Chief Stipe

Yep bring back the command economy managed by executive decree - well don't bring it back we already have it under this Labour Government! Oh we do forget so easily - the memories of car less days, Think Big, Muldoon devaluing the dollar with the stroke of a pen, warehouses full of Government procurement's never to be used. I remember having to apply for foreign exchange down at the Post Office to purchase a hobby magazine from the USA. Yes those were the days of intense productivity. SMP's.....

Could have guessed you are a bloody socialist!

All those with their bets paid out by the bookies in OZ weeks ago will be pleased! In excess of $15m!

Zaaki scratched from Cox Plate Andrew Eddy@fastisheddy 7:52am Zaaki with stable mate Mo'unga at The Valley earlier this week. Today’s Cox Plate favourite Zaaki has been scratched from the $5 million event due to an elevated temperature. In what is the cruelest of timing, Zaaki has long been the horse to beat in the Cox Plate, but he has fallen sick on the morning of the race. Trainer Annabel Neasham put out a tweet just after scratching time of 7.30am to confirm the news, claiming she is ‘’gutted’’ for connections and jockey James McDonald. Zaaki had been raging Cox Plate favourite since the Brisbane winter carnival with one betting agency already paying out bets for the horse to win the Cox Plate. The sensational scratching of Zaaki has opened up the way for Godolphin to win their first Cox Plate with the three-year-old Anamoe now likely to jump as favourite. 9 The Valley 23 Oct 2021 7:10pm2040mSoft 5Ladbrokes Cox Plate Form RUNNERS ODDS PROVIDED BY 1. Zaaki (GB) T: A.S.NeashamJ: J.B.McDonald 2. Dalasan (3) T: L.Macdonald & A.GluyasJ: D.Moor $21.00 BET NOW 3. Gold Trip (FR) T: C.Maher & D.EustaceJ: D.Oliver 4. Callsign Mav (NZ) (5) T: J.BaryJ: L.Nolen $35.00 BET NOW 5. Mo'unga (NZ) (4) T: A.S.NeashamJ: H.Bowman $7.00 BET NOW 6. Verry Elleegant (NZ) (9) T: C.J.WallerJ: D.M.Lane $3.70 BET NOW 7. Probabeel (NZ) (7) T: J.RichardsJ: B.Prebble $9.50 BET NOW 8. State Of Rest (IRE) (8) T: J.P.O'BrienJ: J.Allen $6.50 BET NOW 9. Anamoe (10) T: J.A.CummingsJ: C.Williams $2.90 BET NOW 10. Captivant (1) T: P. & P.SnowdenJ: D.Yendall $11.00 BET NOW

Zaaki Scratched!

Well Labour have never done anything either! They just paid the bribe from NZ First and Winston!

They will have an impact - negative. Wait until the operation bills start flowing in, along with the realisation that the capital asset grab won't work!

Excellent if that is the case. Melbourne tracks would suit her more. Actually you are right she'll race there in a weeks time.

What has Racing done for itself except mismanage and piss all its Government benefits against the wall?

Aiming for the Golden Eagle or a race thereabouts. Training well I believe. Might be an Autumn horse though.

