Chief Stipe

BEST WIN BET: RACE 6 #4 ULTIMATE SNIPER $1.20 NZ TAB FIXED ODDS BEST EACH WAY: RACE 10 #4 PRESSED FOR TIME $9.00 & 3.00 NZ TAB FIXED ODDS VALUE EACH WAY: RACE 4 #4 MOSSDALE ART $12 & $2.15 NZ TAB FIXED ODDS BEST ROUGHIE: RACE 12 #2 CINDY BROMAC $21 & $4.20 NZ TAB FIXED ODDS Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Trainer Stephen Marsh will have a dual-pronged attack on tomorrow’s Rosehill Guineas, with New Zealand Derby winner Crown Prosecutor and Group One-placed colt Vernanme set to take on highly touted local colt The Autumn Sun. Marsh’s pair will join fellow New Zealand-trained three-year-olds Madison County, Surely Sacred and Arrogant, while additional New Zealand-bred runners include Purple Sector (by Pins) and Tavistock three-year-olds Yulong Tavion and Ablestock. Marsh is pleased with how his duo have settled in and the Cambridge horseman is upbeat about their chances. “They both travelled over really well, they got here last Saturday,” Marsh said. “They had a nice gallop on Tuesday and basically ran up the straight on Thursday morning. They’re in great order. I couldn’t fault them.” While Vernanme was always earmarked for the Rosehill Guineas, Marsh had initially intended using the Gr. 2 Tulloch Stakes at Randwick next week as Crown Prosecutor’s stepping stone to the Australian Derby on April 6. “With the rain around we thought the Guineas might come up a bit weaker and it certainly opens the race up,” Marsh said. “The likes of The Autumn Sun and a few others are stepping up to 2000 metres for the first time whereas we are hard fit. “We have just gone from 2400 back to 2000 metreds, so I think we have got a few things in our favour. “It is certainly great to have James McDonald on, we didn’t have a rider until the acceptances and we are lucky enough that his horse didn’t pay up. We have ended up with the best and gate 13 won’t be a problem.” Marsh suggests punters disregard Vernanme’s ninth placing in the New Zealand Derby, when the brother to Australian Derby winner Shamrocker found trouble throughout the running. “Nothing went right in the Derby, he never really got into a rhythm,” Marsh said. “I think it’s just a race to forget, but his runs previous to that were outstanding. Probably the question mark with him is the track, we don’t really know if he is going to cop it to this extent (heavy8 on Friday morning) but he is very well in himself. “He has Opie (Bosson) on and has drawn nicely and the track should still be playing fair by race four, so he is going to get a gun run in behind the speed and being a 13-horse field he is not going to get too far back.” With a large Kiwi contingent in the field, Marsh is confident he and his compatriots can take the race to Chris Waller’s boom colt The Autumn Sun. “Half the field are Kiwis so it would be nice to get a Kiwi result, especially a Cambridge one,” Marsh said. “I think the Kiwi horses are all good chances, they are all going well and it is good seeing a strong Kiwi contingent over here trying to get some of this Australian money.” View the full article

Rule Number(s): 638(3)(b)(ii)Following the running of race 7, Waitomo Fuels 1400, an Information was filed pursuant to Rule 638(3)(b)(ii). The Informant, Mr Oatham, alleged that Mr Bosson used the whip excessively when riding MAN OH MAN. Mr Bosson endorsed the Information that he admitted the breach and he did not wish to be present ... (Feed generated with FetchRSS)View the full article

