Casino Monday preview: Trainer Ethan Ensby takes it to the Max
A fourth generation direct descendant of former Woodlands Stud owned crack filly-cum-foundation mare Shaybisc, Maximum Vortex has won seven races on both sides of the Tweed River, most of them by big margins in slick time.
Ensby 's gelding went within inches of winning the John Carlton at the Grafton carnival just 10-days prior to his uncommonly poor run in the time-honoured Ramornie Handicap.
'The Ramornie was just an absolute trainwreck,'' Ensby said.
'The trainer needs his head read for starting him from that bad gate (14 of 15).
'He pulled up fine but we tipped him out for three weeks, he is back and he looks enormous.
'He'll start a bit of pacework (this week) and the idea is he will trial, I think it is the day before tickets are drawn for the Kosciuszko.
'The stable has put together a bit of a syndicate to buy some tickets, we have got a fair bit of coin in the bank to go and buy some, so (the Kosciuszko) is the plan.'
Maximum Vortex jumps out of the ground to win Race 5 at Doomben! @CejayGraham1 pic.twitter.com/qXa1i2sls1
— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) February 1, 2025
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Ensby will be represented by four of Maximum Vortex's stablemates – Vendemmia, So Sain, Intelligencer and the Tasmanian-born blueblood, In The Blink – at his hometown meeting at Casino on Monday.
Vendemmia finished out of a place at his first run for Ensby (and jockey Ben Looker) at Kempsey last month but it comes as no surprise he is the punter's favourite to make amends on Monday.
'Benny jumped off and said he just made a mess of that,'' Ensby explained.
'He said he lobbed in what he thought was going to be a perfect position and then he said he had all these horses around him that weren't carting him anywhere.
'He got caught behind a wall of them and darted back to the inside and the inside probably ended up being the worse place to be all day, it was like quicksand.'
Vendemmia will have company, and competition, in her assignment from her new stablemate So Sain who makes her Northern Rivers debut on Monday having originally been stationed at Kembla with Robert and Luke Price.
'She's a nice little horse,'' Ensby said.
'I probably should have had her in the 1000m (race), the 1200m might just be a furlong too far. Look for her second-up but that's not saying that she can't run a race.'
Ensby warned punters not to unduly punish his Written Tycoon filly Intelligencer ($51) for her almost 20-lengths last at Grafton four weeks ago.
'Once again the trainer needs his head read for starting from an outside gate,'' Ensby said.
'Benny (Looker) came back and said he was never going to get in any closer than six-wide and then another horse in the race just carted him clean off the track.
'Be looking for big improvement on Monday.
'She is a very, very nice horse.'
Intelligencer boasts a rare 3x4 double cross of Kenmare whose numerous Australian-born stakes-winners include fast and furious types like Keltrice, Kenvain and Kenfair, milers Brave Prince and Baryshnikov, AJC Oaks winner Kenbelle and the Melbourne Cup placegetter, Lahar.
Ensby's final runner on Monday is another stable debutant, this one being the seven-year-old mare, In The Blink.
'She has been a work in progress,'' Ensby said.
'I tell you what, if looks could win races, she'd win by 10 lengths. She looks absolutely outstanding and her work has been exceptional.'
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