The relevance of wide barriers and the Chris Waller colossus being headed for the first time in a long, long period in the national trainers premiership loom large today.
Brutality will hump 64.5kg from the extreme outside (barrier 14) in the Furphy Handicap at Rosehill Gardens as part of the seasoning process for The Ingham at Royal Randwick next Saturday.
Brutality will lump top weight from the outside barrier at Rosehill on Saturday.Credit:Getty
Weight more than the gate is the problem. The Joe Pride-trained Brutality is the highest-rated horse at a meeting that is scraping the sides of lower benchmarks after a scintillating spring.
Many trainers scratch horses because of outside starts but not Pride, who learned well from John Size – master horseman and most astute in turf matters – under whom he studied.
“John never believed in taking horses, fit and well, out because the barriers,” Pride explained.
Since leaving Australia, Size has proven his worth in Hong Kong, and now Pride, if anything, has surpassed him on home soil, where Waller has dominated in recent years.
However, this week the New Zealander dropped behind the Ciaron Maher-David Eustace team by 102 to 100 on Australia-wide racecourses. Yes, it can be argued that Waller’s major target is Sydney, which is Australia’s most demanding circuit. Still, Waller has had 798 starters compared to 507 for M and E, who are Melbourne-centric but spreading the influence northwards.
Waller has the numbers again at Rosehill today, but M and E can rival him for winners with a couple of very strong chances.
Ciaron Maher (left) and David Eustace with their Melbourne Cup winner, Gold Trip.Credit:Getty
Waller’s Estadio Mestalla was the $2.40 favourite on Friday in the Merry Christmas Members handicap but has the 16 barrier. He was won both his starts, and Waller could consider cuddling him for a better draw. He also has stablemate outsider, Hollywood North, in the event from barrier two, and Jason Collett is listed for both.
With Garza Blanca (ACY Securities) and I Am Me (Kia Ora), M and E have top prospects at shorter odds.
Once, wise guys decreed the only difference an outside draw did to a good thing was make it a better price. Brutality is a benchmark 97 horse, emphasising the class-against-weight aspect that brings Cavalier Charles (55kg) into contention.
Cavalier Charles was taken out of recent city events, possibly due to his inclement gates; today he has five.
With good tracks, speed on the fence is usually a plus, but last Saturday at Rosehill highlighted the worth of touch and steering by navigators avoiding the deplorable bleat, “riding for luck”.
Marsabit and Waller’s Bonny Ezra scored from 15, while Dajraan, with the benefit of Tulloch Lodge’s get up and go plus the Tim Clarke expertise in exploiting it, bounced from 14. In the group 1 Winterbottom at Ascot, Ben Melham was able to pilot Paulele to success from 15.
Three-kilo claiming apprentice Amy McLucas found the fence on Marsabit – an import perfectly tuned by the Goulburn’s hands-on mentor Danny Williams – and then clear passage at the right time, wheras Robbie Dolan produced a top of the pops on Bonny Ezra, weaving through where wise hands fear to go.
McLucas is scheduled to back up today on Marsabit, which has drawn 14 in the tougher Fujitsu General.
Desktop tacticians and form analysts armed with speed maps and the latest science could not have plotted their passage.
Paulele’s Godlolphin stable under James Cummings will be well served in Perth by James McDonald on the aged Cascadian, which commences from 12 in the group 1 Northerly at Ascot against the outstanding local three-year-old Amelia’s Jewel, which jumps from barrier one looking to make it six wins from seven starts.
J-Mac this week was rated the world’s best jockey by the International Federation Of Horse Racing. A worthy title-holder in an outstanding period for jockeys, he won’t need riding instructions.
I’m sure Zac Purton wouldn’t either. Purton became the fastest hoop in Hong Kong history to ride 50 winners in a season last Sunday – from 184 mounts – and he didn’t make the top 20.
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