Alexandra Park Best Bets BEST WIN BET: RACE 9 #7 TIFFANY ROSE at $1.60 on the Fixed Odds Book. VALUE WIN BET: RACE 6 #2 MACH SHARD at $3.20 on the Fixed Odds Book. BEST EACH WAY: RACE 5 #10 AWESOME SPEED at $9.00 & $2.70 on the Fixed Odds Book. VALUE EACH WAY: RACE 4 #2 EL CAPITAN at $23 & $3.90 on the Fixed Odds Book. BEST ROUGHIE: RACE 3 #1 PRINCE GEORGE at $51 & $8.25 on the Fixed Odds book. Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Avondale Race Scratchings R1: R2: R3: R4: R5: R6: R7: TAB Meeting #4 with the first of 7 races starting at 12:27pm Doubles: 2-3, 4-5, 6-7 Trebles: 2-3-4 , 5-6-7 Quaddies: 1-2-3-4, 4-5-6-7 Track conditions: Dead 4 Weather: Fine Rail: True Track: Right hand 1800m Length of straight: 450m BIG PUNTERS OF THE TURF Hollywood George Edser They say that pro […] Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Champion trainer Chris Waller believes multiple Group One-winning three-year-old The Autumn Sun will only get better, but whether the prized colt remains in training long enough to realise that potential remains to be seen. While the Waller-trained Winx continues to reign supreme in Australian, young stablemate The Autumn Sun has stamped himself a legitimate star in his own right with one luckless defeat from eight starts which include four Group One victories. The Autumn Sun stormed home for a thrilling Randwick Guineas win last start and is the $1.35 favourite to win another Group One in tomorrow’s Rosehill Guineas, stepping beyond 1600 metres for the first time. In the following race on the Rosehill card, Winx is expected to claim her 32nd consecutive victory and 24th Group One in the George Ryder Stakes, for which she is at $1.06. “I don’t think 2000 metres will be any problem at all for The Autumn Sun,” Waller said, suggesting he also expects the colt to settle closer than he did in the Randwick Guineas. The Autumn Sun’s future beyond this season could be in the breeding barn given his value to co-owner Arrowfield Stud, where he will stand once he retires. Waller said he had yet to convince Arrowfield’s John Messara to race the colt beyond this season. “We haven’t had an in-depth conversation about it,” Waller said. “He has raised the value of the horse and I’ve raised, which he’s well-aware of, how successful he can be if he raced on for another year. “I see The Autumn Sun still as an immature horse and I’m not going to compare him to other horses, I’m just saying what I see in him. “And for what he’s done at this stage of his career and win not just one stallion-making race but basically four stallion-making Group One races is quite remarkable. “So if he’s 90 per cent mature and 10 per cent to come, well we’ve got something pretty special to look forward to and those horses don’t come around very often. I train a lot of horses and he is right up the top. “I can only train my horse and know what he’s capable of and that’s what I’ll suggest, at the same time respect what his value is and what he can earn at stud and the risks involved I guess.” Waller, who won last year’s Rosehill Guineas with D’Argento, also has Dealmaker in tomorrow’s race, which will also feature New Zealand-trained runners Madison County, Crown Prosecutor, Surely Sacred, Vernanme and Arrogant. View the full article

Toowoomba trainer Ben Currie’s application for a further stay order of an internal review decision to stand him down has been deferred until early next month. In what is becoming an increasingly confusing legal battle, it means Currie can continue training for at least the next fortnight. Currie was seeking a stay after the internal reviewer this week upheld a Queensland Racing Integrity Commission stewards’ decision to suspend him until an inquiry into seven charges, including use of a jigger, was finalised. The state’s leading trainer, Currie had been stood down after a show cause hearing where stewards deemed he had not shown he should continue training until the matters were dealt with. Currie then sought a stay of the decision in Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal and on February 20 he was successful. That stay was set to last until five days after the internal review decision was handed down. When the internal review was handed down this week it meant Currie had until Monday to get an extension of the stay or he would be suspended from training. The application for an extension was expected to be heard in the QCAT on Friday afternoon. However, on Thursday afternoon it was agreed by consent to extend Currie’s stay until April 3 when his application regarding the standing down order will be heard. A spokesman for Currie’s lawyers and a QRIC spokesperson confirmed the stay application had been adjourned until April 3. Currie will face a further inquiry on Monday and a Tuesday into 14 charges arising from a raid on his stables in April last year. Stewards completed an earlier hearing into 14 other charges resulting from the raid last week. Currie also faces two other inquiries later next month regarding four alleged positive swabs and the jigger charges. Stewards will not release their decisions in any of the cases until late April. View the full article

View the full article

If I provide the medium to do what you suggest how do I pay for the platform?

