Latest news with #DivineBene
Daily Telegraph
28-05-2025
- General
- Daily Telegraph
Gosford, Inverell previews: Adam Duggan hoping for a Divine result in the wet
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Trainer Adam Duggan had a nice opinion of Divine Bene in his early trackwork and trials but a couple of unflattering runs to start his career put that into question. It wasn't until Divine Bene got onto a wet track that he started to perform to a higher level and placed in three consecutive runs as he built into his first campaign. 'He is a horse I had a bit of time for early days but didn't show a lot in his first couple of runs,' said Duggan. 'Once we got him going with a couple of runs under his belt, we worked out he didn't have much of a turn of foot but he could sustain the same speed throughout. 'We also found he had a real liking for wet track. I don't think I've had a horse who has had so many runs on a wet track.' Divine Bene has raced on wet ground in eight of the 10 career starts with seven of them on heavy where he has a win and four minor placings. He returned this campaign with a nice win first-up over 1550m on the Beaumont before a third to Lutetia at Newcastle both on Heavy 8 tracks before a second to Sirius Flyer in a Soft 5 at Quirindi last start. 'It probably wasn't wet enough for him at Quirindi the other day,' he said. The four-year-old gets his preferred conditions when steps out in the Class 1 Handicap (1200m). 'I'm happy to have Ash Morgan back on. He rode him really well to win first-up,' Duggan said. 'He's also in at Inverell. I'll discuss it with his owners but Gosford is my preferred option.' Duggan also has Purple Haze entered for the Super Maiden Handicap (1200m) on his home track. The gelding battled away for third to Yes Siree on a Heavy 10 at Wyong on debut on May 1. 'He has been a real work in progress,' said Duggan. 'He was aided by a fair few scratchings in a fairly soft race on debut if I'm being honest but in saying that, I would be surprised if he doesn't improve. 'I think the 1200m will suit him better and eventually a bit further than that.' Warwick Farm trainer Clarry Conners has been pleased with the way Okami Star has raced this campaign and gives him a change of securing another win in the Class 1 Handicap (1600m). The gelding resumed with a second to Pelosa at Hawkesbury followed by a fifth at Kembla before breaking through with a narrow win from Murphilly at Wyong. Last start, he boxed on a long neck fourth to Ocean One at Hawkesbury. 'He has come back a nice horse this time in,' said Conners. 'At Hawkesbury last start, he went around and got to the front then just eased up on him. 'He's a big striding horse and it would have been better if he kept going on him. 'I'm happy with the horse though.' Conners also feels Proclivity can bounce back from a luckless run last start when he contests the 2&3YO Maiden Handicap (1600m). After a debut second to Caltsar at Newcastle, the gelding finished sixth to Monte Veebee at Kembla. 'It was a good run at Newcastle on debut then at Kembla everything went wrong. He got knocked down and pushed back,' he said. 'Aaron Bullock rode him in his first start and was impressed with the horse. 'I'm very happy to be able to get him again this week. ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ A slow start and untimely bump put paid to the chances of Angels Cloud last start but trainer Marc Quinn couldn't be happier with his mare and expects her to break through for a well-earned win when she heads to Inverell. Angels Cloud started a $1.90 favourite at Glen Innes earlier this month following three handy placings since joining Quinn's stable. Unfortunately, she was put out of business in the first couple of strides when she settled further back than expected on her way to finishing second behind Immortal Lass. 'I really thought she would have won at Glen Innes the other day but she took a backwards step when the gates opened and Cody's (Morgan) horse got a march on us and that was the end of the race for her,' said Quinn. 'She has had a good couple of weeks since then. 'Obviously last week was a bit of a washout for us. We missed trackwork for a couple of days but they are not going to lose much fitness going on the walker for a couple of days. 'Despite the weather, the horses coped with it really well and she had a lovely gallop on Saturday.' Angels Cloud has drawn ideally on barrier 4 in the Country Boosted Maiden Plate (1100m) with Matthew McGuren to again partner her. 'She has drawn well and Matthew decided to stick with her which is good,' he said. 'All she needs to do is step away and I think she will be hard to beat. Quinn is weighing up his options for Perhaps Perhaps in the Class 1 and Maiden Plate (1800m) but expects her to run a much improved race if she does start. The four-year-old debuted for Quinn with a handy fifth to Justifiably at Port Macquarie on April 19 before backing up on a heavy track there eight days later when down the order behind Imarealamerican over 1500m. She then finished a somewhat unlucky fifth to Visualise over 1400m at Glen Innes. 'Her first run for us was really good and we thought we would try and rider her handier second-up but I don't think she appreciated that and the quick back-up,' he said. 'We didn't want to come back in distance but there wasn't a lot of options for her after so we took her to Glen Innes. 'I thought the run was passable and the step up to 1800m suits her quite well.'
Courier-Mail
28-05-2025
- Sport
- Courier-Mail
Gosford, Inverell previews: Adam Duggan hoping for a Divine result in the wet
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Trainer Adam Duggan had a nice opinion of Divine Bene in his early trackwork and trials but a couple of unflattering runs to start his career put that into question. It wasn't until Divine Bene got onto a wet track that he started to perform to a higher level and placed in three consecutive runs as he built into his first campaign. 'He is a horse I had a bit of time for early days but didn't show a lot in his first couple of runs,' said Duggan. 'Once we got him going with a couple of runs under his belt, we worked out he didn't have much of a turn of foot but he could sustain the same speed throughout. 'We also found he had a real liking for wet track. I don't think I've had a horse who has had so many runs on a wet track.' Divine Bene has raced on wet ground in eight of the 10 career starts with seven of them on heavy where he has a win and four minor placings. He returned this campaign with a nice win first-up over 1550m on the Beaumont before a third to Lutetia at Newcastle both on Heavy 8 tracks before a second to Sirius Flyer in a Soft 5 at Quirindi last start. 'It probably wasn't wet enough for him at Quirindi the other day,' he said. The four-year-old gets his preferred conditions when steps out in the Class 1 Handicap (1200m). 'I'm happy to have Ash Morgan back on. He rode him really well to win first-up,' Duggan said. 'He's also in at Inverell. I'll discuss it with his owners but Gosford is my preferred option.' Duggan also has Purple Haze entered for the Super Maiden Handicap (1200m) on his home track. The gelding battled away for third to Yes Siree on a Heavy 10 at Wyong on debut on May 1. 'He has been a real work in progress,' said Duggan. 'He was aided by a fair few scratchings in a fairly soft race on debut if I'm being honest but in saying that, I would be surprised if he doesn't improve. 'I think the 1200m will suit him better and eventually a bit further than that.' Warwick Farm trainer Clarry Conners has been pleased with the way Okami Star has raced this campaign and gives him a change of securing another win in the Class 1 Handicap (1600m). The gelding resumed with a second to Pelosa at Hawkesbury followed by a fifth at Kembla before breaking through with a narrow win from Murphilly at Wyong. Last start, he boxed on a long neck fourth to Ocean One at Hawkesbury. 'He has come back a nice horse this time in,' said Conners. 'At Hawkesbury last start, he went around and got to the front then just eased up on him. 'He's a big striding horse and it would have been better if he kept going on him. 'I'm happy with the horse though.' Conners also feels Proclivity can bounce back from a luckless run last start when he contests the 2&3YO Maiden Handicap (1600m). After a debut second to Caltsar at Newcastle, the gelding finished sixth to Monte Veebee at Kembla. 'It was a good run at Newcastle on debut then at Kembla everything went wrong. He got knocked down and pushed back,' he said. 'Aaron Bullock rode him in his first start and was impressed with the horse. 'I'm very happy to be able to get him again this week. ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ A slow start and untimely bump put paid to the chances of Angels Cloud last start but trainer Marc Quinn couldn't be happier with his mare and expects her to break through for a well-earned win when she heads to Inverell. Angels Cloud started a $1.90 favourite at Glen Innes earlier this month following three handy placings since joining Quinn's stable. Unfortunately, she was put out of business in the first couple of strides when she settled further back than expected on her way to finishing second behind Immortal Lass. 