Cox PlateNSW Verry special mare set for Cox Plate glory Verry Elleegant is in search of a 10th Group 1 win when she tackles the W.S. Cox Plate at The Valley on Saturday. Picture: Getty Images By Ray Thomas 05:29pm • 21 October 2021 Comments The dam cost about $10,000, the sire had a service fee of just $500 – and the product of the mating has won nearly $10 million. Champion mare Verry Elleegant is the type of rag-to-riches story that keeps the romance in racing. It provides hope that everyone is a chance in this game. Verry Elleegant, recently crowned Horse of the Year for 2020-21, is already the winner of nine Group 1 races and $9.3 million to be eighth on the all-time leading prizemoney earners. Victory in the W.S. Cox Plate would lift Verry Elleegant to fifth on the list of Australia’s All-Time Leading Prizemoney earners. Picture: Getty Images But if Verry Elleegant can win the Group 1 $5 million Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley on Saturday, she will collect another $3 million and vault to fifth in the prizemoney ranking, rising above legendary mare Sunline ($11.3 million). For New Zealand hobby breeder and part-owner Don Goodwin, 83, Verry Elleegant’s success on the racetrack continues to astound him. “I had one broodmare, Opulence, when Verry Elleegant was born,” Goodwin said. “I’ve only got two broodmares now. “For someone like me to breed such a great mare is a wonderful thrill – it is almost unbelievable.” The story goes that Goodwin was a part-owner of Zed, a son of Zabeel, who showed considerable promise before a leg injury prematurely ended his race career. Zed had only won a maiden at Hastings so he certainly wasn’t regarded as a commercial stallion prospect when retired to stud but Goodwin retained shares in the young sire. A few years later, Goodwin noticed the pedigree of the mare, Opulence, who was part of the 2011 NZ Broodmare Sale catalogue. AUSTRALIA’S ALL-TIME LEADING PRIZEMONEY EARNERS 1 Winx $26,451,174 2 Redzel $16,444,000 3 Nature Strip $14,953,686 4 Makybe Diva $14,526,690 5 Sunline $11,351,610 6 Classique Legend $9,385,500 7 Northerly $9,341,850 8 Verry Elleegant $9,315,744 9 Chautauqua $8,821,935 10 So You Think $8,813,497 Opulence was a moderate performer on the racetrack but her great-granddam was Cotehele House, herself the dam of multiple Group 1 winner Danewin. More importantly, Cotehele House was out of the incomparable broodmare Eight Carat, herself the dam of five Group 1 winners including champions Octagonal and Mouawad. “I kept looking at Opulence’s breeding through Eight Carat so I decided to try and buy her,” Goodwin said. He needed to sign a cheque for only about $A10,000 to secure the mare. Goodwin sent the mare to Zed, who stands at Grangewilliam Stud in Wanganui and the first mating, Verry Flash, has been a handy horse for his owner-breeder, winning eight races and placing at Group 3 level. Then a year later, Verry Elleegant was born – and the rest is history. This is Verry Elleegant’s second attempt at the Cox Plate after she ran unplaced behind Lys Gracieux two years ago. The Chris Waller-trained Verry Elleegant is a far superior racehorse these days although she goes into Saturday’s race off an indifferent fourth to Incentivise in the Turnbull Stakes. “Her blood wasn’t quite right after the Turnbull,” Goodwin said. Verry Elleegant is a descendant of the great broodmare Cotehele House, the dam of for top racehorse Danewin (pictured). “She is a six-year-old mare, maybe it was the trip from Sydney to Melbourne, but she is a lot better now. She is eating really well and the stable is very positive about her chances in the Cox Plate. “I was there to watch her in the Cox Plate two years ago but she drew barrier four, missed the start and that was the end of that. “She has barrier nine on Saturday and I think that is quite good to be honest. I have every faith in her.” With the success of Verry Elleegant, Goodwin has no reason to send Opulence anywhere else but to visit Zed each spring breeding season. Breeding racehorses can be a time-consuming practice with no guarantees. Often it is frustrating, even heartbreaking business. “We had a full brother to Verry Elleegant that would have been a two-year-old this season but he suffered a paddock accident in July and had to be put down,” Goodwin said. “When she had that colt, the mare was haemorrhaging at birth and we almost lost her. She spent a week at the vets recovering so she didn’t have a foal last year. Opulence, with her colt by Zed, making him a full brother to Verry Elleegant. “But she got through it and had another colt by Zed in August and she is already back in foal to him again. “I’ve got to get a filly soon, surely. I’m hoping to get a sister to Verry Elleegant so we can breed from her.” With the pandemic keeping international borders closed, Goodwin is confined to watching Verry Elleegant’s latest Cox Plate attempt from the comforts of his lounge room at his Auckland home. Finally, Goodwin is obviously the best person to clear up once and for all the spelling of Verry Elleegant. Once mocked for being a “poor speller”, Goodwin offers a more heartwarming reason for the mare’s unusual name. “Ellee is my granddaughter’s name,” Goodwin said. “I played around with it and came up with Verry Elleegant. “I had named her older brother Verry Flash and put to two r’s in his name to make it look different, I think it catches your eye.”

