Victorian rules to stamp Slipper ticket as Freedman wins feature double
“I think he’s going to get a lot out of it now with this trip. This is his first road trip to Sydney too and he’s handled himself well there.”
“I was going to take him home but I think I’ll leave him here now and get used to this hot weather without taking any risks.
“I came here today and I don’t remember the last time I was in Rosehill. I’m lost but I know where we are now.”
Steely Ninja prepares for Guinea
Trainer Michael Freedman believes a more mature Ninja could run a strong mile in the group 1 Randwick Guineas after his up-tempo effort to win the Hobartville Stakes (1400m) as part of the group 2 pair.
Ninja, who finished an unlucky and wide second in the Magic Millions Guineas (1400m) last month, faced a small but classy field at Rosehill and proved his class. Tommy Berry raced Ninja second behind Shangri La Boy before taking over the race in the 300 meters and ridden late to beat Napoleon by one and a half lengths. Autumn Boy finished third by half a head.
“The horse’s racing mannerisms have matured now,” Freedman said.
“Actually, that trip to Queensland just did a lot of good for him mentally. He came back a much smarter, much more mature horse, you can take him wherever you want.”
“Yes [think he will run a mile]. He was quite strong in the end and probably ran a mile in the Magic Millions Guineas. He gives me all kinds of signals that he will do.
The Freedman-trained Cinsault then showed superior fitness in the next group, the 2 Millie Fox Stakes, holding off favorite Lazzura to continue at $2.05 and making a big jump in class.
The four-year-old Godolphin filly emerged from wins 72 and 78 to beat Lazzura by a long head to give Schofield the treble overall and the double in Group 2.
O’Shea blasts scratching call
Trainer John O’Shea criticized the decision by Racing NSW vets to scrap unbeaten Bev’s Nine behind the gates before the third race, describing it as “the biggest mismatch I’ve ever heard in my 25 years of coaching”.
O’Shea and assistant trainer Tom Charlton stood before the stewards after Bev’s Nine was declared lame from behind and refused to run. Stewards said the investigation found Bev’s Nine did not have a normal walk in the parade, but was allowed to go to the barriers and was scratched there.
O’Shea disagreed, saying there was “nothing wrong” with the horse, which was checked by vets three times during the week as per the barn’s procedure.
“For that horse to be drawn lame behind the gates is the biggest mismatch I’ve heard in my 25 years of coaching,” O’Shea said.
“Where does this leave us? Do I tell the owners that this horse will not be allowed to run in NSW because the vet has determined he has an abnormal gait?
“We have no recourse here. So in the end, when the gait doesn’t change and the horse shows up the next week looking exactly the same and you let him run, we’re like oh, well guys, sorry about that, we’re going to the owners.”
Stewards said they are responsible for ensuring all horses are ready to run and guided by their veterinarian’s decades of experience.
Gets me another group 1 shot on my back
The Ciaron Maher stable was considering a bargain buy with Piggyback entering the group 1 Tancred Stakes after capturing the second group 3 Tancred Stakes.
The five-year-old filly went wide in the straight under Dylan Gibbons and finished the race at the top of Bois D’Argent, clearing the group 3 Parramatta Cup (1900m) by a short neck. He won the Colin Stephen Quality in the spring to earn a chance at the Metropolitan, where he was eighth, and another group 1 beckons.
“A race like Tancred will probably have to be considered now,” said Maher’s assistant Johann Gerard-Dubord.
“He didn’t have any weight today, so his weight is a little off for his age, but he’s staying and we don’t know how much better he can get.”
Piggyback was a $27,000 online acquisition for Dynamic Syndications.
Thompson’s Midway star on the rise
Randwick trainer John Thompson will use the group 3 Aspiration Quality (1600m) as a starter on March 7 to target the Epona Stakes (1900m) for Starphistocate a fortnight later following her win in the Midway Handicap (1500m).
The four-year-old used the rails under Chad Schofield to claim a second Midway victory, beating Tartana by a length. Iceman finished third and later lost a protest to Tartana due to interference approaching the turn. Nash Rawiller was fined $300 for using the whip on Iceman nine times before the final 100 meters; this was four more than allowed.
“It’s going to eponymous,” Thompson said.
“I think the better mares in Aspiration will be too sharp for her.
“He is a real 2000 meters horse. He won today because he was a little too good for them.”
Parr family is considering winning the double
It was a celebration and condolence ceremony for trainer Ron Quinton and his former apprentice Sam Clipperton after they teamed with Signor Tortoni to win the 1100m 78 handicap race.
Señor Tortoni was strong in passing Polyglot at Rosehill on Saturday, beating him by three quarters of a length. Clipperton replaced Josh Parr, who missed the meeting while mourning the death of his father Stephen, a former jockey.
The win came a day before Quinton’s 77th birthday and was the first for the trainer and Clipperton since the driver came out of retirement in December.
“It’s nice for Sam to win,” Quinton said.
“It was the first journey I gave him since he came back, so he had to redo his apprenticeship.
“I sympathize with the Parr family. I knew Stephen quite well and used Josh quite a lot as a driver.”
Clipperton also expressed his condolences to the Parr family following the win and jockeys wore black armbands that day.
