Latest news with #Mornington
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Sport
- News.com.au
Catani Gardens primed for King's Birthday success at Mornington
Lightly-raced import Catani Gardens is well-positioned to build on his Australian profile at Mornington on King's Birthday Monday. The Anthony and Sam Freedman -trained five-year-old, $5.50 favourite in the 2000m Benchmark 74 Handicap, led all the way to win at Ballarat last start. The Irish-bred Catani Gardens, owned by Lloyd Williams and James Packer, won a Mornington maiden by three lengths last year in his first Australian start. The Camelot gelding then failed at The Valley when fading out of contention before being spelled. Sam Freedman said Catani Gardens 'should be really competitive' on Monday with apprentice jockey Tom Prebble again in the saddle. 'He was good last time (Ballarat) and 2000m seems like his wheelhouse at the moment,' Freedman said. 'He's been working well and it looks like a suitable race. 'He's a strong worker and seems to like to get on the speed … he should be really competitive.' Freedman is happy for Catani Gardens to dictate future race plans based on performance and merit. 'We're just taking him through his grades and seeing where he gets to,' Freedman said. 'We'll raise the bar and hopefully he continues to step up.' Freedman has six runners at Mornington including Everain and Winter Hail in a 1200m maiden. Blue Hawaiian, trained by Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman, is a $2.70 favourite for the race from Freedman pair Everain ($3.10) and Winter Hail ($4.20).
Daily Telegraph
2 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Telegraph
Laurie plots spring plans for Group 1 stars Treasurethe Moment and Vinrock
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Group 1 stars Treasurethe Moment and Vinrock continue to impress astute trainer Matt Laurie, as spring campaigns sharpen into focus. The Mornington trainer has a traditional spring path being considered for triple Group 1-winner Treasurethe Moment, with Yulong boss and owner Yuesheng Zhang to decide on a Caulfield Cup or Cox Plate grand final. 'It's got to be confirmed and agreed by the boss … Memsie (Stakes), Makybe (Diva Stakes), Turnbull (Stakes) and they're deciding whether she goes to the Caulfield Cup or Cox Plate,' Laurie said. Treasurethe Moment has won nine of 11 starts in a stellar career to date, including the Group 1 VRC Oaks, Vinery Stud Stakes and Australian Oaks. 'If she doesn't win another one (Group 1) we got to be pretty happy with what she has done so far,' Laurie said. 'She has obviously got to take on the older horses now, it's a different league, so we'll see. 'Nine of 11 you'd think she's got something to offer.' Treasurethe Moment is $8 and $11 respectively in Cox Plate and Caulfield Cup markets. Yulong has a stranglehold on the Cox Plate with reigning champion Via Sistina ($2.50) and new acquisition Carl Spackler ($26), a multiple American Grade 1 winner being aimed at Australia's best race. Treasurethe Moment is ready to start trot and canter work under saddle after a week on the treadmill. 'She's come back looking better than she did last time,' Laurie said. 'She's buzzing like she's ready to have a canter, so she must be feeling well.' Group 1 Sires' Produce winner Vinrock has also returned in great shape. 'I've been doing some flat, dressage work in the arena,' Laurie said. 'He had his first trot and canter around our track at the farm (last Saturday) and he felt great.' Laurie has the Group 1 Golden Rose (1600m) earmarked as the first spring target for Vinrock but there are many other options following the September feature at Rosehill. 'I'm not sure. I felt he should be running in a Golden Rose and you're deciding whether you're going up to eight (1600m) or coming back to the six (1200m) furlongs,' Laurie said. Meanwhile, Laurie has Sun Setting chasing a hat-trick in a 1200m Benchmark 64 on King's Birthday Monday at Mornington. Laurie saved Sun Setting from a tougher assignment at Flemington last Saturday, saddled Soft Love in race instead and missed by the barest margin. Sun Setting finished second in two summer outings at Mornington before a short break. The promising daughter of Pierata returned with a Moe maiden win and repeated the effort last start on Mornington home turf. 'She's going really well and she looks well placed,' Laurie said. 'I don't know what price she is but she'd be short enough … I thought no point running them against each other (Soft Love and Sun Setting), as they were both good chances. 'I think she would've given the Flemington race a good shake … we thought a midweek meeting at Mornington, where she has run well before, was a smart move.' Sun Setting is a $3.40 favourite in the 1200m Benchmark 64 at Mornington. Originally published as Mornington trainer Matt Laurie plots spring plans for Group 1 stars Treasurethe Moment and Vinrock
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Sport
- News.com.au
Mornington trainer Matt Laurie plots spring plans for Group 1 stars Treasurethe Moment and Vinrock
Group 1 stars Treasurethe Moment and Vinrock continue to impress astute trainer Matt Laurie, as spring campaigns sharpen into focus. The Mornington trainer has a traditional spring path being considered for triple Group 1-winner Treasurethe Moment, with Yulong boss and owner Yuesheng Zhang to decide on a Caulfield Cup or Cox Plate grand final. 'It's got to be confirmed and agreed by the boss … Memsie (Stakes), Makybe (Diva Stakes), Turnbull (Stakes) and they're deciding whether she goes to the Caulfield Cup or Cox Plate,' Laurie said. Treasurethe Moment has won nine of 11 starts in a stellar career to date, including the Group 1 VRC Oaks, Vinery Stud Stakes and Australian Oaks. 'If she doesn't win another one (Group 1) we got to be pretty happy with what she has done so far,' Laurie said. 'She has obviously got to take on the older horses now, it's a different league, so we'll see. 'Nine of 11 you'd think she's got something to offer.' An epic win by Treasurethe Moment in the G1 Australian Oaks! She nabs the Victorian-Australian Oaks double in the final strides! 