Cox PlateNSW Verry special mare set for Cox Plate glory Verry Elleegant is in search of a 10th Group 1 win when she tackles the W.S. Cox Plate at The Valley on Saturday. Picture: Getty Images By Ray Thomas 05:29pm • 21 October 2021 Comments The dam cost about $10,000, the sire had a service fee of just $500 – and the product of the mating has won nearly $10 million. Champion mare Verry Elleegant is the type of rag-to-riches story that keeps the romance in racing. It provides hope that everyone is a chance in this game. Verry Elleegant, recently crowned Horse of the Year for 2020-21, is already the winner of nine Group 1 races and $9.3 million to be eighth on the all-time leading prizemoney earners. Victory in the W.S. Cox Plate would lift Verry Elleegant to fifth on the list of Australia’s All-Time Leading Prizemoney earners. Picture: Getty Images But if Verry Elleegant can win the Group 1 $5 million Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley on Saturday, she will collect another $3 million and vault to fifth in the prizemoney ranking, rising above legendary mare Sunline ($11.3 million). For New Zealand hobby breeder and part-owner Don Goodwin, 83, Verry Elleegant’s success on the racetrack continues to astound him. “I had one broodmare, Opulence, when Verry Elleegant was born,” Goodwin said. “I’ve only got two broodmares now. “For someone like me to breed such a great mare is a wonderful thrill – it is almost unbelievable.” The story goes that Goodwin was a part-owner of Zed, a son of Zabeel, who showed considerable promise before a leg injury prematurely ended his race career. Zed had only won a maiden at Hastings so he certainly wasn’t regarded as a commercial stallion prospect when retired to stud but Goodwin retained shares in the young sire. A few years later, Goodwin noticed the pedigree of the mare, Opulence, who was part of the 2011 NZ Broodmare Sale catalogue. AUSTRALIA’S ALL-TIME LEADING PRIZEMONEY EARNERS 1 Winx $26,451,174 2 Redzel $16,444,000 3 Nature Strip $14,953,686 4 Makybe Diva $14,526,690 5 Sunline $11,351,610 6 Classique Legend $9,385,500 7 Northerly $9,341,850 8 Verry Elleegant $9,315,744 9 Chautauqua $8,821,935 10 So You Think $8,813,497 Opulence was a moderate performer on the racetrack but her great-granddam was Cotehele House, herself the dam of multiple Group 1 winner Danewin. More importantly, Cotehele House was out of the incomparable broodmare Eight Carat, herself the dam of five Group 1 winners including champions Octagonal and Mouawad. “I kept looking at Opulence’s breeding through Eight Carat so I decided to try and buy her,” Goodwin said. He needed to sign a cheque for only about $A10,000 to secure the mare. Goodwin sent the mare to Zed, who stands at Grangewilliam Stud in Wanganui and the first mating, Verry Flash, has been a handy horse for his owner-breeder, winning eight races and placing at Group 3 level. Then a year later, Verry Elleegant was born – and the rest is history. This is Verry Elleegant’s second attempt at the Cox Plate after she ran unplaced behind Lys Gracieux two years ago. The Chris Waller-trained Verry Elleegant is a far superior racehorse these days although she goes into Saturday’s race off an indifferent fourth to Incentivise in the Turnbull Stakes. “Her blood wasn’t quite right after the Turnbull,” Goodwin said. Verry Elleegant is a descendant of the great broodmare Cotehele House, the dam of for top racehorse Danewin (pictured). “She is a six-year-old mare, maybe it was the trip from Sydney to Melbourne, but she is a lot better now. She is eating really well and the stable is very positive about her chances in the Cox Plate. “I was there to watch her in the Cox Plate two years ago but she drew barrier four, missed the start and that was the end of that. “She has barrier nine on Saturday and I think that is quite good to be honest. I have every faith in her.” With the success of Verry Elleegant, Goodwin has no reason to send Opulence anywhere else but to visit Zed each spring breeding season. Breeding racehorses can be a time-consuming practice with no guarantees. Often it is frustrating, even heartbreaking business. “We had a full brother to Verry Elleegant that would have been a two-year-old this season but he suffered a paddock accident in July and had to be put down,” Goodwin said. “When she had that colt, the mare was haemorrhaging at birth and we almost lost her. She spent a week at the vets recovering so she didn’t have a foal last year. Opulence, with her colt by Zed, making him a full brother to Verry Elleegant. “But she got through it and had another colt by Zed in August and she is already back in foal to him again. “I’ve got to get a filly soon, surely. I’m hoping to get a sister to Verry Elleegant so we can breed from her.” With the pandemic keeping international borders closed, Goodwin is confined to watching Verry Elleegant’s latest Cox Plate attempt from the comforts of his lounge room at his Auckland home. Finally, Goodwin is obviously the best person to clear up once and for all the spelling of Verry Elleegant. Once mocked for being a “poor speller”, Goodwin offers a more heartwarming reason for the mare’s unusual name. “Ellee is my granddaughter’s name,” Goodwin said. “I played around with it and came up with Verry Elleegant. “I had named her older brother Verry Flash and put to two r’s in his name to make it look different, I think it catches your eye.” Read all news by Ray Thomas

Perhaps they should have used a Jockey's whip and used it in non consecutive strides! As an aside apparently it is illegal to use a poly pipe to strike a cattle beast in a yard race. No doubt there will be Cattle Race Counsellors coming to a stockyard near you.

NSWStewards Baker trio disqualified for animal cruelty Three Bjorn Baker stable staff members have been disqualified. Picture: Getty Images By Matt Jones 10:51pm • 21 October 2021 A lawyer for three Bjorn Baker stable staff members on Thursday argued there was there was no reason to doubt their love for racehorses despite all pleading guilty to animal cruelty charges. Stephen McLean, Daniel Henkel and Hannah Olden ­received various punishments following the treatment of a horse at the Warwick Farm equine pool on the morning of Saturday, August 28. McLean pleaded guilty for failure to exercise reasonable care, control and supervision to prevent acts of cruelty committed, while Henkel and Olden pleaded guilty for an act of cruelty on a horse. All three were represented by lawyer John Anderson, who acknowledged “the welfare of horses is a central matter to the integrity of racing”. During the inquiry it was alleged that a poly pipe and a piece of conduit were used to strike the horse. However, an inspection conducted by two independent veterinarians showed the horse was not injured. Anderson asked for McLean, who is no longer employed by Baker, to be fined $5000 and for it to be reduced due to his early guilty plea. Anderson wanted a two-month suspension for Olden and a ban for Henkel which was to be suspended. “The appellant did not intend to cause and injury,” he said. “The lack of intent to harm must be taken into account. There is no evidence to cause pain or suffering to the horse. They expressed deep remorse for what has occurred and wished it didn’t happen.” Stewards hit the trio with harsher bans than they sought. McLean received a four-month disqualification, while Henkel was disqualified for four months and two weeks, and Olden was rubbed out of racing for three months. “Mr Henkel’s conduct is at the lower range of objective seriousness,” Anderson said. “There’s no reason to doubt his love for racehorses.”

Do you think handing out multi-million cash benefits, financing white elephants and bailing out the bankrupt TAB is actually "doing something"?

Cox Plate Waller: Cox Plate ‘very even’ after stars stumble Chris Waller is confident Verry Elleegant can bounce back from a flat run in the Cox Plate. Picture: Getty Images By Ben Dorries 02:40pm • 21 October 2021 Comments Master trainer Chris Waller feels the last-start defeats of his star mare Verry Elleegant and key rival Zaaki have made the Cox Plate a very even contest. “It was shame that Zaaki and Verry Elleegant got beaten last start because it looked like it was a race clash of years gone by,” Waller told News Corp Australia. “Whether that be a Winx and Hartnell or many of the other great horses. “It was a shame that both horses (Verry Elleegant and Zaaki) put in a flat run. “There’s others there now that have made the Cox Plate a very even race.” Zaaki holds $2.80 Cox Plate favouritism with TAB and Verry Elleegant is at $5, separated in betting by Godolphin’s star three-year-old and Caulfield Guineas winner Anamoe at $4.20. Bookmakers are giving outsiders Dalasan and Callsign Mav very little hope, but every other contender in the 10-horse contest has been kept relatively safe in betting. It is a vastly different scenario to when the mighty Winx completed dominated the betting boards in the last three of her four consecutive Cox Plate wins. With nine Group 1s to her name, it would be a fool who would write off Verry Elleegant after her unplaced effort behind star galloper Incentivise in the Group 1 Turnbull Stakes at Flemington earlier this month. And that’s especially the case when you consider there was an excuse of sorts. Damian Lane riding Verry Elleegant during the Breakfast with the Best trackwork session at The Valley on Tuesday. Picture: Getty Images While nothing turned up immediately post-race, in the days afterwards Waller’s vet Dr Tim Roberts discovered the mare’s blood work was not quite as it should be. Verry Elleegant’s appetite had also dipped. It was only a relatively minor issue which was remedied naturally with vitamins and minerals. However, Waller went back through his records and discovered Verry Elleegant’s appetite was also reduced after arriving for the Melbourne spring in years past. “We went back and looked at our records for the last two years when she has previously been down there and each time her appetite has backed off a little bit,” Waller said. “But she managed to get away with it last year in the Turnbull, where she won, but in hindsight she wasn’t impressive. “Then she rebounded off that and won a Caulfield Cup, so we didn’t really look into it too much at the time. “The good news is her work last Saturday morning was pretty good and we took the ear muffs off at the Valley on Tuesday morning and let her get close to what she wears raceday. “Damian Lane said she was a completely different horse compared to the Turnbull.” Waller said there had not been any panic with Verry Elleegant since the Turnbull when she finished 3½ lengths off Incentivise. Given the blood work issue has been sorted, Waller is approaching the Cox Plate with increasing optimism. However, he concedes the proof will be in the pudding. “I’m looking forward to Saturday with a little bit more confidence, but I’m always a little bit cautious after a great horse like her puts in a flat run,” Waller said. “Is she a champion? Everyone has got their own opinions on that. “I just think she has been a great horse over a few years now and that separates her from some other Group 1 winners.”

https://www.racing.com/videos/2021-10-02/murtoa-race-3--021021

For John Bary, elite horse racing boils down to simple things such as times and timing. Times, he says, reveals nearly all there is to know about the talents of a horse while timing puts the horse in the best spot possible for the numbers to matter most. No wonder then, he scoffs as the very idea his horse Callsign Mav can be the extreme outsider in Saturday’s Cox Plate. “Ratings for me, I don’t think they matter a toss really,” Bary said this week. “All that matters to me is their times. What kind of times they can run in a race or here at home on my track. “All good horses run time, and, they all do it easily.” Bary is a New Zealand horse trainer, who will be at home in Hawke’s Bay when Callsign Mav takes to the course for the Cox Plate a neat 10 years after a narrowly-failed attempt by the trainer to win the race with Jimmy Choux. Callsign Mav, at a domestic rating of 115, is the equal lowest-rated horse in Saturday’s line-up along with three-year-old Captivant and northern hemisphere three-year-old State Of Rest. With Sportsbet, he is the field’s bolter at $61. Jimmy Choux travelled three-wide when he tackled the race as a four-year-old in 2011 before Pinker Pinker gained dream splits to run him down late. He could run times too, but maybe the timing was just not right for him to succeed. “It’s one of the things that I learned early – when I had Jimmy Choux - that when you go from three to four at weight-for-age you are playing with the big boys,” Bary said. “It’s like taking a school child out and throwing hjm into an AFL grand final.” When Callsign Mav had just turned four at the beginning of last season, he won his first group 1 in New Zealand but Bary had no thoughts of a Cox Plate attempt. “He won the Tarzino (Trophy) last season and that was great because he just did it off pure nerves and stuff.,” Bary said. “I said to the boys ‘that’s great but let me just finish furnishing the horse for the rest of the season’, which they did. “Now, he’s got another 30 kilograms on him so suddenly he’s 530kgs. He’s a big, strong and big-shouldered horse and he’s turned into the real deal this season. “What told me he was good enough was his two seconds in February this year against Avantage, who was absolutely on top of her game last season. “One was over 1400 (metres) and the other over a mile. His sectionals there were very good. I think he ran the fastest four final sectionals and finished off with a 10-something and he has improved three or four lengths since then. “You know that if you are doing those times and still learning your trade, you’re a good horse.” Bary well remembers the afternoon when Jimmy Choux beat all but one of his Cox Plate rivals after the horse was caught wide. His jockey that day was Jonathan Riddell and the rider was noticeably devastated after dismounting. “He might not have been everyone’s champion, but he was our champion,” Bary said. “We spent a lot of time with the horse so it was gutting for all of us for that reason. You don’t get many shots at the Cox Plate. “Probably my biggest regret this time around is that Jonathan won’t be on the horse in the Cox Plate.” Callsign Mav is expected to go forward for jockey Luke Nolen from his five barrier on Saturday but Bary said he did not think he would lead. “We don’t have to lead and I would prefer to see him to take a sit,” he said. “I think gate five allows us all the options, I think. “Captivant from barrier one, a three-year-old with light weight might try and lead us the whole way and I don’t think they will hold Zaaki up this time. “In a perfect world, I can see us one-out and one-back smoking our pipe. “Jimmy had a real turn of foot but this horse can just soak up the pressure and if he’s got to press the button 600 (metres) from home, then this horse will just eat that alive. It won’t worry him at all. “The last two group 1s he has won here, he switched off and pricked his ears and Jonathan had to keep screaming at him to keep him up to the mark. “But with the pressure of having horses around him, he’ll just keep on going.” Whatever his placing on Saturday, Callsign Mav is soon to be an Aussie after 36 per cent of the horse was sold on Inglis digital last year for $85,000 to more Australian connections including former jockey Stephen Baster and jockey manager Phillip Roost. That price now looks a bargain for the horse that has now won $530,000 in stakes, but at one time he was barely worth a bid when purchased as a weanling for just $3000. Bary said Danny O’Brien will continue to train the horse beyond Saturday. “With him, 90 per cent is owned by the Aussie boys and I’ve got the other 10 per cent and I just said ‘I’ve had my fun. I’ve made the horse and now it is time to test him and see how good he is’. “We’ll find out on Saturday. I’ve never been scared to have a go and live by the mantra of ‘those that dare to fail, succeed’.” “It’s wide open now and if you throw a bit of rain in the mix. There are 10 good horses in it and any one of them could win it. But let’s just hope it is us.” The Valley| 23 Oct 2021 Good 4 Ra True Entire Circu

Melbourne Cup favourite Incentivise is back at his Pakenham home after a couple of days at the beach, fully recovered from his Caulfield Cup win and with trainer Peter Moody declaring him a certain starter for the biggest race of his career. Moody said on Sunday morning the horse ‘certainly knew he’d had a run’ and would see how he recovered before confirming his place in the Melbourne Cup. He has since ticked all boxes. “Sunday morning was quite daunting because, for the first time ever, I saw him ever so slightly jaded, but then Monday morning he was ‘tickety boo’ and licked the feed bin our from Sunday night and he was bouncing and ready to get his work over and done with yet again,” Moody said on his podcast, Moody On The Mic. Incentivise had his compulsory scans ahead of the Melbourne Cup on Monday morning with Moody taking the no news, as good news. “I’m presuming you only hear something if there’s an issue and we haven’t heard anything at this point in time and it’s full steam ahead,” Moody said. “It was very simple; an hour and a half float ride from Pakenham to Werribee, the horse was there for about an hour and a half and an hour and a half later he was grazing in a paddock at the beach property that we send him to. “He’s enjoyed his little beach holiday for two and a half days, back at Pakenham and what are we 12 or 13 days into the Cup.” The 59-time Group 1-winning trainer, who is yet to win a Melbourne Cup, said Incentivise will have relatively light work heading into the race given his residual fitness and remarkable recovery powers. “I don’t think he’ll need a lot of work at all on the training tracks because he’s a very fit horse (and) he pulled up and recovered very quickly post the Caulfield Cup,” he said. Incentivise is a $2.50 favourite to win the Melbourne Cup despite the horse having never extended beyond 2500m, nonetheless Moody believes distance won’t be an issue for the son of Shamus Award. “There’s always that question mark until you’re out there and proven, but the strongest part of all his races seems to be through the line,” Moody said. “It was interesting there in the Caulfield Cup, Brett Prebble went right up to the 1200m mark, he went another 800 or 900 metres post the Caulfield Cup finish and actually had to steer him toward a fence to inevitably stop him before he brough him back to the enclosure. “He seems to have an unbelievable capacity to build and keep running, this horse” Sportsbet has already paid on Incentivise to win the race for all bets placed before October 19, a figure the company says was in excess of $5.5 million.