The next chapter in the fairytale story of Glory Days is set to unfold at Randwick next month when the Auckland Cup winner contests the Sydney Cup. Waverley trainer Bill Thurlow has confirmed that Glory Days won’t have another run until the A$2 million feature on April 13 and that Corey Brown has been booked for the ride. “His agent approached us, as did a few other agents over there,” Thurlow said. “He’s a class rider and he knows the track well, and he is a very good two-mile rider, so he was the obvious choice really. “She’s been up to Auckland and back and she’s a very athletic, fit sort of horse. Another run here and then a flight wouldn’t benefit her I wouldn’t have thought. “We know her reasonably well and she will have a good hitout here, make no mistake about that. It’ll just be more under jumpout conditions than race conditions.” Thurlow said Glory Days had come through her Auckland Cup run well and would likely have a jumpout at Waverley on March 29 before flying out to Sydney the following week. “She’s good, she was a bit tired for a couple of days following the Auckland Cup, but you’d expect that running two miles on a heavy track. “She spent a few days in the paddock, then a few days light walking. She’s fine now, we’re very happy with her. She’s pretty much back into it now this week.” Glory Days is raced by Thurlow’s brother Grant and his wife Patricia, along with neighbouring farmers Brent and Sue McAree. “I leased a couple horses off Gloria Kenny from down in Marton and the boys had had one or two horses that had been a bit average,” Thurlow said. “When we leased them we thought that as much as she was a pretty weedy little thing, she might be a fair chance if they were prepared to wait and they were. They were looking for a stayer. “She’s a fine little thing, she wasn’t going to stand a long preparation as a young horse. She had a couple of injury problems too when she was young, so maybe in hindsight that was blessing.” Thurlow, who mixes dairy farming and training, has around a dozen horses in work. “We’ve got some young ones we try and work up,” he said. “Racing-wise we’ve only got four or five and the rest are just babies we are educating. “I don’t milk, I’ve got a couple of boys that milk. I get to the dairy farm two or three days a week and we’ve got a couple of other dry blocks that we run, so we just do that and do the horses.” It is not the first time an emerging stayer from the South Taranaki town of Waverley has made headlines. The Snow Lupton-owned and trained 1983 Melbourne Cup winner Kiwi also hailed from the region and Thurlow has been buoyed by the community support. “It’s been quite amazing really. The support from our local community has been astronomical,” he said. “The amount of well-wishes and people ringing and calling, people you sort of don’t even know that well, it has been really humbling. Everyone is part of it.” Thurlow knows the competition in Sydney will be another step up as Glory Days takes on opposition owned by racing aristocracy, but he is looking forward to renewing acquaintances with champion trainers Chris Waller, who did a short stint with Thurlow when he was a teenager. “Chris was only here about six weeks I think,” Thurlow said. “We were full-time milking then and he didn’t really like the cows very much. “I think we had one old jumper we were working but it was more cows. Good on him, he left and went full-time into the horse industry and his story is absolutely amazing. “It’s a real credit to him for what he’s done. He did work for me for a little while but I don’t think I taught him everything he knows.” View the full article

