Kris Lees worried about rain for Brudenell in Group 2 Missile Stakes at Randwick
Like most trainers across the state, Lees has been closely monitoring the forecast with Randwick destined to race in the heavy range again for the first stakes meeting of the season.
The Missile Stakes was already blown wide open on Friday when trainer Joe Pride elected to trial hot favourite Private Eye at Warwick Farm instead of running him on a heavy track.
Private Eye was a winner of his heat with Pride set to weigh up running him in next week's Group 2 $300,000 PB Lawrence Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield or the Group 1 $1m Winx Stakes (1400m) at Randwick the following week.
It's left General Salute as a $2.70 favourite with Brudenell ($5) and Robusto ($4.40) among the leading chances.
Another feature race scalp would be well-earned for Brudenell following a consistent winter campaign that included three stakes placings.
The son of Russian Revolution was second in the Listed Takeover Target, third in the Listed Luskin Star Stakes and second in the Listed Bob Charley AO Stakes.
Lees has given him a short freshen-up to reload for the spring and is confident he can maintain his strong form, provided the rain holds off on race day.
IN FLIGHT wins the @VineryStud Bob Charley AO Stakes!
The @PrideRacing mare arrives in time to claim the Listed feature at Randwick over Brudenell with Contemporary snatching third. @tabcomau @ProvenTbreds pic.twitter.com/948Bo52Enz
— Racing NSW (@racing_nsw) June 7, 2025
'He is competitive, puts himself in the right spot, rarely runs bad,' Lees said.
'I like him on soft ground but rain on the day would probably be a little concern for a horse like him, that would be my doubt.
'It says he is first-up but he is not really (after racing in the winter) and has plenty of residual fitness.
'He is a fit horse up early before the better sprinters come back so this is probably is right time.'
• Ray and Duff analyse every race at Randwick
Jockey Dylan Gibbons, Lees' former stable apprentice, has forged a strong bond with Brudenell with the pair already combining for five victories together.
While not in a stakes race, Adelaide River is a horse Lees is also keen to see feature in better races this spring.
But the Newcastle-based conditioner will leave it late to determine if the import lines up in the Cup Prelude Open (1800m).
The son of Australia had been missed the entire autumn as he dealt with bone bruising and was a chance to resume during the winter in the Listed McKell Cup before Lees elected to wait a little longer.
Star jockey James McDonald has been booked to ride Adelaide River ($4.40) if he makes his return.
'It will be a decision for race day,' Lees said.
'He is in good order it's just whether we expose him to a heavy track first-up over 1800m after 10 months off.
'It's unlikely we would do that and there is a 1400m next weekend in both states (NSW and Victoria) so that's something we will consider.
'Everything is open with him. He has that mile and a half form at three but he is a big strapping horse and for mine he profiles like Mugatoo so I think he is versatile and he's back as a gelding now.
'There is no specific target but we want to see him race well.'
Lees identified the Group 1 Turnbull Stakes as a possible target for Adelaide River.
Age Of Sail is an emergency in the same race as Adelaide River but is a significant chance of gaining a start with multiple scratchings likely.
Lees said the stayer is a 50-50 chance of running the race with another suitable race next week.
Little Beginnings ($34), a talented first-up horse, is also in doubt of running in the Benchmark 78 Handicap (1200m).
Little Beginnings is being set for the $750,000 Little Dance on the first Tuesday in November thanks to his runner-up finish in the Mudgee Cup last preparation.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
7NEWS
an hour ago
- 7NEWS
Levi Ashcroft coming home strong in race with Dan Curtin and Murphy Reid for Rising Star
Levi Ashcroft is 'all over' his competitors in the race for the AFL's Rising Star award this year. That's according to The Agenda Setters ' Caroline Wilson, who says the Brisbane youngster should be the clear favourite with two weeks left in the season. Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today In one of the most tightly contested Rising Star fields in years, Ashcroft sits third favourite with the bookmakers behind Adelaide utility Dan Curtin and Fremantle forward Murphy Reid. He had been the outright favourite for most of the year until a recent burst of form from Curtin and later Reid. Essendon rebounder Archie Roberts, Melbourne midfield bull Harvey Langford and Geelong defender Connor O'Sullivan are the other contenders for the gong. Ashcroft has slipped seamlessly into the 23 of the reigning premiers and has not missed a game since debuting in Opening Round, but has been made to play out of his natural position. The 18-year-old was arguably the best inside midfielder in the draft last year, but has had to learn his craft as a winger for the Lions, with the likes of Lachie Neale, Josh Dunkley, Hugh McCluggage and his brother Will Ashcroft all ahead of him in the midfield queue. Stream The Agenda Setters for free, live or on-demand, anytime at 7plus With Neale out last Saturday against Sydney, Ashcroft — albeit still mostly playing on the wing — was able to step up and shine with 27 disposals and a goal. 'He got a go against Sydney on the weekend — I thought he was fabulous,' Wilson said of Ashcroft on Tuesday night. 'I think his evenness as a first-year player — it's better than Curtin, it's better than Reid. 'And remember, his brother was pretty hardly done-by (with injury) two years ago, not winning it. 'I think Levi is the standout. 'Curtin and Reid have probably had better, more spectacular games. But in terms of consistency, Levi's all over them. 'I think he's hurt by the fact his name's Ashcroft.' Until Round 14, Curtin was averaging just 10.9 disposals and 0.3 goals per game. Since then, he's averaged 18.7 touches and 0.7 goals. It's an undeniable spike in form from the 197cm second-year player — but Ashcroft has averaged 20.0 touches for the entire year, kicked one more goal than Curtin, and has had 12 games of 20 disposals or more. Curtin has had five. Curtin has had fewer than 10 touches in a game seven times. Ashcroft hasn't gone under 11 once. 'We were hardly talking about Curtin at Round 10; we've been talking about Levi the whole time,' Luke Hodge said. As a small forward, Reid is a different prospect for the award, and should be compared differently. He's only had one game of 20 disposals or more, but has kicked 22 goals and had 19 direct assists, including two games with four-goal hauls.
