‘It's someone else's turn': Ozzie Kheir out to deny Annabel Neasham fifth straight Hollindale Stakes success with Buckaroo
Buckaroo's part-owner Ozzie Kheir is confident that Annabel Archibald 's remarkable winning streak in the Hollindale Stakes will be halted on Saturday as he joked that the $500,000 Group 2 race should be named after the high-profile Sydney trainer.
The newly married Archibald has won the past four editions of the 1800m race and will be vying for a fifth on the Gold Coast this week in partnership with her co-trainer and husband Rob.
The Chris Waller -trained gelding Buckaroo is the clear favourite for the Hollindale Stakes at $3.80 with bookmakers, ahead of stablemate Lindermann ($5).
The Archibald-trained Fawkner Park, Queensland star Antino and Eliyass, from the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott stable, are next on the line at $7.50.
'I think it's someone else's turn to win the Hollindale, for sure,' Kheir said about ending Archibald's reign.
'We've got to stop that or else they'll call it the Archibald Cup soon. If you win it four times in a row, surely there has to be a discussion to name the race after you.'
Last year's Melbourne Cup favourite, six-year-old Buckaroo had a highly successful spring campaign when he won the Group 1 Underwood Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield, the Group 2 Chelmsford Stakes (1600m) at Randwick and finished runner-up in majors the Turnbull Stakes (2000m) at Flemington and the Caulfield Cup (2400m).
Buckaroo is coming off a light autumn campaign that included a ninth place in the $1m George Ryder Stakes at Rosehill in March and then he finished seventh out of 13 runners in the $5m Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick on April 12.
'I thought his runs in both races were creditable, even though the form doesn't look good on paper. He sort of blew out a little bit in the Queen Elizabeth,' Kheir said.
'He loomed up very well and probably punctured the last 200m.'
Kheir said Buckaroo would be 'cherry-ripe' for the Hollindale Stakes, where he will jump from barrier 12, and then go into the Group 1 $1m Doomben Cup (2000m) on May 24.
'All the reports are that he's going well at home and I think he'll run a good race (on Saturday),' he said.
'Although he's won on good ground, tracks with a bit of give are ideal for him. If we can get a Soft 5 or 6, that'll be to his liking.'
Meanwhile, Kheir said Melbourne Cup runner-up Soulcombe was only a '40 per cent chance' of returning to the racetrack and wouldn't be back until next autumn at the earliest.
The six-year-old gelding hasn't competed since finishing second to Without A Fight in the race that stops a nation in 2023 due to a series of setbacks, the latest being a tendon injury.
Asked whether the star stayer would be retired, Kheir said: 'No, not yet. We haven't decided.
'We're going to put him through a rehab program over the next eight weeks and then assess how he recovers from that.
'It's definitely not great. I couldn't see him racing before the next autumn at the earliest.
'I would say he's a 40 per cent chance of being able to return to racing.
'He's probably one of the most talented horses we've owned. He's up there with one of our favourites.
'He's one horse that deserved to be a Group 1 winner and got awfully close but he was unlucky on the day.'
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