Latest news with #Stradbroke
Courier-Mail
5 hours ago
- Sport
- Courier-Mail
2025 Stradbroke Handicap barrier draw boosts Ben Hayes' confidence with favourite
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Co-trainer Ben Hayes declared Lindsay Park had its 'best hand' to secure a first Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) following the barrier draw on Tuesday night. Hayes was delighted when the stable's pair War Machine and Rise At Dawn drew barriers 13 and three. • 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! War Machine has a stranglehold on Stradbroke favouritism at $2.70 with TAB fixed odds, while stablemate Rise At Dawn is the only other runner in single figures at $9. 'It is a race that has eluded us,' Hayes said. 'We had our (brother Ben, Will and JD) first runner last year and he (Here To Shock) unfortunately didn't go as well as we had hoped. 'But I think this year we've got the best hand we've ever had, and hopefully with a couple of nice draws there, we should get every chance.' • 'Pressure is your friend': Cejay's tip to conjure Stradbroke fairytale Hayes' nerves finally settled when War Machine's name was finally drawn with only four numbers left - 1, 2, 13 and 15. 'I don't actually mind barrier 13, it gives Tim Clark more options,' he said. 'There will be a lot of horses crossing from out wide so he should be able to get into that three-wide line and get a nice run in transit.' Hayes said Rise At Dawn was 'definitely a danger' to the favourite. 'He gets a big drop in weight and he was bouncing this morning,' he said. 'We are confident he can run really well and barrier three gives him an opportunity to have a great run.' Several local contenders drew inside gates with three-year-old filly Spicy Martini drawing four, The Inflictor six, Payline seven and Yellow Brick eight. Trainer Craig Cousins, who only has three horses in work, said his fairytale horse The Inflictor is a big chance from his barrier. 'I've taken the week off driving trucks and I'm delighted he has drawn barrier six,' Cousins said. 'It is surreal I have a horse in the Stradbroke. I have turned 60 and it's been the greatest year of my life. 'If we win, I will be bawling my eyes out. Win, lose or draw on the weekend I am the happiest man in the world. From that barrier, we are a big chance.' • Lloyd's dad to be trackside shot at Stradbroke history Toby Edmonds, trying to win his second Stradbroke, said barrier four could be tricky for Spicy Martini. 'Look, it's good, but it could be detrimental too. There's a lot of speed out wide and we are a three-year-old filly towards the inside,' he said. NSW trainer Matt Dale was lamenting barrier 20 for Front Page after connections paid a $90,000 late entry. 'It's not ideal, you come here thinking we are a chance but now we will have to dissect the field and the speed and go back in history and all those kind of things,' Dale said. Rothfire, who still face more vets' scrutiny through the week, drew barrier 17, Private Eye received barrier 10 in his bid to win the Stradbroke first-up, while third favourite Golden Mile will jump from barrier two. GROUP 1 STRADBROKE HANDICAP (1400m) $3m | Saturday, June 14, 2025 Horse | Barrier | Trainer | Jockey | Weight 1. PRIVATE EYE | 10 | Joe Pride | Nash Rawiller | 57kg 2. ROTHFIRE | 17 | Robert Heathcote | James McDonald | 55.5kg 3. DESERT LIGHTNING | 1 | Peter Moody & Katherine Coleman | Tommy Berry | 54.5kg 4. KIMOCHI | 14 | Gary Portelli | Craig Williams | 54kg 5. YELLOW BRICK | 8 | Tony & Maddysen Sears | Andrew Mallyon | 53.5kg 6. GOLDEN MILE | 2 | James Cummings | Jason Collett | 53.5kg 7. WAR MACHINE | 13 | Ben, Will & JD Hayes | Tim Clark | 53kg 8. PAYLINE | 7 | Chris & Corey Munce | Kyle Wilson-Taylor | 53kg 9. PUNCH LANE | 21 | Anthony & Sam Freedman | Rachel King | 53kg 10. FRONT PAGE | 20 | Matthew Dale | Damien Thornton | 52.5kg 11. ROBUSTO | 19 | Bjorn Baker | Kerrin McEvoy | 52.5kg 12. FAR TOO EASY | 9 | David McColm | Regan Bayliss | 52.5kg 13. RISE AT DAWN | 3 | Ben, Will & JD Hayes | Declan Bates | 52.5kg 14. THE INSTRUCTOR | 12 | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Jett Stanley | 52kg 15. BOSUSTOW | 11 | Annabel & Rob Archibald | Zac Lloyd | 51.5kg 16. THE INFLICTOR | 6 | Craig Cousins | Cejay Graham | 51kg 17. FIRESTORM | 16 | Chris Waller | Not Notified | 51kg 18. SPICY MARTINI | 4 | Toby Edmonds & Stephen McLean | Not Notified | 46.9kg Emergencies 19e. COLEMAN | 23 | Chris Waller | Not Notified | 50kg 20e. TRANSATLANTIC | 22 | Tony Gollan | Not Notified | 51kg 21e. WATERFORD | 18 | Chris Waller | Not Notified | 51kg 22e. PIER | 15 | Darryn & Briar Weatherley | Mark Du Plessis | 51kg 23e. WARNIE | 5 | Ciaron Maher | Not Notified | 51kg Originally published as 2025 Stradbroke Handicap barrier draw boosts Ben Hayes' confidence with War Machine and Rise At Dawn