'I really thought she would have won at Glen Innes the other day but she took a backwards step when the gates opened and Cody's (Morgan) horse got a march on us and that was the end of the race for her,' said Quinn. 'She has had a good couple of weeks since then. 'Obviously last week was a bit of a washout for us. We missed trackwork for a couple of days but they are not going to lose much fitness going on the walker for a couple of days. 'Despite the weather, the horses coped with it really well and she had a lovely gallop on Saturday.' Angels Cloud has drawn ideally on barrier 4 in the Country Boosted Maiden Plate (1100m) with Matthew McGuren to again partner her. 'She has drawn well and Matthew decided to stick with her which is good,' he said. 'All she needs to do is step away and I think she will be hard to beat. Quinn is weighing up his options for Perhaps Perhaps in the Class 1 and Maiden Plate (1800m) but expects her to run a much improved race if she does start. The four-year-old debuted for Quinn with a handy fifth to Justifiably at Port Macquarie on April 19 before backing up on a heavy track there eight days later when down the order behind Imarealamerican over 1500m. She then finished a somewhat unlucky fifth to Visualise over 1400m at Glen Innes. 'Her first run for us was really good and we thought we would try and rider her handier second-up but I don't think she appreciated that and the quick back-up,' he said. 'We didn't want to come back in distance but there wasn't a lot of options for her after so we took her to Glen Innes. 'I thought the run was passable and the step up to 1800m suits her quite well.'
News.com.au
28-05-2025
- General
- News.com.au
Gosford preview: Local trainer Adam Duggan is banking on Divine Bene's love of wet tracks to land another win
Trainer Adam Duggan had a nice opinion of Divine Bene in his early trackwork and trials but a couple of unflattering runs to start his career put that into question. It wasn't until Divine Bene got onto a wet track that he started to perform to a higher level and placed in three consecutive runs as he built into his first campaign. 'He is a horse I had a bit of time for early days but didn't show a lot in his first couple of runs,' said Duggan. 'Once we got him going with a couple of runs under his belt, we worked out he didn't have much of a turn of foot but he could sustain the same speed throughout. 'We also found he had a real liking for wet track. I don't think I've had a horse who has had so many runs on a wet track.' Divine Bene returns strong, winning first up for @adugganracing with @AshMorgan6 in the saddle! ðŸ'� â€' SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) March 24, 2025 Divine Bene has raced on wet ground in eight of the 10 career starts with seven of them on heavy where he has a win and four minor placings. He returned this campaign with a nice win first-up over 1550m on the Beaumont before a third to Lutetia at Newcastle both on Heavy 8 tracks before a second to Sirius Flyer in a Soft 5 at Quirindi last start. 'It probably wasn't wet enough for him at Quirindi the other day,' he said. The four-year-old gets his preferred conditions when steps out in the Class 1 Handicap (1200m). 'I'm happy to have Ash Morgan back on. He rode him really well to win first-up,' Duggan said. 'He's also in at Inverell. I'll discuss it with his owners but Gosford is my preferred option.' Duggan also has Purple Haze entered for the Super Maiden Handicap (1200m) on his home track. The gelding battled away for third to Yes Siree on a Heavy 10 at Wyong on debut on May 1. 'He has been a real work in progress,' said Duggan. 'He was aided by a fair few scratchings in a fairly soft race on debut if I'm being honest but in saying that, I would be surprised if he doesn't improve. 