Melbourne Cup favourite Incentivise is back at his Pakenham home after a couple of days at the beach, fully recovered from his Caulfield Cup win and with trainer Peter Moody declaring him a certain starter for the biggest race of his career. Moody said on Sunday morning the horse ‘certainly knew he’d had a run’ and would see how he recovered before confirming his place in the Melbourne Cup. He has since ticked all boxes. “Sunday morning was quite daunting because, for the first time ever, I saw him ever so slightly jaded, but then Monday morning he was ‘tickety boo’ and licked the feed bin our from Sunday night and he was bouncing and ready to get his work over and done with yet again,” Moody said on his podcast, Moody On The Mic. Incentivise had his compulsory scans ahead of the Melbourne Cup on Monday morning with Moody taking the no news, as good news. “I’m presuming you only hear something if there’s an issue and we haven’t heard anything at this point in time and it’s full steam ahead,” Moody said. “It was very simple; an hour and a half float ride from Pakenham to Werribee, the horse was there for about an hour and a half and an hour and a half later he was grazing in a paddock at the beach property that we send him to. “He’s enjoyed his little beach holiday for two and a half days, back at Pakenham and what are we 12 or 13 days into the Cup.” The 59-time Group 1-winning trainer, who is yet to win a Melbourne Cup, said Incentivise will have relatively light work heading into the race given his residual fitness and remarkable recovery powers. “I don’t think he’ll need a lot of work at all on the training tracks because he’s a very fit horse (and) he pulled up and recovered very quickly post the Caulfield Cup,” he said. Incentivise is a $2.50 favourite to win the Melbourne Cup despite the horse having never extended beyond 2500m, nonetheless Moody believes distance won’t be an issue for the son of Shamus Award. “There’s always that question mark until you’re out there and proven, but the strongest part of all his races seems to be through the line,” Moody said. “It was interesting there in the Caulfield Cup, Brett Prebble went right up to the 1200m mark, he went another 800 or 900 metres post the Caulfield Cup finish and actually had to steer him toward a fence to inevitably stop him before he brough him back to the enclosure. “He seems to have an unbelievable capacity to build and keep running, this horse” Sportsbet has already paid on Incentivise to win the race for all bets placed before October 19, a figure the company says was in excess of $5.5 million.

ColumnistCox Plate Neasham column: The truth behind Zaaki’s ‘bandages’ James McDonald will reunite with Cox Plate favourite Zaaki on Saturday. Picture: Getty Images By Annabel Neasham 02:24am • 21 October 2021 Comments Zaaki and Mo’unga are ready to rumble for their Cox Plate grand final. There has been a lot of chat about Zaaki’s unexpected defeat at Caulfield, but after his two gallops at The Valley, I am feeling confident he will bounce back. One thing that surprised me was people querying the “bandages” he was wearing. Perhaps they haven’t noticed that he wore them in his Group 1 Doomben Cup win, and has worn them in every race since! They are bumper wraps, with the purpose of them to protect their bumpers, which is the back of the fetlock. When they extend at full flight, they can occasionally brush their bumpers on the ground, grazing the skin a little, so the wraps prevent that from happening. A lot of my horses wear them, including Mo’unga. Talking of Mo’unga, I think he is the forgotten horse in the Cox Plate. His form has been outstanding, beating the good mare Verry Elleegant in the Winx Stakes, and only going down by a head to Incentivise just two starts ago. He will run a big race on Saturday. Zaaki (left) with stablemate Mo’unga at Altona Beach on Wednesday. Picture: Getty Images LUCKY DRAW It could be a lucky omen that I put James McDonald and Hugh Bowman to work at the Cox Plate (virtual) barrier draw. We got almost exactly what we wanted for both Zaaki and Mo’unga. Mo’unga has often been a victim of wide gates and Hugh told me he wanted barrier four. When Mo’unga’s name came up first, barrier four was what Hugh picked and so his wish came true. James said he wanted either barrier five or six for Zaaki and he got barrier six. MACCA’S MISSION I slept very easily the night that we finally got the green tick for James to go to Melbourne to ride Zaaki in the Cox Plate. James absolutely loves this horse and you can see that love is very genuine. He was absolutely desperate to get down there – and even after Zaaki got defeated he was just as keen. James has got a great affinity with Zaaki and to be honest I don’t really even need to talk to him too much about a Cox Plate game plan. It’s just a matter of having him happy and settling where he is comfortable in the run. With James, you don’t need a plan or a set speed map as he just rides on feel and instinct. A good example of that was in the Doomben Cup when I was petrified at the 800m that James was rolling along too quick on Zaaki. But he knew what he had underneath him, he had gears left, he knew what he was sitting on. Hopefully, James and Zaaki are a partnership that will last quite a while and they will keep winning together. Zaaki (left) and Mo’unga gallop at The Valley ahead of the Cox Plate. Picture: Michael Klein TRAVEL PLANS With the ever-changing Covid-19 landscape, it now looks like I may be able to get to Melbourne for Cox Plate day. After some recent developments, it appears as though I may be able to be trackside at The Valley to watch my two horses in the big race. If I can get trackside, it will still be a shame there will be no crowds and probably not much atmosphere. But it would be great for me to be able to put a saddle on my two horses before the Cox Plate. It won’t change anything really in terms of the Cox Plate itself – but I haven’t seen Zaaki for quite a while and it would just be nice to see him in the flesh again. The Cox Plate is one of the great days of racing, I was trackside for three of Winx’s four Cox Plate wins and they were moments I will never forget.