Courier-Mail
5 hours ago
- Sport
- Courier-Mail
2025 Stradbroke Handicap: Cejay Graham to ride The Inflictor
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Pressure is your friend. Young jockey Cejay Graham has those words ringing in her ears as she prepares for the 'pinch myself moment' of riding in her first Stradbroke Handicap. The words were delivered by Graham's mentor, trainer Kelly Schweida, after the young jockey came from Port Macquarie on the New South Wales mid-coast to be Schweida's apprentice in the big smoke in Brisbane a couple of years ago. And never have they been more fitting as Graham, 26, prepares to ride Queensland fairytale horse The Inflictor in Saturday's $3m Stradbroke at Eagle Farm. • 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! 'The best bit of advice Kelly has given me was that pressure is your friend,' Graham said. 'You've got to absorb the pressure and embrace it. 'That's one thing he said to me that really stuck, because coming from a few knock-backs early in my riding career I wasn't initially too confident with some things and he just said 'don't let the pressure get to you'. 'If you don't have pressure, you probably aren't going really good, are you? 'So when you put it like that, you want the pressure, don't you? 'It is a pretty cool saying that is stuck in my head.' The Inflictor winning The Gateway at Eagle Farm to collect a golden ticket into the Stradbroke Handicap. Picture: Trackside Photography • J-Mac confirmed for Rothfire's incredible Stradbroke bid Graham might hail from New South Wales, but she now considers herself as Queensland as the Great Barrier Reef. And that's just as well because a lot of Queensland will be supporting her – and the remarkable story of The Inflictor and his 60-year-old truck driving hobby trainer Craig Cousins – in the Stradbroke. • Pride taking on Stradbroke history with Private Eye The Inflictor is the home-bred hero who qualified for the Stradbroke by winning the ballot exempt race of The Gateway at Eagle Farm last December. Graham rode the four-year-old gelding to win that day and a lot of water has gone under the bridge since then. She is pinching herself that she has a chance to ride him to glory in the Stradbroke, in a race which will be her fourth career Group 1 ride. • Stradbroke Handicap field: Gollan's gun only second emergency 'Craig was pretty adamant he wanted to stick with me straight after The Gateway, so it's great that he has done that and its fantastic to be given the opportunity,' Graham said. 'It's real pinch myself kind of stuff. 'I think there will be a lot of Queenslanders cheering for us on the day. 'I've done a lot of work with him behind the scenes, I definitely know the horse inside and out. 'He is tough when he leads, but he doesn't have to lead. 'I think he's got a great chance. • Comeback star can give Cummings a Golden send-off in Stradbroke 'And I've really got to thank Kelly (Schweida) for his support as I wouldn't have got the gig riding up in Brisbane without him. 'And if it wasn't for his continued support coming out of my apprenticeship, I might have struggled a bit. 'He has backed me 100 per cent and I owe him everything.' Originally published as 'Pressure is your friend': Jockey Cejay Graham's tip to conjure 2025 Stradbroke Handicap fairytale with The Inflictor
Courier-Mail
3 days ago
- Sport
- Courier-Mail
Zac booked for mission to score consecutive Stradbroke Handicaps
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Young Sydney riding gun Zac Lloyd has a golden opportunity to become the first jockey since the great Jimmy Cassidy more than three decades ago to win back-to-back Stradbroke Handicaps. But Lloyd, who scored his first Group 1 when pinching last year's Stradbroke on Stefi Magnetica, must help haul three-year-old colt Bosustow back to the imposing form which saw him be a six-length winner two starts ago. Bosustow, the three-year-old colt who destroyed his opposition in the Gold Coast Guineas, was single figure odds in Stradbroke betting markets before he was well beaten in the rescheduled Group 3 Fred Best Classic at Doomben last Wednesday. Bosustow started the $2.45 Fred Best favourite but finished sixth, 1-1/2 lengths behind the Toby Edmonds and Stephen McLean-trained filly Spicy Martini which qualified for the Stradbroke with the win. Annabel and Rob Archibald are pushing on with Stradbroke plans for Bosustow which has now drifted to be a $15 chance in Queensland's greatest race next Saturday. Managing owner Anthony Mithen points out that Bosustow was beaten about the same margin in the Fred Best as Stefi Magnetica was a year earlier, before that horse came out and won the Stradbroke with Lloyd on board. Lloyd has been booked for Bosustow and now gets a chance to be the first jockey since Cassidy won the Stradbroke on the mighty Rough Habit in 1991 and 1992 to score consecutive Stradbroke triumphs. Lloyd will link with Bosustow for the first time and Rob Archibald remains convinced the colt can be a major player in the Stradbroke. 