There might not have been the group 1 exclamation point for Regan Bayliss in 2022, but he continued his rise through the ranks in the Sydney jockey room and knows there is work ahead in 2023.
He starts the new year with the promise of Gimcrack Stakes winner Platinum Jubilee in next week’s Magic Millions Classic and a steely focus to make the most of his limited chances.
Regan Bayliss is looking to start 2023 with a bang on Platinum Jubilee in the Magic Millions Classic.Credit:Getty
Bayliss is on the second tier of jockeys in Sydney, but when he gets on the right horses he wins. The trouble is, if you’re not James McDonald, Nash Rawiller, Tim Clark or Tommy Berry those chances are rare.
“I had a pretty good spring without riding a group 1 winner. I was riding a group winner every week it seemed,” Bayliss said. “I’m looking to keep rising up the ranks and capitalises on some of the good opportunities I get this year.
“It is about staying with the good ones and being there when a chance comes up and making sure people know who you are.
“I have only been back in Sydney for two years, and Rome wasn’t built in a day, so for me it’s about working hard and taking my chances when they come.”
Bayliss rides out at Randwick three times a week for a number of stables and is a regular in the Tulloch Lodge camp for Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, who have Clark as their first choice.
“I’m lucky to get great support from Gai and Adrian, and they are flying at the moment. It is a good stable to be part of,” Bayliss said. “They have a good crop of two-year-olds this season, so it’s good to be part of that team.”
Waterhouse and Bott have called on him at Rosehill on Saturday to ride the in-form Vreneli, which will start favourite in a benchmark race. Vreneli was disadvantaged by being on the fence at Kembla Grange first up, where he led and was swamped late, before winning a Rosehill.
“It was a funny track at Kembla that day and you just needed to be out wide, but that win second up really impressed me,” Bayliss said.
“He had a nice trial in between runs, and I think from the good draw he has found another winnable race on Saturday.”
Bayliss has a full book of 10 rides, and he will be jumping on most of them for the first time. One of the rides is the King’s horse, Chalk Stream, which will see him in the Royal silks for a second time and hoping to get his first win.
“I rode Bold Sniper when it first came to Australia for the Queen,” Bayliss said. “It’s always a good honour to get to ride for the King.
“It might be one of the first times since Chalk Stream came out here that he will get on firm going.
“He hasn’t had that much luck since coming here and has basically raced on heavy tracks, so hopefully getting on a dry track he can show the talent he had back in England.
“I look at my rides and there are plenty of chances there; hopefully we can make the most of them.”
Bayliss will head to the Gold Coast next weekend to team up with Platinum Jubilee and Too Much Caviar at the Magic Millions meeting, and he knows both well.
He will be looking for a hat-trick of wins on Too Much Caviar after saluting at Warwick Farm and Randwick in December, and he is confident Platinum Jubilee can step up off her final stride defeat on Christmas Eve.
“She was a little bit soft going into that race first up, but we knew she would have massive improvement for the Magic Millions second up,” Bayliss said. “It was a small field that day, so we rode her to suit that race and led.
“In the Magic Millions, there will be a lot more pressure and we will be able to ride her little quieter, like in the Gimcrack. I’m sure she will in the finish.
“I only have the two rides up there at the moment but they are good, because Too Much Caviar is looking for the extra trip in the Stayers Cup.”
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