SWITCH THE STARS PROVIDED THE ENTREE FOR THE MAIN COURSE ON A MEMORABLE DAY FOR TEAM SEARS

By Graham Potter | Tuesday, May 5, 2026

Switch The Stars, a very lightly raced three-year-old gelding, claimed his second win from only three starts when he proved to be too strong for his four opponents in a QTIS Three-Year-Old Handicap over 1100m at Rockhampton.

The win, coming as it did in a $21 000 race, was satisfying enough in itself for the Tony and Maddysen Sears training partnership, but it really was just the entrée to the main course, a real appetizer to the feast of adrenalin fuelled excitement and the savouring of a special success that was the follow later in the day when the stable star Yellow Brick contested, and won, the $1 million The Archer (see separate story).

Switch The Stars had thrashed his opposition in his previous start in a Maiden over the 800m dash at Kilcoy, winning, untroubled by a 6.29 length margin under the 4kg claiming apprentice Archie McColm.

Angela Jones had the ride this time around and she adopted similar tactics, sending Switch The Stars out to look for the lead early. The son of Sun City got there easily enough and then cemented the leading position by a clearcut two length margin as he took the field along at a comfortable gallop.

Jones gaveSwitch The Stars a bit of a breather in the sweep to the home turn, allowing the Sears trained runner’s four rivals to close up behind him, but Jones still appeared to be in full control, managing the pace to her advantage, as the field straightened for home.

With Switch The Stars rivals lining up behind him, seemingly ready to launch a challenge, the Sears trained runner was unfazed by any of those runners on his heels, and he just held his position comfortably enough, before Jones gave the gelding the green light to go inside the final 400m and Switch The Stars duly stretched out to turn his leading margin into a winning lead which had the race done and dusted before he crossed the finish line with the balance of the field coming home in a well beaten single file line behind the winner

That’s two wins from three starts now … a confidence building run of results for the relatively inexperienced three-year-old which has also given his career some early momentum … not to mention the first leg of a famous double on the day for the Sears stable.

More articles