'Maybe the Fred Best run was just a little bit below what we expected, but we weren't too disappointed,' Archibald said. 'He was a month between runs and the race was rescheduled and things were mucked around a little bit. 'He may have been just a touch underdone second-up, but he can certainly bounce back third-up in the Stradbroke. 'He gets into the Stradbroke with a nice weight (51.5kg) although it's all relative I suppose. 'Zac hasn't ridden him before, but he did win the Stradbroke last year and we are really happy to have him on.' Bosustow wins the Gold Coast Guineas. Picture: Bethany Allday/Trackside Photography. Lloyd will jet into Brisbane on Tuesday morning and give Bosustow a spin around Eagle Farm at the Stradbroke 'Breakfast With The Stars' trackwork session. There is a week of fine weather forecast for Brisbane and the prospects of a rain-affected Eagle Farm track on Stradbroke day look slim. Bosustow was dominant in the Gold Coast Guineas on a heavy (9) track but the camp say he is much more than just a wet tracker. On the morning of the Guineas, they had even been considering scratching Bosustow because they weren't convinced he would handle the sloppy surface. 'He ended up handling the wet track on the Gold Coast really well,' Archibald said. 'But I don't think we can really say yet what his preferred track conditions are, because he is fairly lightly raced.' Originally published as Zac Lloyd on rare quest to score consecutive Stradbroke Handicaps
Mercury
3 days ago
- Sport
- Mercury
Rise At Dawn given the go ahead for the Stradbroke
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Lindsay Park may never get a better chance to break its Stradbroke Handicap duck after co-trainer Ben Hayes gave Rise At Dawn the green light to join a vaunted attack on Queensland's greatest race. The famous racing dynasty has never won the Stradbroke but has raging $2.80 favourite War Machine, the sizzling winner of the BRC Sprint, and $8 second betting fancy Rise At Dawn. Rise At Dawn finished 2-1/2 lengths off Joliestar in Saturday's Group 1 Kingsford Smith Cup and Hayes, who trains in partnership with his brothers Will and JD, is keen to give him a Group 1 shot seven days later. Rise At Dawn carried 59kg in the Kingsford Smith Cup, but now plunges to 52.5kg in the Stradbroke. 'I was quite happy with his run on Saturday as he was racing at short of his best trip and was racing at weight-for-age against some of the best sprinters in Australia,' Hayes said. 'He sat in behind the speed, he held his run right to the line and looks to have pulled up well. 'He now drops a stack in weight so that's a huge thing.' READ: Zac on rare quest to score consecutive Stradbroke Handicaps Can Ben, Will and JD Hayes (L to R) upstage dad David Hayes, pictured here with his wife and the boys mum Prue Hayes, by winning a Stradbroke Handicap on Saturday? Photo :. There have been few Stradbroke contenders in history who have been a shorter price than what War Machine is six days out from the great race. Hayes indicated War Machine had improved from the last time he was seen at the races, when blowing away his opposition and stamping his Stradbroke ticket when dominating his rivals by 2-3/4 lengths in the BRC Sprint. Hayes said both War Machine and Rise At Dawn had golden chances in the $3 million Group 1 handicap. READ: Inquiry into jockey altercation set to resume in Stradbroke week 'Fingers crossed, you can have the two favourites but you can still get beat, but to be honest I couldn't be happier with both of these horses,' Hayes said. 'Either one of them could win. 'The big boy (War Machine) is well. 'His last run was a perfect tune-up for the Straddy and he is a very progressive horse who gets in with 53kg. 'He's a horse who is a bit lazy in trackwork, like Mr Brightside, but he turns up race day.' War Machine was elevated to Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap favouritism after his dominant win in the BRC Sprint. Picture: Grant Peters, Trackside Photography. * Roughie king Maloney strikes again with Derby pick-up ride In other Stradbroke-related news: * Chris Waller gave boom three-year-old colt Angel Capital an exhibition gallop at the Gold Coast races on Saturday. It is likely Angel Capital would make the Stradbroke final field cut-off, but Waller is undecided about whether to race the Yulong owned youngster. * Matt Dale is strongly considering giving evergreen veteran Front Page a shot at the Stradbroke after winning the Moreton Cup on Saturday. Connections would need to pay a hefty late entry fee and Dale will decide in the next 24 years whether to unleash the rising nine-year-old