Canterbury previews: Payne's prized pair primed to parlay his success

Daily Telegraph

08-06-2025

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FRESH from his Saturday win at Royal Randwick, trainer David Payne aims to carry over his success into Monday's King's Birthday meeting at Canterbury via two of the stable's mid to long term prospects.
Two-year-old duo Cosmonaut and Funky Tilda were both selected and purchased by Payne at the Inglis HTBA Yearling Sale in 2024.
They were the only two lots which Payne signed off on the day.
Whereas Cosmonaut was a bargain at $17,000, Funky Tilda was a much-admired filly at the sale.
So much so that her $115,000 price-tag made her the third most expensive yearling of the 162 sold.
'She is quite well bred,'' Payne said.
'She's by Hellbent who is doing well out of a quite a nice damline.'
Funky Tilda was the seventh foal of her Flemington-placed dam, Another Sunday, whose best performer to date is the Magic Night runner-up Blanc de Blanc who happens to be a daughter of Hellbent's famous father – I Am Invincible.
Funky Tilda also boasts Flight Stakes winner Oohood as well as crack two-year-olds King's Legacy, Zizou and Not A Single Doubt as relatives.
Despite the presence of so many precious horses on her family tree, Rory's Jester, Redoute's Choice, Canny Lad, Snippets and Rory's Jester among them, Payne is playing a longer-term game with his blueblood miss.
Though quietly confident she will hold her own on debut in Monday's ATC Chase The Dream Maiden Plate (1250m), an awkward draw coupled with a lack of experience may hold her back for now.
'She will need a race,'' Payne said. 'She'll have that run then she'll most probably go to the paddock.
'She is still a bit of a baby but just from what she has shown me in work, she'll most probably run 1600m.'
Payne is understandably more bullish on the winning prospects of Cosmonaut which lines-up in a must-see ATC Drinkwise Plate (1250m) to start the day.
Payne's colt will be the only one of the eight participants with race experience having two starts on his C.V ahead of today's third.
The baldy-faced bay caught the eye in more ways than one when clocking in third at his debut in the $200,000 Inglis 2YO Challenge on Scone Cup Day.
He followed up with another honourable effort, this time at Kembla, when making ground late on a testing heavy (8) surface.
'Both times he found the line well which is good,'' Payne said.
'He is still learning. He did a few things wrong both times but I think he'll be better with the step-up in distance (on Monday).
'Just looking at him as a type, he looks like he would get up to a mile (but) he has drawn well on Monday and if he can maybe box-seat, that would be ideal.'
Cosmonaut is a member of Cosmic Force's second crop of foals that arrived during the spring of 2022.
He is the second foal of his dam, Vodianova, who won twice at Moe over 1623m.
His most famous relative is Handsome Ransom who collected the Black Opal Preview and Black Opal Stakes, beating Exceed And Excel, in his first two starts.
Cosmonaut is rated a $23 chance in Monday's opening race at Canterbury which is assured a widespread audience given the presence of the much touted $1.4 million yearling Central Coast.
The Chris Waller-trained colt is a son of the all-conquering Wootton Bassett and the second foal of the triple Group 1 winner Sunlight.
Sunlight's first foal is Dawn Service who won the Listed VRC Exford Plate (1400m) on Makybe Diva Stakes Day at Flemington on September 14.
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SHOULD Dollar Magic finish runner-up, again, at Canterbury on Monday, she will have equalled racing's perennial placegetter Tom Melbourne's extraordinary tally of 14 seconds.
Scott Singleton's mare posted the 13th second of her career when beating all bar Zealously when she resumed at home on the same day as her stablemate Melody Again won the Group 3 Dark Jewel Classic.
Dollar Magic's numerous seconds have been as close as a nose and as far off the winner as 2-1/4 lengths.
Dollar Magic is chasing another placing at Canterbury on Monday. Photo: Bradley Photos.
Sometimes it has been a better horse that has beaten her, sometimes not.
'There have been a few of them that have been quite cruel seconds,'' Singleton says.
'Definitely when Fire Star beat her last prep was a cruel one, but she always does her best so I can't begrudge her.
'If she wins on Monday she is getting towards $600,000 and she hasn't won one fancy race. She's won it from just keeping on turning up and trying hard so she's terrific.'
Dollar Magic has finished on the podium at 20 of her 25 starts.
One of her four wins was at Canterbury which was also the venue for her only taste of black-type racing on New Year's Day.
'She got caught a little bit with no cover in the Canterbury Sprint and I thought she toughed it out really well,'' Singleton said.
'She's come on a little bit from that first-up run and gets there in really, really good order so I expect her to run well.
'Whether she can beat Zealously is the thing. It went terrific at Scone the other day but if the track is going to be a bit softer than maybe it was at Scone, I think it will suit her more than him.'
Dollar Magic will have company in the float from Scone to Sydney from her in-form stablemate Fiorsum Fred which could and perhaps even should be on a hat-trick leading into the ATC Ranvet Handicap (1550m).
Fiorsum Fred will be back in action at Canterbury on Monday. Photo: Bradley Photos.
'He was good the other day (in the Gunnedah Cup), he only needed another half a stride,' Singleton said.
'He has been going particularly well at home and pulling up well from his runs. He's in good shape.'
For all his recent heroics Fiorsum Fred was allotted 62.5kg in Monday's mission.
'I know it sounds a lot when you say it but after the 3kg comes off and when you look at what everyone else has got comparative to you, I don't think he is that badly treated to be honest,'' Singleton said.
Originally published as Shayne O'Cass' Canterbury previews: Payne's prized pair primed to parlay his success