With a second behind Autumn Boy (Autumn Boy) and also a last start third behind Tentyris (Street Boss), himself a leading chance in the Gr1 Coolmore Stud Stakes (1200m) on Saturday, the P Moody and K Coleman-trained Sheza Alibi (Saxon Warrior-Sheza Gypsy, by Shaft) is surely the one to beat in the Gr3 The Vanity (1400m) at Flemington. Having originally started her career in far north Queensland where she recorded two wins and two second placed efforts from four starts, the filly was sent down to Pakenham, and having only had one start for her local stable, she is sure to improve further; with no horse on paper the calibre of Tentyris in this race, she should prove very hard to beat from barrier three assuming the 1400m will not be any issue. Third last start behind Panova (Trapeze Artist) who looks a leading chance in the Gr3 Carbine Club Stakes at the same meeting, the C J Waller trainer Chatterley (Snitzel-Forbidden, by General Nediym) is yet to win after four starts, but has placed each time she has raced including twice at black type level, so to secure her maiden victory in a stakes race would be a he thrill for connections. Winning last Saturday over 1200m at Moonee Valley in the Listed Crockett Stakes, the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott trained Stardom (Zoustar-Diddums, by Snitzel) looks set to back up. With connections having also considered a start in the Gr1 Coolmore Stud Stakes, there must be a high opinion of the Torryburn Stud-bred and raced filly, but the one question is will she run a strong 1400m, considering they were closing late over 1200m when she appeared to be tiring.
There is no Tentyris (pictured) for Sheza Alibi to contend with (pic: Mark Gatt)
Is There Really Only One Derby Option?
Friday, 31st October 2025
All the rage after his facile victory last Saturday in the Gr2 Vase (2040m) at Moonee Valley, the Ciaron Maher trained Observer (Ghaiyyath-Smooth, by Lonhro) has the runs on the board to suggest he is the one beat here, and if he has made any improvement within the last week, then it may be impossible for anything to get past him late. From barrier 4, Mark Zhara has the option of going forward to settle handy behind a few that may come across from an outside barrier, while he has the class and ability to push forward and take up the lead where he takes any bad luck out of the equation. Speaking of bad luck, that is what faced Tony and Calvin McEvoy's Options (Impending-Alternatively, by New Approach) in the Vase last Saturday off the back of his win over 1800m in the Listed Super Impose Stakes the start prior. With Harry Coffey set to partner the colt from barrier 7, the hope is that they can settle a little more forward rather than getting stuck behind tiring horses when the field enters the Flemington straight. While still a maiden after eight starts, the C J Waller-trained Providence (Wootton Bassett-Southbank, by Fastnet Rock) has been racing himself into contention for the Derby and while his fast closing second behind Observer was flattered by the leader being eased up, this colt is from the family of Preferment (Zabeel), who Waller trained to win the Derby back in 2015, also as a maiden. One at a big price who should be an interesting watch, especially based on his pedigree is the Matt Cumani-trained Deal Done Fast (Dundeel-Fast Susan, by Fastnet Rock). Bred and raced by Champion South African stud farm Drakenstein Stud, the colt is still a maiden after three starts, but he's by a noted middle-distance sire, out of a half-sister to South African Horse of the Year Oh Susanna (Street Cry), a dual Gr1 winner over 2000m.
King Zephyr After First Black Type Victory
Friday, 31st October 2025
Outside of the top three just once in his ten starts to date, the Grahame Begg-trained King Zephyr (Hallowed Crown-Divine Breeze, by Smart Missile) heads to Saturday's Gr2 The Damien Oliver (1400m) off the back of a last start second in the Listed Weekend Hussler Stakes, beaten a length behind Zou Sensation (Zoustar-Dame Claire, by Danehill Dancer – see below – who also lines up here. Drawn well in barrier 7 in the 14-horse field, the Jordan Childs-ridden 5YO gelding has two wins and a second over 1400m and looks very hard to beat here with just 53kg on his back. A last start second behind Private Eye (Al Maher) in the Gr3 Moonga Stakes, the Ciaron Maher trained Warnie (IRE) (Highland Reel-Cumbfree, by Footstepsinthesand) was slightly lucky when beaten a length and a half. Fourth two starts ago behind Media World (Written Tycoon-Meryl, by Epaulette) over 1400m at Flemington, the 5YO gelding is racing into form and should be monitored here. Currently at the outsider odds of 70/1, Annabel and Rob Archibald's Mighty Ulysses (GB) (Ulysses-Token Of Love, by Cape Cross) comes into the race with two pleasing Flemington jumpouts, and while he only has two first up wins from six starts, he did win the Gr3 Moonga Stakes this time last year when fresh.
Godolphin Pair Do Battle In Coolmore
Friday, 31st October 2025
While it has been 12 years since the now Champion Sire Zoustar (Northern Meteor) was the most recent winner of the Gr1 Golden Rose – Gr1 Coolmore Stud Stakes double, there are cases in recent years of the likes of In Secret (I Am Invincible) and Exceedance (Exceed And Excel) placing in the Golden Rose before winning the Coolmore Stud Stakes. While this year we see a host of outstanding chances coming into the $2m Gr1 Coolmore Stud Stakes (1200m), none was more impressive in their most recent performance than the record-breaking Golden Rose win of Beiwacht (Bivouac-Metastasio, by Street Cry). Can the colt drop back to 1200m and win? His last performance over 1200m was two starts back when second to fellow Godolphin bred and raced Tempted (Street Boss), who didn't head to the Golden Rose, but instead beat all bar Ka Ying Rising (Shamexpress) in the $20m The Everest at her next start. Beiwacht's very own sire Bivouac won the Golden Rose, then disappointed as the short-priced favourite in the Gr1 Manikato Stakes before turning it all around and finishing a close up second to Exceedance in the Coolmore Stud Stakes. Having only raced each other once in the past, the Anthony and Sam Freedman trained Tentyris (Street Boss, by Deity, by Exceed And Excel) finished four lengths ahead of Beiwacht, and off the back of his exciting win in the Listed Gothic Stakes (1200m) last start, the Gr2 winner has a powerful final sprint and is capable of charging over the top of them. Third up last time in, the Peter Snowden-trained Beadman (Snitzel-Iffranesia, by Iffraaj) destroyed his rivals to win at Group 3 level by more than eight lengths, but the class of that race was significantly lower than what Beiwacht and Tentyris have contested in the past. That said, the colt has a level of x-factor that could see him sit handy and race away to score.
Value To Be Had in the Empire Rose
Friday, 31st October 2025
With only two favourites having won in the last six years, it looks an opportunity to go around favoured runners Pride Of Jenni (Pride Of Dubai-Sancerre, by O'Reilly) and Fangirl (Sebring-Little Surfer Girl, by Encosta de Lago) who come into Saturday's $1m Gr1 Empire Rose Stakes (1600m) off a sixth and seventh placed finish in the $5m Gr1 King Charles III Stakes (1600m) at Randwick. While the pair are both outstanding milers, having won 11 race between them over 1600m, including Pride Of Jenni winning this race two years back, the duo were both impressive winners two starts back and if all has gone to plan since their disappointing last start efforts then they are likely to play a role. At the value, the Glen Thompson-trained Benagil (Manhattan Rain-Des Moines, by War) could be worth an each way ticket. A Group 1 winner at 3 over 2000m, the mare resumed with a solid third over 1400m, and with two wins from three second up runs, the Craig Williams-ridden mare looks to get all the favours from barrier 4, and with her ability over further, she is sure to be strong late. Impressive when winning the Gr3 Angst Stakes last start, the Matthew Smith-trained Idle Flyer (Dundeel-Progressive, by Street Cry) is a mare in form, and while it is hard to assess her on the fact she is carrying equal weights with multiple Gr1 winners Pride Of Jenni and Fangirl, she is one on the up that could produce an outstanding run, especially with the long Flemington straight.
Benagil offers value in the Empire Rose (pic: racingsa.com.au)
Bendigo Cup Could Influence the Melbourne Cup
Friday, 31st October 2025
Momentum from a provincial staying contest has shifted the complexion of the Melbourne Cup Order of Entry, with Wednesday’s Group 3 Bendigo Cup (2400m) producing a crucial late season move, reports racing.com. Racing Victoria’s Head of Handicapping, David Hegan, confirmed that Sayedaty Sadaty would remain on the minimum Cup weight of 51 kg despite claiming the race by a length, but the accompanying ratings boost and $300,000 prizemoney have lifted the gelding sharply from 35th to 25th in the ballot order. For connections, it means only one more withdrawal stands between their runner and a start in Tuesday’s $8.4 million showpiece at Flemington. The Ciaron Maher-trained stayer’s performance, built around a well-timed ride from Harry Coffey, was impressive enough to merit a re-examination of his handicap profile. “Sayedaty Sadaty was aided by a perfect ride from Harry Coffey but ultimately was too strong for his rivals and won going away at the post to claim the Bendigo Cup,” Hegan said. While last year’s winner Sea King was penalised 0.5 kg for his victory, this year’s assessment stopped short of adding weight but did prompt a recalibration. “He has been moved up to a true weight of 50.5 kg in the Melbourne Cup, which is 9 kg below the weight-for-age benchmark, but with the scale lifted by 1 kg this year he will carry the minimum of 51 kg, on which he was already handicapped.” Hegan said the revised standing reflects both the horse’s recent improvement and the elevated competitiveness of the middle tier of Cup aspirants. Sayedaty Sadaty also benefitted from Thursday’s withdrawal of the 2023 Roy Higgins Quality winner Mark Twain, who finished ninth at Bendigo and was subsequently removed, while runner-up Quietness was withdrawn by her connections. Their absence reshuffled the order, allowing the Bendigo winner to overtake Chris Waller’s Birdman, now ranked 26th. “Birdman won the Group 3 Kingston Town Stakes just five days after we released the Melbourne Cup weights but, as the conditions of that race were set weights and penalties, I was unable to penalise the horse,” Hegan said. The final field for the Melbourne Cup will be confirmed at 4.30pm (AEDT) on Saturday, with the barrier draw from 5.30pm at Flemington.
Buyers Incentivised Ahead of NZB Ready to Run
Friday, 31st October 2025
A powerful set of incentives is reshaping the NZB Ready to Run Sale at Karaka, with more horses than ever now eligible to chase substantial prize-money within just eighteen months of their purchase. The 2025 catalogue carries a record forty juveniles qualified for the Karaka Millions Series, up from 28 last year and 18 in 2023, underscoring the growing connection between the November auction and Ellerslie’s summer showpieces. Those races – the $1 million TAB Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) and $1.5 million TAB Karaka Millions 3YO (1600m) – have become the benchmark targets for buyers seeking immediate returns on emerging stock. Eligibility is clearly flagged by a small ‘KM’ logo printed on each qualifying horse’s catalogue page, and a separate layer of opportunity now stretches to the NZB Kiwi (1500m). Every horse sold at the 2025 Ready to Run Sale will qualify for the 2027 edition of that race, worth $4.5 million after a $4 million purse in 2026. Run on Champions Day at Ellerslie each March, the Kiwi has rapidly become the richest three-year-old slot race in the Southern Hemisphere, adding a further lure to the Karaka pipeline for both domestic and international investors. Graduates from earlier Ready to Run Sales gave the concept real substance in the inaugural NZB Kiwi this year. Perfumist, Lord Penman and Domain Ace all made the fourteen-strong field and demonstrated the class depth available through Karaka’s two-year-old programme. Perfumist, a $190,000 purchase from Westbury Stud’s 2023 draft for a Bjorn Baker Racing-led partnership, earned $200,000 for fifth and has since built a career tally of six wins and four placings from 16 starts, including a recent second in the $250,000 Gr3 Angst Stakes (1600m) at Randwick. She lines up again this Saturday in the $10 million Golden Eagle (1500m), illustrating the calibre of performer the sale can produce. Lord Penman, passed in at $80,000 but since the winner of four races and $439,000, was runner-up in the A$1 million Silver Eagle (1300m) and also heads to the Golden Eagle, while Domain Ace – another buyback from the same sale – has collected $292,000 from 18 starts. Their collective progress mirrors the sale’s expanding value proposition, reinforced further by bonus-scheme eligibility across the catalogue, including 13 Entain-NZB Insurance Pearl Series nominees, 138 BOBS-qualified lots, five QTIS, and 57 horses carrying VOBIS Silver and/or VOBIS Sires credentials. NZB’s 2025 Ready to Run Sale will be staged at the Karaka Sales Centre on Wednesday 12 and Thursday 13 November from 10am. (NZT).