Hugh Bowman and Chris Waller will join forces in three Group One races at Rosehill on Saturday, including the George Ryder with Winx, but the champion jockey and trainer will be in rival camps when they each chase a first Golden Slipper. As well as Winx, Bowman will ride Dealmaker for Waller in the Rosehill Guineas and Unforgotten in the Ranvet Stakes before combining with the James Cummings-trained Microphone for the A$3.5 million Golden Slipper. Waller’s chances of a first Slipper victory rest with Todman Stakes winner Yes Yes Yes, to be ridden by Blake Shinn. Bowman, who last weekend won the Hong Kong Derby on Furore to take his Group One tally to 89, has ridden in the Golden Slipper 14 times but his best result is one solitary placing, a third on Meurice in 2007. Microphone has emerged as one of the leading chances with dominant wins in the Talindert Stakes in Melbourne and Skyline Stakes in Sydney in his past two starts with James McDonald aboard. Bowman rides Microphone in a race for the first time on Saturday, while McDonald will be aboard the colt’s unbeaten stablemate Tenley. “I actually went out to Agnes Banks and rode Microphone on Tuesday morning and he galloped really well,” Bowman said. “There was a bit of moisture in the ground and I was pleased with how he went through it. “He worked in company but there’s going to be a lot more pressure in this race on Saturday, obviously.” Bowman believes barrier one is an advantage for Microphone. “Even if the fence isn’t the place to be I still think it’s a significant advantage from the 1200-metre start at Rosehill to be on the inside in the first two thirds of the race,” he said. “I’m confident he’s going to go into the race and run very well. I think it’s a very open race.” In contrast to Microphone, the Waller-trained Todman Stakes winner Yes Yes Yes has to overcome the outside barrier but his trainer believes if he can get the right luck he is the right horse for the race. “It’s a challenging barrier but he’s a very good horse,” Waller said. “We’ll treat that draw with respect and try to work out a way that he can save a bit of ground and still have good strong legs over the last 200 metres. “I think if anything a softer track could be an advantage because barrier draws might not be quite as important and I don’t think he’ll have a problem in it.” View the full article

Nandolo is one of a group of smart up and coming horses in race 3 at Addington on Friday night. Photo: The Digital Birdcage. Nandolo is among the many winning chances in what could the race of the night at Friday’s premier meeting at Addington. A capacity field of promising rating 59-80 pacers will clash in the third event on a race card filled with features. The predictable nature of some of the programme’s group events could mean race 3 will be one of the most intriguing contests on Friday night. Nandolo comes in to the race with a rare blot on his copybook formline, after running seventh from behind the tapes in Sheriff’s Cheviot Cup win, earlier this month. The John Howe trained pacer was not a factor in the finish after getting back in the field on a slick 55.5sec final 800m. “He probably over raced a wee bit last time which didn’t help, either,” driver Jonny Cox said. “Getting back probably ruined his chances all together in what was a pretty nice sort of a field.” “On a slick half like that he was probably no chance, really.” Nandolo faces a totally different task tomorrow night, stepping back from 2600m 1980m, behind the mobile. The four-year-old possesses blazing gate speed when he is in the mood and is likely to press forward. “I would say the plan would be to head forward.” “He is a funny sort of horse, some days he leaves the gate like he is tied to it and other days he is happy to flop out.” “It is just whatever Nandolo turns up on the day.” “He probably races better in front, most of his mobiles he has led up in.” “It probably leaves him a sitting duck, he has been run down a few times, but he has also gone some great races in front.” Nandolo is in great company, draw near the outside of the front line. He has the highly talented Smokin By drawn beside him. The Mitchell Kerr trained pacer will be looking to bounce back after a bout of colic caused his shock last placing in the Northern Southland Cup. Queensland Oaks winning mare, Sociable, is drawn outside him. The Andrew Stuart trained four-year-old trialled well at Rangiora last week ahead of her tough task from the outside of the front line. New Zealand Derby hopefuls Delightful Major and Mr Yips have drawn inside Nandolo in barriers 1 and 5, respectively. The sometimes wayward, but highly talented, Mr Yips will have his second start on a left handed track in the race. The Tony Herlihy trained pacer ran into fourth behind Ultimate Sniper in the Northern Derby after getting shuffled back in the field before the home turn. Delightful Major will attempt to keep his unbeaten record intact form the ace draw. The second row of the mobile in race 3 is also packed with talent. Cast No Shadow and Samskara bring winning form in to the event. They start between Cullenburn and Kotare Cullen. Bookmakers appear to think the group races on the Addington card are predictable affairs. They installed sub $2 favourites in three of the four features. Winterfell opened a $1.90 favourite, ahead of Majestic Man at $3.60, for the group 3 Four and Five-Year-Old Trotting Championship. Ultimate Sniper opened at $1.20 win odds for the group 2 Flying Stakes. Cheerful opened a $1.55 favourite for the group 2 New Zealand Trotting Oaks. Bookmakers rated the group 3 event free-for-all for open class pacers the most evenly matched group race on Friday night’s card. Sheriff and AG’s White Sox opened $3.90 equal favourites for the 1980m event. Jonny Cox will drive Eamon Maguire, who is one of three horses trainers Mark Purdon and Natalie Rasmussen have in the event. The trainers also start Elle Mac and Funatthebeach in the race. Eamon Maguire, the Ashburton Flying Stakes winner, ran out of puff in his resuming run in the Northern Southland Cup earlier this month. Cox said the horse would strip fitter on Friday night, but the horse faced a tricky task from barrier 9. Mark Purdon said on his stable’s website he rated Elle Mac the strongest of his trio of chances. View the full article