on the Stradbroke. Dale has never tested Front Page over 1400m but the prospect of a weaker Stradbroke and a week of fine weather may convince connections to deploy the proven Group 1 performer. * Tony Gollan is holding out hope that Transatlantic will sneak into the Stradbroke field. Transatlantic will jump over other contenders in the ballot order after his win in the Listed Spear Chief Handicap on Saturday at Eagle Farm. After narrowly missing the Stradbroke field with Antino and Freedom Rally in the last two years, Gollan hopes Transatlantic has done enough to make the field. He is now a $13 chance. * Trainer Rob Heathcote says Rothfire 'trotted up 95 per cent sound' on Sunday morning in his recovery from a foot injury. 'He's only a slim chance of racing in the Straddy, but he's still a chance,' Heathcote said. Originally published as Lindsay Park's second seed joins vaunted attack on Stradbroke Handicap
Mercury
6 days ago
- Sport
- Mercury
Kimochi heads into unknown for Queensland Group 1 double shot
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News. Gary Portelli is striving for his first Queensland Group 1 and is set to give strong mare Kimochi two chances in quick succession to pull off the heist. The Stradbroke Handicap has been the main goal for the Yulong-owned Group 1 winner right from the start of her preparation which included a trio of runs in the Sydney autumn carnival. • 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! Best laid plans have been tweaked with the Group 1 Kingsford Smith Cup rescheduled to Saturday after being one of the races washed out last Saturday when jockeys complained of poor visibility. But Warwick Farm trainer Portelli said Kimochi will still race in the Kingsford Smith on Saturday as a pipe-opener to the Stradbroke seven days later. He admits the seven-day back-up is a step into the unknown for Kimochi, but feels it could even suit her. • $8000 filly who 'walks like a duck' spices up Stradbroke field 'She will run on Saturday, it's a Group 1 race, and I couldn't go to the 1400(m) of the Stradbroke with her straight away given she has had a big gap between runs,' Portelli said. 'A high pressure handicap like the Stradbroke, they have got to be fit. 'We have never had to back-up before, the program has never had us having to back-up. 'But she is a very tough mare, whenever she races she is normally primed the week afterwards. Gary Portelli is confident Kimochi will handle the back-up into the Stradbroke Handicap. Picture: Racing Photos via Getty Images 'You actually think to yourself that she looks better the week after, than what she did leading into the race. 'She does cope with pressure, she's a big strong mare and she has been in work for ages. 'It's not like she's coming out of a spell and she's going to be too fresh or underdone. 'She has got a good fitness core.' • Waller gives hobby trainer reason to believe in Stradbroke fairytale Craig Williams rode Kimochi to Group 1 glory in the Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes at Caulfield last spring and the pair will reunite at Eagle Farm on Saturday. Kimochi is rated an $11 chance in the Kingsford Smith and is the same price for her main mission of the Stradbroke seven days later. Nine-time Group 1 winner Portelli has had some terrific horses campaign in Queensland, including Rebel Dane who finished seventh in the 2014 Stradbroke which was won by Queensland bolter River Lad. But he hopes Kimochi can give him his first Sunshine State Group 1. 'The plan is she will take her place in the Stradbroke, unless we race below expectations this Saturday,' Portelli said. Gary Portelli with Craig Williams and Yulong's Sam Fairgray after Kimochi won the Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes. Picture: Racing Photos via Getty Images 'From the time she came into work this preparation, the Stradbroke was in my mind the goal. 'We have drawn a fantastic barrier (three) in the Kingsford Smith, so she is going to get a soft run. 'That's important because going into the Stradbroke, she is not going to have a gut-buster and be trapped wide or doing work. 'She will get a nice run and accelerate in the straight, if she runs top three then I would be over the moon from a Straddy point of view.' • Maher filly making right noises for Oaks upset repeat Lindsay Park co-trainer Ben Hayes has indicated Rise At Dawn – the winner of eight from 15 starts – will take his place in the Kingsford Smith before being unleashed on the back-up in the Stradbroke. The Lindsay Park dynasty may have its best chance to crack its Stradbroke duck, with raging favourite War Machine ($3) set to be joined by Rise At Dawn ($11) in Queensland's most prestigious race. Originally published as Kimochi set for back-to-back Queensland Group 1 challenges in Kingsford Smith Cup and Stradbroke Handicap