Forty RTR sale 2YOs are qualified for the Karaka Millions (pic: nzb.co.nz)
Dettori Set to Retire After 2022 False Start
Friday, 31st October 2025
News of his imminent farewell from American racing was already in the air, but Frankie Dettori made it official earlier than expected, breaking his silence by lunchtime Wednesday after initially refusing to speak with media at Del Mar that morning. According to TDN, the iconic rider had just galloped his Breeders’ Cup Mile mount, Argine, and slipped quietly out of the stable area, offering only: “There will be plenty of news tomorrow.” Within hours, that news arrived in the form of a public statement confirming that this year’s Breeders’ Cup would mark Dettori’s final riding appearance in the United States. The announcement, delivered via social media, brings to a close one of the most flamboyant and storied chapters in modern turf history. American fans, who had long embraced the Italian-born showman, will get their final glimpse of him in the saddle during this week’s Breeders’ Cup program at Santa Anita. Dettori, 54, will be in action across both days of the meet, partnering Wimbledon Hawkeye and Aspect Island for James Owen and the Gredley family. While Argine will carry his hopes in the Mile, the other two engagements reflect the deep British ties that have followed him throughout his transatlantic farewell. The Englishman’s decision to remain active in South America for a handful of rides post-Breeders’ Cup may delay his full return home, but it won’t dilute the poignancy of his Californian curtain call. For many, Dettori’s U.S. swansong evokes memories of his signature flying dismounts and his larger-than-life persona, which transcended racecards and national boundaries. Though he teased the media with cryptic hints and silence before unveiling his news, the final act of his American career is now clearly scripted – Santa Anita, one last time, with a crowd likely to erupt in celebration for a rider who has defined multiple generations. In typical style, Dettori has ensured his exit will be both memorable and just slightly ahead of schedule.
Redoute’s Choice Sister Headlines MM Digital Sale
Friday, 31st October 2025
The blue-blooded appeal of Taste of Heaven proved compelling during the inaugural Magic Millions Digital Sale, with the impeccably bred mare topping proceedings at $350,000. Acquired by New Zealand’s Milan Park Stud, the daughter of Shantha’s Choice was offered by Yarraman Park Stud in foal to Coolmore’s first-season sire Home Affairs. A full sister to Manhattan Rain and half sister to Platinum Scissors, she also boasts the rare distinction of being a sibling to champion racehorse and influential sire Redoute’s Choice. Her credentials as a producer are equally solid, with international stakes winner Heavenly Curlin already on her résumé. Yarraman’s General Manager Matt Scown was full of praise for the new digital platform, saying the process from listing to post-sale had been seamless. “We, along with our partners in Taste of Heaven, decided to offer a top-class mare for sale through the new Magic Millions Digital platform and we are extremely happy with the result,” he said. Scown confirmed the stud intends to support future online sales, viewing the model as a promising avenue for premium broodmare offerings. That optimism appears well-founded, with several other lots generating competitive bidding. Among those also attracting buyer interest was unraced three-year-old filly You Are Correct, a daughter of So You Think out of imported stakes winner Perfect Trust. Presented without reserve by Anderson Racing, the half sister to Queensland Derby winner Magicool was snapped up by leading bloodstock agent Will Johnson for $47,500. Meanwhile, the Western Australian-based Robinson family offered an unreserved dispersal headlined by a $35,000 Playing God yearling colt, knocked down to Michael Lane Racing and TMJ Bloodstock. The colt is from Tricky Trix, a five-time winner and half sister to the family’s Group One Railway Stakes hero Trix of the Trade. The October 24–29 sale concluded with 50 lots sold for a total of $755,150 and an average price of $15,103. Magic Millions Head of Digital Bryce Bevan said early metrics had exceeded expectations. “We are extremely pleased with the results of the first sale and feedback regarding the platform has been very positive,” he noted. With a clearance rate already exceeding 71% and further private sales pending, Bevan said industry engagement from across Australia and overseas – including New Zealand and several Asian jurisdictions – had laid a strong foundation. Entries for the November sale opened on Thursday.