Australian weather patterns have forced a change of plans for Group One winner Consensus. The Stephen McKee-trained mare was set to head to Sydney to line-up in the Gr. 1 Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill on Saturday, but the weather forecast has put a halt to those plans. Instead, the seven-year-old will travel to Melbourne for a hit-and-run mission in the aptly named Gr. 2 Sunline Stakes at Moonee Valley tomorrow night. “Sydney is just too wet,” McKee said. “We were going for the Ranvet. We ran fourth on a heavy track last year, but I think the track is going to at least be as wet again this year. “We decided we needed to race somewhere and we found this one in Melbourne, so we are going there instead. “It’s only for the one race. We will run on Friday night and then we will decide on whether we might head up to Sydney and wait for the tracks to dry up, or we might come home and may wait to go to Brisbane later. “It probably depends now on how she goes on Friday night.” McKee is wary of the opposition in the 1600-metre race at Moonee Valley and believes there needs to be genuine pace for Consensus to have a chance. “A tough mile at Moonee Valley is good for us because it does suit horses who like to go a little bit further, like we do,” he said. “Two of the main ones to note are I Am A Star and Spanish Reef. They have won the race the last two years. They will be the two hard ones to beat. Naantali’s form is pretty strong as well.” Expat New Zealand jockey Michael Walker has been engaged and McKee said it would be great to win the race named after his superstar racemare Sunline. “We didn’t look at the race because of that, it just happened to be that name,” he said. “It would really make a good trip if we could win that sort of race. I haven’t had a runner in it before, so I’m looking forward to it.” Meanwhile, fellow stable Group One winner Hasahalo could join Consensus in Australia. The Savabeel four-year-old pleased her trainer when resuming in the Gr. 3 Waikato Stud Plate after a year away from the races. McKee will line-up Hasahalo in the NZB Insurance Pearl Series Race at Tauranga on Saturday and a decision on her autumn path will be made after that run. View the full article

