Railway Stakes (Group 1)

PERTH’s Summer Carnival roared into life over the weekend with the running of the A$1.5 million Group 1 Railway Stakes, an open handicap over 1,600 metres.

Held at Ascot Racecourse, less than eight kilometres from Perth’s CBD on the other side of the Swan River, perfect conditions greeted the full-field of 16 that saw the Grant and Alana Williams-trained Watch Me Rock, a warm $3.30 favourite.

Ridden by the recently crowned Perth champion jockey, a title William Pike has won a record 15 times, Watch Me Rock jumped cleanly from barrier four and was quite simply given the run of the race.

One off the fence behind the leading pair, Pike simply angled Watch Me Rock into the open at the top of the straight.

Once balanced, the Awesome Rock gelding caught the leader to kick clear as his stablemate and second favourite Western Empire tried in vain to bridge the gap.

Winning by a length, Watch Me Rock defeated the Iffraaj gelding Western Empire as the Al Maher gelding Sentimental Hero held third. Unplaced in just two of his 19 starts that include 11 wins, this was also a first Group 1 win for Grant and Alana Williams as public trainers since their 2022 split with leviathan owner and breeder Bob Peters.

Pressure

“We’ve probably put too much pressure on ourselves - we wanted to win that Group 1,” said Grant Williams.

“We won the Gold Rush, we’ve won Perth Cups, but we hadn’t won a Group 1. I’m going to go out on a limb and say it is my best one. We’re public trainers now, we’ve had so much support over the last three years to get back to where we were.”

The win completed a treble for Pike who, having won the first, also landed the Group 2 West Australian Guineas on the Earthlight gelding King Of Light. The Railway Stakes win was his sixth in that race, all for trainers Grant and Alana William.

“I landed in a prime position, I didn’t expect to be that close and I didn’t expect to hit the front that soon,” said Pike. “At this stage of my career I judge myself on how I perform in the big races.

“It’s been a few years since I won a Group 1. I find it hard to say you’re the best if you’re not winning Group 1s.”

WHILST the cache for breeders lies in gathering ‘blacktype’ for pedigrees, there is no denying the influence million dollar purses are having on racing.

Saturday’s feature, the Listed Cranbourne Cup worth A$500,000 was overshadowed by the $1 million Meteorite, part of a two-race slot series first run 12 months earlier, that concludes with the $1 million Supernova, on Pakenham Cup Day, December 13th.

In an open race, the locally trained Jigsaw, running in the Moonee Valley Racing Club slot, was too strong, leading all the way over 1,200 metres to win by a length for trainer Cindy Alderson who had Logan Bates in the saddle.

“I can’t really believe it, to be honest, especially with everyone around me today,” said Alderson. “My dad’s here, so is my mum, my sister and her children. It’s a real family affair. That’s how we got started in the game.”

Alderson is the daughter of retired trainer Colin Alderson, now 80 years old, with whom she started out.

“I’ve won Caulfield Cups and some big races but nothing like this with your kids,” said Colin Alderson. “It would rate as one of my best days at the races.”

THE Ciaron Maher-trained Gringotts is picking up major paydays for fun at present.

The Group 1 George Ryder Stakes winner back in March, he won last Saturday’s A$1 million The Gong over Kembla Grange’s 1,600 metres, having won the $3 million Big Dance on Melbourne Cup day three weeks earlier, to repeat the same double he completed 12 months earlier.

The Per Incanto gelding has now won 12 from 25, with nine placings to boost his earnings beyond $6.1 million.

“What a beauty. God, he’s a good horse,” said Maher. “I think he is in career-best form. I know he’s won a Ryder, but I reckon he is in better form this preparation.”

The next target in Gringotts’ sights is the $2m The Ingham over the mile at Randwick which comes on December 13th.

A $100,000 Karaka Book 1 yearling in 2021, Gringotts failed to meet his NZ$450,000 reserve at the New Zealand Bloodstock Ready-To-Run sale before later being sold privately after a trial win.