'I think the 1200m will suit him better and eventually a bit further than that.' Okami Star takes out the opener at Wyong and breaks his maiden! ðŸ'¥ @HeavelonVan â€' SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) May 1, 2025 Warwick Farm trainer Clarry Conners has been pleased with the way Okami Star has raced this campaign and gives him a change of securing another win in the Class 1 Handicap (1600m). The gelding resumed with a second to Pelosa at Hawkesbury followed by a fifth at Kembla before breaking through with a narrow win from Murphilly at Wyong. Last start, he boxed on a long neck fourth to Ocean One at Hawkesbury. 'He has come back a nice horse this time in,' said Conners. 'At Hawkesbury last start, he went around and got to the front then just eased up on him. 'He's a big striding horse and it would have been better if he kept going on him. 'I'm happy with the horse though.' Conners also feels Proclivity can bounce back from a luckless run last start when he contests the 2&3YO Maiden Handicap (1600m). After a debut second to Caltsar at Newcastle, the gelding finished sixth to Monte Veebee at Kembla. 'It was a good run at Newcastle on debut then at Kembla everything went wrong. He got knocked down and pushed back,' he said. 'Aaron Bullock rode him in his first start and was impressed with the horse. 'I'm very happy to be able to get him again this week. â– â– â– â– â– A slow start and untimely bump put paid to the chances of Angels Cloud last start but trainer Marc Quinn couldn't be happier with his mare and expects her to break through for a well-earned win when she heads to Inverell. Angels Cloud started a $1.90 favourite at Glen Innes earlier this month following three handy placings since joining Quinn 's stable. Unfortunately, she was put out of business in the first couple of strides when she settled further back than expected on her way to finishing second behind Immortal Lass. 'I really thought she would have won at Glen Innes the other day but she took a backwards step when the gates opened and Cody's (Morgan) horse got a march on us and that was the end of the race for her,' said Quinn. What A Rush leads all the way to win the Port Mac opener! ðŸ'¥ â€' SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) April 27, 2025 'She has had a good couple of weeks since then. 'Obviously last week was a bit of a washout for us. We missed trackwork for a couple of days but they are not going to lose much fitness going on the walker for a couple of days. 'Despite the weather, the horses coped with it really well and she had a lovely gallop on Saturday.' Angels Cloud has drawn ideally on barrier 4 in the Country Boosted Maiden Plate (1100m) with Matthew McGuren to again partner her. 'She has drawn well and Matthew decided to stick with her which is good,' he said. 'All she needs to do is step away and I think she will be hard to beat. Quinn is weighing up his options for Perhaps Perhaps in the Class 1 and Maiden Plate (1800m) but expects her to run a much improved race if she does start. The four-year-old debuted for Quinn with a handy fifth to Justifiably at Port Macquarie on April 19 before backing up on a heavy track there eight days later when down the order behind Imarealamerican over 1500m. She then finished a somewhat unlucky fifth to Visualise over 1400m at Glen Innes. 'Her first run for us was really good and we thought we would try and rider her handier second-up but I don't think she appreciated that and the quick back-up,' he said. 'We didn't want to come back in distance but there wasn't a lot of options for her after so we took her to Glen Innes. 'I thought the run was passable and the step up to 1800m suits her quite well.'
