryl Sherer Article Author Darryl Sherer 11 April 2018 13 Comments The colt of the year from the best family in the southern hemisphere is how Anthony Freedman described the $2.3m brother to Shoals which sold at the Inglis Australian Easter yearling sale on Wednesday. Bidding opened on the Fastnet Rock colt, consigned by Arrowfield, at $500,000 and ended with Freedman, standing in the gateway to the right of auctioneer Jonathan D’Arcy, who described the colt as having 'the ultimate stallions page'. Freedman trains Group I Myer Classic and Surround Stakes winner Shoals and said his knowledge of her was instrumental in him wanting to buy the colt out of The Broken Shore, a Sydney winning half-sister to Redoute’s Choice and Manhattan Rain. “You’ve got to pay for these colts but knowing the family as I do I was very confident he was the right type,” Freedman said. “Knowing her and having that sort of intel gave me more confidence, he’s not too big and I think he’s just a bigger version of her. “I really only looked at him a couple of times but I’d seen enough to know he was the right horse, "It’s a lot of money but it’s the best family in the southern hemisphere and colts like this are hard to get - for me he was the colt of the year," Freedman said he came to the sale intending to bid on the October 26 foaled colt but hoping to buy. “I came here wanting to bid on him and buy him but you never really know until you get to the actual sale,” Freedman said. “It all came together late - we still had a little bit left in the tank, I didn’t want to walk away without having a good crack at buying him. “There’s a group of people we’d expect would be interested with some good clients in him as well but we’ll sort that out now we've got him.” The colt was one of 22 yearlings at the sale to sell for $1m or more and makes a total of 31 to sell for seven figures in Australia and New Zealand this year. At the conclusion of Book 1 of the 2018 Australian Easter yearling sale, the gross of $116,057,500 is second only to the 2008 Easter Yearling Sale. The sale average finished at $347,478, slightly down on 2017, with a median of $250,000 and a clearance rate of 84 percent compared to 87 percent in 2017. The leading vendor by gross was Arrowfield with $18,265,000 and the leading sire by gross was Snitzel with $21,685,000 at an average of $528,902 and seven to sell for $1m or more. Shadwell Stud spent $6,140,000 to be the biggest spender ahead of the Hong Kong Jockey Club

Englishman Harry Herbert is in Australia with high expectations for Libran in the Sydney Cup as the … View the full article

Jockey Luke Currie's main objective will be to get Bring Me Roses settled early in the Australian Oa… View the full article

Godolphin head trainer James Cummings is confident Alizee can add a second Group One to her record w… View the full article

Nothing to do with me.

Cheeky Bee followed up a trial win with a debut success at Te Awamutu today, in the process completi… View the full article

Promising three-year-old Rock On Wood has come a long way in a short time and his progress has been … View the full article

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Kathy O'Hara is looking to the positives as she prepares to ride Single Gaze for the final time in t… View the full article

The stage looks set this weekend for the capable stayer Nymph Monte to return to his best form. View the full article

Stablemates Mark Two and Pierrocity are a run away from booking trips to Brisbane. View the full article

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Ross Barnett Article Author Ben Dorries 10 April 2018 17 Comments The Ben Currie investigation represents a massive test of the mettle, clout and investigative powers of Ross Barnett’s Queensland Racing Integrity Commission regime. Currie, who has trained more winners than anyone in Queensland over the last two seasons, is convinced he is the subject of a witch-hunt. QRIC is headed by Barnett, a former high-ranking Queensland copper who is a man not to be messed with. A former deputy police commissioner, Barnett has investigated murders, rapes and shocking criminal offences in a police career spanning decades. You wouldn’t like to be in his crosshairs if you had done something wrong. By the same token, there is a feeling within some in the Queensland racing industry that QRIC is full of what one top trainer privately labels ‘keystone cops”. Rightly or wrongly, some leading participants in Queensland feel that QRIC is something of a myth and many of their investigators simply don’t know enough horse racing to make much of a meaningful impact. Currie has been the subject of many rumours over the last 18 months and he addressed some of those HERE in a Racenet story in November last year. Now push may be coming to shove. Firstly, Barnett issued a press release last Friday warning that QRIC would be out in force at Saturday’s Weetwood meeting in Toowoomba. Then he fired off another release on Saturday, alerting everyone that QRIC’s investigations team had allegedly uncovered “suspicious activity” at Currie's stable on Saturday morning. QRIC told everyone there was something allegedly going on at Currie's stable but no horses were withdrawn from races. What is the punter supposed to think? Several of Currie’s horses were betting easers early in the Toowoomba card, and there were no early winners from his stable, but then Currie went bang with two well-backed winners, which included Weetwood winner Amanaat. So where does the matter sit now? When contacted by Racenet on Tuesday, Currie said he didn’t have anything more to say on the matter. Barnett told us the inquiry was ongoing and, as such, he wouldn’t be “commenting on the run.” While saliva, urine and blood samples were taken from Currie horses, Racenet understands Barnett will by no means rely solely on the results of these samples. CCTV footage obtained from the Currie stable is being analysed and there are other things at play. But if the whole matter comes to nothing, it will be a giant embarrassment for Barnett who will have effectively cast aspersions on the state’s leading trainer without charges being laid. If QRIC does slap charges on the table, it will be a huge moment for Barnett who came into the job pledging to clean up the industry and weed out the wrong-doers no matter where he found them. There are few bigger names in Queensland racing than Currie who has trained winners at will over the past few seasons and whose profile is growing every month. However this investigation plays out, it will be a fascinating one to watch and an important one for the men on both sides. Ben Currie (left) says he is the subject of a witch-hunt

The trainers and connections of three Sydney Cup contenders have an added incentive for their runner… View the full article

Christchurch trainer Michael House was celebrating after preparing six winners at the Manawatu meeti… View the full article

Trainer Kris Lees will have two Sydney Cup runners, with emergency Doukhan gaining a run with the sc… View the full article

Progressive mare Sacred Rhythm is on target for a Group Two feature. View the full article

If he's sound keep racing him.

She’s A Treasure will add further quality to the New Zealand assault on this weekend’s A$1 million G… View the full article

The connections of Dijon Bleu have decided that the New Zealand Bloodstock Filly of the Year has not… View the full article

Stephen Marsh is turning his attention to the Gr. 2 Travis Stakes with high-class mare Thee Auld Flo… View the full article