Co-trainer Michelle Bradley reports from Sydney that everything is in order for Danzdanzdance ahead of her autumn carnival debut in the Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill on Saturday. Danzdanzdance arrived from her Ruakaka stable on Monday night and according to Bradley has settled with no fuss into familiar surrounds at Randwick trainer Greg Lees’ stables. After finishing third in last year’s New Zealand Derby, Danzdanzdance had two carnival starts for fifth in the Vinery Stakes and sixth in the ATC Oaks. “She’s got the same box and yard as when she was here last year,” Bradley told www.theinformant.co.nz. “It’s been a few years since I was here and she knows her way round here better than I do. “Everything’s good with her. She took no time to settle in, she’s eating and drinking, so all good ahead of Saturday. “I haven’t to do much with her, basically just ticking her over with quite work. She had her final hitout at home last Saturday and as we know she doesn’t need a lot to keep her up to the mark.” Danzdanzdance goes into Saturday’s weight-for-age 2000-metre feature two weeks after pushing Melody Belle to a neck in the Bonecrusher Stakes at Ellerslie. That was her first start since a below-par fifth in the Herbie Dyke Stakes at Te Rapa a month earlier. “We were pretty happy with her going into the Bonecrusher, but if anything she’s probably just that little bit fitter,” Bradley said. Randwick hasn’t missed any of the heavy inner city showers over the past week or so, but Rosehill to the north-west has been less affected. Official track information records 140mm in the past seven days but nothing in the last 24 hours, leaving the Rosehill Gardens track at a Heavy8 rating. “We’ve had a real mixture of weather this week – it can dump for a while then the sun comes out,” Bradley added. “Even this morning when I was driving back from the track I had to slow right down it was so heavy. “We know track ratings over here are slightly different to back home but I’d be surprised if we don’t get at least a slow track on Saturday. For once I wouldn’t have minded a visitor’s draw but instead we end up with the inside gate just when you don’t want it. “That will be up to Opie (Bosson) though. He would have had a good eye-opener last Saturday and I’m sure he’ll be able to work it out.” View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Global racing and breeding operation Coolmore has bought into Golden Slipper contender Yes Yes Yes days out from the A$3.5 million race. He stamped his Slipper credentials when he raced to an impressive victory fresh from a let-up in the Todman Stakes earlier this month, however he was displaced as favourite after drawing the outside barrier for Saturday’s race. Yes Yes Yes’s co-owner Brae Sokolski said the Todman Stakes win attracted plenty of interest from studs. “Obviously after he won the Todman we had a number of very significant stud farms expressing interest in the colt and ran a process and determined that Coolmore were the right partner,” Sokolski told Sky Sports Radio. Yes Yes Yes is a son of Coolmore’s first-season sire Rubick. “They will act as managing owner but all racing decisions will be made in conjunction with myself and Chris Waller,” Sokolski said. “I think we’re very much on the same page.” He said races such as the Gr. 1 Golden Rose, Caulfield Guineas and Coolmore Stud Stakes would be the options for big- race targets for Yes Yes Yes as a spring three-year-old, while a Royal Ascot mission next year could also be on the cards. Yes Yes Yes was bought for A$200,000 as a yearling from last year’s Magic Millions Sale at the Gold Coast and heads into the Golden Slipper with three wins from four starts. To be ridden by Blake Shinn, Yes Yes Yes was on the fourth line of betting yesterday at $7.50. View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Champion Winx remains in picture perfect order ahead of what is anticipated to be her final home track appearance and the likely penultimate start of her career. As has become the norm for Winx, the seven-year-old had a comfortable early morning gallop at Rosehill this morning with Hugh Bowman aboard, two days out from the Gr. 1 George Ryder Stakes at the same track. Winx will be out to stretch her winning sequence to 32 and her Group One tally to 24. Bowman said she felt “amazing”. “She feels as good as she looks,” he said. “She wasn’t out there to do a whole lot this morning, and she galloped very well here with Unforgotten on Tuesday morning. “She’s ready for Saturday.” With recent rain in Sydney, a rain-affected surface is expected on Saturday but that is no concern. “I think one of her best performances was in this race two years ago when it was a very heavy track, and with an expected wet track on Saturday that just gives us more confidence than we already have,” Bowman said. “But it’s really just about going through the process and making sure it is a trouble-free passage for her. I’m sure she will deliver as she has done for the last four years.” Winx has seven rivals in the George Ryder including her stablemates Ringerdingding and Prompt Response. “I don’t want to sound arrogant but Winx only has to hold her position where she has been the last 10 or 20 starts, let alone 30 starts,” trainer Chris Waller added. “And as Hugh said, we’ve just got to make sure she’s trouble free and comes home safely. “There’s always challengers coming through and we always respect them but ultimately we’ve got to worry about Winx and she’s picture perfect and ready to go.” View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article

Want to read this content? For free user content sign up here Free Online Content View our subscription options and get behind The Informant paywall Already a member? Login here View the full article