That's 18 x $15k maiden races!

Cox Plate Relive five of the most memorable Cox Plate moments Jockey Hugh Bowman returns to scale after winning the 2018 Chipping Norton Stakes on Winx. By Clinton Payne 12:47pm • 20 October 2021 1 Comments * Vision courtesy of Sky Channel Some of Australia’s greatest racing memories come from the Cox Plate so the theme this week will be less is more – the videos do the talking. Winx – 2018 Arguably the most historic day on an Australian racecourse. Australia’s best horse became the first, and probably the last, horse to win the weight-for-age championship for the fourth time. It was the great mare’s 29th straight victory when she defeated international raider Benbatl. “We weren’t there in 1930 when Phar Lap won four races at Flemington,” veteran sports commentator and race caller Bruce McAvaney said. “This is as close as we’ve ever been to anything that might have resembled that. “I have been following racing for 60 years. I have never known a day like this, a build up like this. It’s remarkable.” Winx – 2015 This was the day Winx confirmed she was more than just a Group 1 winner. Her first of four Cox Plate wins, the four-year-old mare was sent out a $4.60 chance and she dismantled her opponents, breaking the track record in her 4-3/4 length romp. “We’ve got a lot of good horses but you don’t even dare dream about Cox Plates,” trainer Chris Waller said after the race. “She had a lovely run and she just put the foot down turning for home. “It was shades of Sunline. “She’s just a superior athlete. She’s amazing.” Super Impose – 1992 The 1992 Cox Plate showcased one of the best fields ever assembled on an Australian track. It was a time when there were many heroes on the turf and they all seemed to be at Moonee Valley on October 24. Super Impose, Better Loosen Up, Let’s Elope, Rough Habit, Kinjite, Slight Chance, Mannerism, Burst, Sydeston, Naturalism just to name a few. For drama, the 1992 Cox Plate was arguably unrivalled. To this day it remains one of the most talked about races in the first 100 years of the Cox Plate. Falls, protests and a champ winning – 1992 had it all. Bonecrusher – 1986 This one was nicknamed ‘the race of the century’. Two Kiwi stars, Bonecrusher and Our Waverley Star, started to surge around the field at the 800m and they proceeded to go head-and-head all the way to the winning post. “Here come the New Zealanders, Our Waverley Star and Bonecrusher, they’ve raced to the lead 600 out, have they gone too early?” legendary race caller Bill Collins declared. He then added to the theatre that day declaring “Bonecrusher races into equine immortality” as he hit the post first – his voice sounding like he’d just run a marathon. Kingston Town – 1982 “Kingston Town can’t win” never has an Australian racing commentator’s inaccuracy been so celebrated. Known as ‘the accurate one’, the legendary Bill Collins made the declaration as the field reached the home turn before things changed in a flash. The great horse got his second wind, circling the leaders to become the first horse to win three Cox Plates. “He was under the whip and doing nothing – that has to be one of the greatest wins ever,” winning jockey Peter Cook said after the race. That historic day encompassed everything that’s made the Cox Plate stand alone. Things happen at Moonee Valley on Cox Plate Day that don’t happen any other day of the year on any Australian racecourses and that is why the Cox Plate is no ordinary race.

Were they over hurdles?