Beautifully pedigreed Taste Of Heaven (pic: magicmillions.com.au)
The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions
Friday, 31st October 2025
Alice in Wonderland purportedly claimed to have thought of 6 impossible things before breakfast. While nothing is impossible, it’s equally true that if wishes were horses, beggars would ride. That’s an apt expression when one considers the murky implications of magically conjuring hitherto non-existent Black type races into being simply by throwing a bucket-load of money at them and then assuming it’s a fait accompli the international thoroughbred industry will go along with it. In the case of a plethora of ‘invented’ NSW Black Type races – some were bumped up into a higher echelon from existing Listed or Group 3 level – neither the overarching international Pattern Committee nor the Asian Pattern Committee has given sanction to what has now become a deeply ambiguous scenario. Well-intentioned or not, in a rules-based society, flipping the bird at higher powers rarely wins friends or influence. Last weekend we, at Black Type Racing, almost forgot that a number of Group and Listed races run in Sydney of late, were not, in fact, what they appeared to be. Races either are or aren’t Black Type. Along with august organisation Arion Pedigrees, and a multitude of Australian stud farms and vendors, Black Type Racing will again not recognise any of the ‘grey area’ stakes races on the calendar until such time as they are given the tick of approval internationally. Removing any ambiguity is critical for the Black Type platform to have credibility, particularly given its importance as an industry resource. An illustration of how bizzare the ‘smoke and mirrors’ situation is will play out on Saturday: the recent Silver Eagle, worth $1 million, is rubber-stamped locally as a Group 3 race whilst it’s $10 million sibling, The Golden Eagle, will be run without any stakes race prefix. That’s as ‘grey area’ as it gets. During the next week, Black Type Racing will be going through this season’s results to ensure that the points allocations reflect the stance we have adopted. Broadly speaking, the races in question may well be worthy of their faux status. The issue at hand, aside from the challenges for sales company catalogues, is simply that the rest of the racing world is yet to confirm their implied status. The list of subject feature races comprises:
Tapp-Craig Stakes (1400m) – “upgraded” from non-black type to Listed
St Leger Stakes (2600m) – non-black type to Group 3
Reginald Allen Quality (1400m) – “upgraded” from Listed to Gr3
Silver Eagle (1300m) – non-black type to Gr3
The Invitation (1400m) – non-black type to Gr2
The Five Diamonds Prelude (1500m) – non-black type to Listed
Rosehill Gold Cup (2000m) – non-black type to Gr3
The Big Dance (1600m) – non-black type to Listed
Inglis Golden Gift (1100m) – non-black type to Gr3
Five Diamonds (1800m) – non-black type to Listed
The Hunter (1300m) – non-black type to Gr2
The New Zealand Bloodstock Beauford (2300m) – non-black type to Listed
The Gong (1600m) – non-black type to Gr3
The Warra (1000m) – non-black type to Gr3
Parramatta Cup (1900m) – “upgraded” from Listed to Gr3
Neville Sellwood Stakes (2000m) – “upgraded” from Gr3 to Gr2
