Queen Of The Turf Stakes (Group 1)
PLACED ideally and pinching a break in the closing stages, Probabeel looked all over the winner of the Group 1 Queen Of The Turf Stakes, bar the final three strides.
Nettoyer, the seven-year-old Sebring mare who likes to celebrate a big win with beer and pizza, stormed down the outside having spotted Probabeel five lengths on straightening before running down the Savabeel four-year-old to win by a nose.
Trained by Wendy Roche, it was Nettoyer’s second Group 1, and first win, since her Doncaster Handicap victory, also over the Randwick mile, a year ago. Third, two lengths from the pair was the Deep Field mare Quantum Mechanic.
Roche felt she could have won a second Doncaster last week but Nettoyer blew the start badly, eventually getting beaten by five lengths. “You can’t do that in a Group 1 against the world’s best horses,” said Roche.
“She needs pace, like Peter Moody said about Masked Crusader last week on the forums, horses that get back, they need a lot of pace and she had that today. She will have two more runs in Queensland and then be retired to stud. I hope she can go to Exceed And Excel in the spring,” added Roche.
Nettoyer, a A$20,000 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling sale purchase, who then failed to meet her reserve at the Inglis Ready To Run Sale, has since won seven races and over $2.5 million in stakes.
Sydney Cup (Group 1)
THE British-bred Selino has found his mark in Australia winning the Group 1 Sydney Cup. With four previous starts between 1,900 metres and 2,600 metres, the former James Fanshawe-trained runner was at home over the 3,200 metres, sweeping to the lead on straightening to run out a strong winner at the generous price of $26 to set up the qualifications necessary for tilt at the Melbourne Cup.
Second home was the Ocean Park mare Rondinella, ahead of another mare, Miami Bound, a daughter of Reliable Man.
“He was sent to me in very good form,” said Chris Waller. They (the owners) might have lost a bit of confidence when they saw him running in 2,000-metre and 2,600-metre races. But we’ve said all along, stick to the confidence of running in this race. He’s an extreme distance horse and he certainly showed it today.”
IF nothing else it would have provided a boost for William Haggas early in the day when the second on the card at Randwick was won by his former charge the Irish-bred Cristal Breeze, by Gale Force Ten.
A winner at Redcar and Wolverhampton in 2019 for Haggas, Cristal Breeze made his debut down under last July and now trained by Kris Lees for Australian Bloodstock, he won the A$500,000 Provincial Championships Final over 1,400 metres, to gain his third win in Australia.
Cristal Breeze had been bought for 60,000 guineas at the Tattersalls Autumn Horses-in-Training Sale in 2019.
New Zealand
Avantage again
THE Fastnet Rock mare Avantage has continued her winning ways in winning the New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders’ Stakes over 1,600 metres at Te Rapa.
“Tough, isn’t she,” said Paul Richards, the father of Te Akau trainer Jamie. “She did a wee bit of work early, but got a nice drag along outside the leader and was just too tough. The only query was the rain-affected track, she hadn’t won on soft going before, but physically and mentally she was first class. She is a very versatile mare that has just got better with age.”
A NZ$210,000 New Zealand Bloodstock Premier Sale yearling, the five-year-old mare has started 10 times this season, winning six times (five Group 1s) and placing on four occasions with all her starts, bar one, in Group 1 races.