News.com.au
21-04-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
Coffs Harbour preview: Trainer Adam Duggan confident gelding can be big threat up in distance
Gosford trainer Adam Duggan says there is no better time for the 1967 Golden Slipper winner Sweet Embrace's modern-day descendant Divine Bene to make his 1400m debut than at Coffs Harbour on Tuesday. Duggan's four-year-old gelding has done some good things in his nine starts, all of which have been at distances ranging from 1000m up to 1262m. Divine Bene broke through for a well-earned first win when he had his first run for the year in an 1150m Maiden at Beaumont on March 24. • PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW! He followed that up with an honourable third at Newcastle in a Class 1 three weeks ago behind the Kris Lees-trained/Coolmore-bred blue blood, Lutetia. 'He won well first-up in a pretty average race and I thought there was plenty of merit in his second run,'' Duggan said. 'He was just beaten by a couple of better horses on the day but I just thought that run, going along at a good gallop like he did, might just sort of help solid him up for the 1400m so to speak. 'I have been looking forward to getting him to 1400m and even maybe a mile.' Divine Bene is a horse with 'cerise' running through his veins given the sheer number of Woodlands males and females that share his family tree. None of them more famous than his sixth dam, Sweet Embrace, who won the 10th running of the Golden Slipper Stakes and to this day, still holds the record as the longest priced winner, SPing at 40/1. Sweet Embrace went on to become a broodmare of note, more so via her daughters, one of which (Sudden Impulse) was responsible for the trio of Ingham stakes winners, Strategic, Clang and Destruct. Divine Bene returns strong, winning first up for @adugganracing with @AshMorgan6 in the saddle! ðŸ'� — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) March 24, 2025 Despite his 'Golden pedigree', Divine Bene cost 'only' $60,000 when presented at the 2022 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale. 'He hasn't paid his way yet but if he got the job done on Tuesday, he'd be getting pretty close,'' Duggan said. Divine Bene will have company of the float by another Duggan-housed blue blood, Call Me Basil. The three-year-old gelding turned in an encouraging debut at Taree on April 5 when third in the 1270m maiden. 'After reviewing that meeting, you just couldn't make ground down any part of the middle of the track so his run was probably a bit better than it looked,'' Duggan said. 'He is still a fairly inexperienced horse and is probably going to get over a bit of ground in time being by Kingman out of that mare that he is out of. 'I don't think the wet track will worry him and I don't mind the barrier for him. 'He is no good thing by any stretch of the imagination but it would surprise me if he is not in the finish in that sort of grade of race. 'I am looking forward to when he is a four, five-year-old, I think he'll be a nice horse. 'I don't think he'll be racing up that way but sometimes it's not where you start, it's where you finish as they say so we'll see how it all plays out (today).' Both of Duggan's Coffs Harbour participants will be ridden by Ashley Morgan who boasts a phenomenally high winning strike rate with the Central Coast conditioner of 26.9 per cent. 'I was pretty happy when I was able to book Ash,'' Duggan said. 'We've had a good association for a while now. 'He's a very, very good rider and I'm probably lucky to have him on at these sort of meetings.' Queanbeyan preview: Kissing goodbye on high note Speed freak Kissing Supido will have his last start in NSW at Queanbeyan on Tuesday before he packs up and heads north to Darwin. The son of Widden Stud resident stallion, the one time flying machine Supido, is purpose built for Fannie Bay with his uncommon pace over the short course. It is no wonder then that the chestnut's record at the frontrunner favoured Queanbeyan track is three starts for a win and two placings in just nine outings for trainer Joe Cleary. 'He's a very fast horse.'' Cleary said. 'He's had a fantastic base for this race first-up. 'He heads to Darwin after Tuesday. He's heading up to (trainer) Gary Clarke for the carnival up there so it's his final run for me. 'And I am more than certain he'll go out with a bang. 'His work's been great, he had a jumpout, he looks awesome and he will be straight on the bunny, handlebars down.'' Cleary has been, and remains, one of industry titan Gerry Harvey's go-to trainers when it comes to ensuring as few of his fillies and mares race off to Baramul Stud without a win or two. Enter Juliette's Joy and Snitz And Straand, who will retire as winners when the time comes thanks to some deft placement on Cleary's behalf. Doncaster and Epsom placegetter Zastov's granddaughter Snitz And Straand won first time out for Cleary on the Riverside track at Wagga, while Juliette's Joy has barnstormed her way to three wins in only 10 starts since her change of address. Juliette's Joy looks ideally placed at 1460m second-up off a stunning return in a 1200m race at Queanbeyan when giving away an impossible start. 'She'll be winning,'' Clearly said. 'She just needed that run the other day. She probably should have run straight over the top of them. 'She has done really well in the 10 days between runs, she's done super, and she races well at the track. 'Up to the 1460m and Jess (Taylor) on, she looks like she is nearly all but over the line.' Snitz And Straand turned in a below-par performance at Queanbeyan on April 12 but is capable of bouncing back on Tuesday. 'She got caught four deep with no cover,'' Cleary said. 'In a shallow (on Tuesday), she'll run quite well and if she gets the money she'll head to Wagga for the Guineas.'