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Meg Lanning in the leading run-scorer in The Hundred two years after international retirement
Australian star Annabel Sutherland has soared to be the No.1 T20 bowler in the world, but an Aussie who doesn't play international cricket is dominating the short format in England. Former captain Meg Lanning is the highest run-scorer in The Hundred after another blistering effort. At 33, and having played her last match for her country in 2023 before a premature retirement that shocked the cricket and sporting world, Lanning continues to show herself to be a batting force. Playing for the Oval Invincibles, Lanning's latest effort was part of a powerhouse opening partnership that racked up 54 runs off 25 balls, the best powerplay score in the five-year history of the competition. Lanning smashed six fours in her 19-ball innings of 36 that took her haul in the tournament to 177 runs in just three innings, 20 ahead of big-hitting Aussie Grace Harris, who still plays for Australia. Since her retirement from the international game, Lanning has continued to plunder runs for Victoria as well as dominate the Indian Premier League, where she's the third highest run-scorer in the tournament's history. All those runs have come against international-calibre bowlers, making it clear she would still be a batting force for Australia. Lanning's retirement sparked a regeneration of the Australian team, and superstar all-rounder Sutherland has been a major beneficiary. The 23-year-old has netted centuries at Test and ODI level and continues to star with the ball. Sutherland has also been a beneficiary of a quirk of the International Cricket Council's rankings system, being elevated to the No.1 T20 bowling ranking despite not playing an international T20 since she took a four-wicket haul against New Zealand in March. But her rating of 736 remains unchanged, as a group of bowlers near the top of the rankings lost points across the last week.
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Reason why AFL WAG Paris Tier lost her sales job
The girlfriend of a professional athlete has revealed how she lost her job due to her rising profile on social media. Paris Tier, who is dating Greater Western Sydney Giants player Conor Stone, divulged on her WAG — Women and Goals podcast that her social media profile led to her being fired from her job. Ms Tier was working in sales merchandising, and part of her role led to her being contracted out at another businesses. At the time, she didn't have a lot of followers but her posts about what her life was like dating a professional athlete started to boost her profile. 'I started posting on TikTok a month into working this job, and I only had 2000 followers but my videos were averaging 30,000 views,' she told Ms Tier said she wasn't posting about her job, but about her relationship with Stone. She said it started off with mean comments, but things escalated when she posted a clip about an NRL player. After backlash, she deleted the video. 'I got a call from a colleague and she said, '[Our boss] has called me saying you can't work tomorrow because somebody has complained about your TikTok',' Ms Tier said. The AFL WAG was told the complaint was made not to her direct company, but the one that she was contracted to as part of her role. She asked the company's media and human resources if there were any issues with her social media, but neither department had any issues with the content. At the time, Ms Tier had annual leave planned due to a medical procedure so she went on two weeks worth of leave. 'I took the two weeks off because I needed this to calm down before I go back to work, because obviously not everyone loves social media, and if your boss read something that you did online they have to believe it in a way,' she said. 'I was a little bit disappointed because when I messaged [my boss] about it, she said it was nothing. She essentially lied to me.' During her time off, Ms Tier consulted an employment lawyer, received a probation update about why she 'wasn't the right fit for the role' and ultimately decided to leave the job. To this day, she has no idea where the complaint originated from or if it was even real. 'When this happened at work, I was in the state of mind of, 'Have I lost every opportunity to get a good job? Have I lost every opportunity to do a thing I love',' she recalled. 'And no, I haven't.' Ms Tier revealed she works in a completely new industry now, and really loves it, finding the workplace incredibly supportive. She said that contracts needed to highlight what issues they may have in regards to employee's social media presence, particularly as she never talked about the company online — barring the fact that it was on her LinkedIn profile. She said she hasn't added her latest workplace to her profile as she is scared it could happen again. Ms Tier added that there is a belief that many people in her position are unemployed. 'I don't think people realise, they see someone and think, 'Oh my god she's a stay-at-home mum, bet she doesn't have half a brain cell',' she said. 'That woman is 90 per cent of the time on maternity leave, or young enough to still be figuring out their life.' She said baseless assumptions about WAGs are 'not fair' and simply incorrect. 'People have assumptions because we don't post our work, but how can people post their work when individuals do something like this,' she said. 'It's not fair.'