🙌 @mattlaurierace | @LaneDamian | @aus_turf_club | @WorldPool — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) April 12, 2025 Treasurethe Moment is $8 and $11 respectively in Cox Plate and Caulfield Cup markets. Yulong has a stranglehold on the Cox Plate with reigning champion Via Sistina ($2.50) and new acquisition Carl Spackler ($26), a multiple American Grade 1 winner being aimed at Australia's best race. Treasurethe Moment is ready to start trot and canter work under saddle after a week on the treadmill. 'She's come back looking better than she did last time,' Laurie said. 'She's buzzing like she's ready to have a canter, so she must be feeling well.' Group 1 Sires' Produce winner Vinrock has also returned in great shape. 'I've been doing some flat, dressage work in the arena,' Laurie said. 'He had his first trot and canter around our track at the farm (last Saturday) and he felt great.' 🤩 Vinrock makes it a Sires double, winning the G1 Sires' at Randwick, adding to his VRC Sires' win at Flemington, and what a carnival it could be for @mattlaurierace! @aus_turf_club | @WorldPool — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) April 5, 2025 Laurie has the Group 1 Golden Rose (1600m) earmarked as the first spring target for Vinrock but there are many other options following the September feature at Rosehill. 'I'm not sure. I felt he should be running in a Golden Rose and you're deciding whether you're going up to eight (1600m) or coming back to the six (1200m) furlongs,' Laurie said. Meanwhile, Laurie has Sun Setting chasing a hat-trick in a 1200m Benchmark 64 on King's Birthday Monday at Mornington. Laurie saved Sun Setting from a tougher assignment at Flemington last Saturday, saddled Soft Love in race instead and missed by the barest margin. Sun Setting finished second in two summer outings at Mornington before a short break. The promising daughter of Pierata returned with a Moe maiden win and repeated the effort last start on Mornington home turf. 'She's going really well and she looks well placed,' Laurie said. 'I don't know what price she is but she'd be short enough … I thought no point running them against each other (Soft Love and Sun Setting), as they were both good chances. 'I think she would've given the Flemington race a good shake … we thought a midweek meeting at Mornington, where she has run well before, was a smart move.' Sun Setting is a $3.40 favourite in the 1200m Benchmark 64 at Mornington.
News.com.au
5 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Second edition of Forest Jim seeks blowout win in city debut at Flemington on Saturday
Mornington trainer Cliff Brown joked that Saturday's Flemington hopeful Forest Jim showed his age. Brown would be one of the few trainers in Australia to have prepared two horses with the same name at different times. • 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! Brown trained the original Forest Jim to a debut win at Bendigo in November 1999 while winning a maiden at the same track with the latest edition last month. Australian racing rules state, in order to reuse a horse name, 17 years must pass after the birth of a horse with the same name or 20 years after the birth of the youngest progeny of a horse with the same name. The Mornington-based horseman said seven-time Melbourne Cup-winning owner Lloyd Williams bought the previous Forest Jim, a New Zealand-bred son of staying influence Grosvenor. 'I think it's very sad that it shows my age,' Brown said. 'The other one was a very good horse. 'He had one start for his original owners for one win and they wanted to sell him so Lloyd bought him. 'There was a group of Singaporean guys that owned him and one of them, Mr Yong, his son races this Forest Jim.' The latter incarnation of Forest Jim is a son of Vancouver that will have his sixth start in the Darren Galley Mile (1600m) at Flemington. Bookmakers have Forest Jim at big odds but Brown said he needed to see where the gelding sat in the Melbourne metropolitan ranks after starting his career at the provincials. • 'We'll just see where he's at,' Brown said. 'He's progressive and I think he'll enjoy a wet track. 'It looks a strong field, maybe too strong but, if the rain came, we'd certainly see how they went. 'He'd been pretty unlucky at his previous two runs so he's doing a pretty good job.' Brown will watch Saturday's Flemington race from Brisbane where he will saddle Scintillate and Rogan in the rescheduled Queensland Derby. The pair last raced on May 3, which Brown said disadvantaged Scintillante and Rogan when the Queensland Derby was postponed for a week. 'I know it's only a week but it does change the dynamic of the races,' Brown said. 'When you've gone an extra week and they're five weeks between runs, it just makes it a little bit harder. 'If I was a betting person, I'd think the winner would now come out of the Rough Habit Plate because that was a tough track and they've now had an extra week to get over it. 'I think that could be the form race. 'I'd be pinching it if I won it.'
RNZ News
25-05-2025
- RNZ News
No coroner's inquiry into fatal hit and run in Dunedin
The scene of the fatal hit and run. Photo: RNZ / Tim Brown A coroner's inquiry will not be opened into the death of a Dunedin man killed in a hit and run in 2022. Sean Buis suffered fatal blunt force injuries when he was run down in the suburb of Mornington in July 2022, following a falling-out over a drug debt. Lance Moore - who was identified as a 'drug associate' of 28-year-old Buis - later admitted a charge of manslaughter, and was jailed. Justice Eaton heard Moore drove to Eaton Park to find Buis, and drove his vehicle directly at him intending to knock him down and demand repayment. Moore fled the scene without offering aid to Buis. In a decision released on Monday, Coroner Mary-Anne Borrowdale said the circumstances of Buis's death were fully examined during the criminal proceedings. She found an inquiry was not necessary or desirable. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday
