ROTHFIRE - THE FULL STORY. FROM CHEAP YEARLING TO A VALUABLE GROUP 1 STAR IN JUST SEVEN STARTS

By Robert Heathcote with Graham Potter | Thursday, June 11, 2020

In a conversation with Graham Potter, trainer Robert Heathcote gives HRO readers the back story on his star two-year-old, the JJ Atkins winner Rothfire, and how the gelding quickly rose to prominence and became a Group 1 winner in his first season.

I thought I was blessed to have a champion in Buffering when he came into our lives and took so many of us on an amazing journey … and now maybe, just maybe I have found another one?

But I won’t get ahead of myself.

Humility is a fine quality to have. Racing has an amazing way of levelling things out, experience has long taught me that but, while I do not see myself as being a trainer until I the day I drop, there is nothing like a new dose of enthusiasm to spur you on and I have certainly received that dose over this past six months or so by having some nice youngsters in the stable … in particular, Rothfire.

I feel so humbled to have now found potentially another young horse in Rothfire who can do something similar to Buffering again but, as I said, after a big win, just around the corner there is always something waiting to bring you back down to earth.

You have to learn to deal with disappointments as they come along frequently. There are far more lows than highs in this game and that is why the wins are so special and are to be celebrated.
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It is not my skill in horse selection or my astute study of breeding which landed Rothfire in my lap. It is fate and for that I am grateful.

My good friend and client Simon Gleeson, from Gleeson Thoroughbreds at Chinchilla, called me and asked if I would be keen to buy a young horse from them as he was not a viable sales prospect!

I have a very trusting relationship with the Gleeson Family and, as he was not expensive, I had no problems taking the horse on. I thought it would be good to have a cheap horse on my website ‘horses available’ page to bring in some new clients to racing.

I agreed to the asking price of $11,000 including GST. I was sent the invoice a day or two later which I promptly paid. Simon called me three weeks later to say the funds have not arrived. Upon checking the invoice and the banking receipt, we then found the bank account details on the original invoice were incorrect. I had been a victim of a ‘PHISHING’ scam.

Scammers hack into businesses email accounts and, when they send out invoices, they change the details and once the funds are transferred to them, a sophisticated system sees the money gone overseas. It is a major fail in the Australian banking system and I warn everyone to always confirm bank details before transferring funds online.

So, in essence, I had to pay for Rothfire twice!!!
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After I agreed to buying the yearling, he was sent to Washpool Lodge to begin his career as a race horse. I had Kevin (Thomas) take a nice photo of him which I then put up on my website and it sat there on my website for several months.

Initially, friend and stable client Alan ‘Dunny’ Perry and his girlfriend, Stephanie Freeman took a 5% share and then new client John Becker called me and decided to take a 10% share.

Rothfire sat on my website for several months basically unwanted until Jamie Tuttiett called me and said he and a bunch of friends were keen to take the rest of him as he was cheap and they wanted a reason to ‘go to the races and get on the piss’ as was mentioned at one stage!

I said great, you can have 60% and my wife will keep the final 20%.

Subsequently my two great mates Rob Ciobo and Bruce Harry have bought into the horse … for peanuts too I might add!

The process then began to get all the paperwork done as basically Jamie’s group comprised 16 people and we had to get him named. Being by Rothesay out of a mare Huss On Fire, the name Rothfire evolved!

When Kevin was breaking Rothfire in he called me and asked if there were any shares left in him. I said he’s just been taken up so no. Kevin said he gave them a good feel and he really liked him and he is a very good judge.
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As an individual Rothfire is not a striking horse. He is what you may call a bit plain but without any glaring faults.

I gotta admit though that he is looking better and better with each race!

When he first started working here at Eagle Farm a couple of riders said he is not the smoothest mover so best get the chiropractor to go over him.

We now know it’s just him but he’s 100% sound.

He doesn’t move or feel like a silky panther doing his slow work but once galloping, he has a tremendously efficient action and the ability to switch off in his races and conserve energy until his rider asks him for his best effort and then he goes bang and finds plenty.
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After his first race at Eagle Farm I knew we might have something very special.

It was a bizarre day as a sudden rain storm during the pre-parade caused a delay of about a half hour and the horses were taken back to their stalls.

Then just before take two, a jockey was kicked as he was mounting his horse causing another delay to the race start. Then once behind the barriers there was an interstate delay causing a further race start hold up.

During all of these disruptions and delays, Rothfire never turned a hair as we say. He remained totally calm and collected the whole time. In the race, he had a ding-dong battle with Gotta Kiss, just getting her down late. She had had the benefit of race experience and subsequently, six races later, Gotta Kiss ran 2nd in the Group 1 JJ Atkins, again behind Rothfire.

Rothfire then won again in his second start in early November 2019 … in a 6-length romp … before being spelled for three months.
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It was very tempting to go to Sydney and run in the Golden Slipper but I was very mindful of over taxing Rothfire in his two-year-old racing season.

I did have plenty of advisors suggesting I should go to the Slipper but I am comfortable with the decision not to have gone.
Patience is very much a virtue with young horses and my belief was that if Rothfire lives up to the high opinion I have of him, he will repay our patience in kind.

Instead, Rothfire resumed in mid-February and he quickly took his race record to four wins from four starts before tackling The Aquis Jewel at the Gold Coast.

Yes, it was disappointing not to win the Jewel at the Gold Coast and for Rothfire to lose his unbeaten record, but it was on a badly rain affected track and Rothfire was simply not happy on the shifting surface.

Having said that, I take nothing away from the winner Kitsukano. She is an outstanding filly who handled the conditions better on the day and she is trained by a really nice guy and a top trainer in Michael Nolan so good on ‘em!

The Jewel marked the end of Rothfire’s second preparation. He was then spelled for two months.
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I was delighted how well Rothfire spelled after the Gold Coast race and my plan was always to give him just the two winter carnival runs. The Covid-19 situation then through something a spanner into the works … but we pressed on.

One of the things we had to decide was who would ride Rothfire this time in.

Jimmy Byrne had been on him for his first two wins (in his first prep). Jimmy was desperately unlucky when he broke his leg which then enabled Robbie Fradd to take over the role as Rothfire’s in the three runs of his second prep.

It was always a point of debate among the group whether Jimmy would be reunited with the horse or we would leave Robbie on?

The Covid situation kinda made it happen with Robbie stuck in the Gold Coast zone and Jimmy getting really close to a return to riding.

Initially, Ryan Maloney was touted as the chosen rider going forward if Jimmy Byrne couldn’t get back in time, but Ryan’s manager knocked us back thinking Rothfire might not get past 1200 metres.

I reckon they made a boo-boo there, but it can happen in this game and Ryan will have interstate commitments on Aligator Blood going forward.
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So, Rothfire resumed with Jimmy Byrne in the saddle and won first-up … as he had done in his first two preparations.

This time it was a notable win in the Group 2 Champagne Classic and the scene was now set for his first tilt at Group 1 glory.

It has been well documented that Rothfire’s win in the Group 1 JJ Atkins was my first Group 1 success in Queensland, but the win was a bit special for me in many ways.

It was noticeable I was a bit emotional post-race even with a few tears in my eyes. That was as much because of my good mate Rob Ciobo, who was my very first owner/client in racing. He had already cried a bucket of tears from the furlong pole and one look at him and understanding the long journey we have taken together with him losing his daughter so young … well I nearly lost it.

It was quite bizarre not having all the owners there with my wife and friends etc but also a feeling of relief that we got Rothfire to the Grand Final and he won it so convincingly.
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With being at the track not an option, a group of family and friends had gathered at my home to watch the race so, after the races and a visit to the stables to check up on Rothy, Ciobo and I returned home and attempted to catch up to the others race with the celebrations.

It turned out to be a long night with plenty of reruns of the JJ Atkins DVD.

I think I came a close to catching up to the others as evidenced by my very sore head on Sunday morning.
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Rothfire is now enjoying some down time in the spelling paddock.

I have already begun researching a possible spring program for him but nothing has been set in concrete at this stage. With a Group 1 under his belt, he pretty much now has a ticket into many feature races in the Spring
The form of the JJ Atkins has been well franked by rating expert as Daniel O’Sullivan who has rated Rothfire marginally behind the Golden Slipper winner Farnan.

There is plenty of water to flow under the bridge yet but some possible races could include the Run to The Roses at Rosehill in early September, while the 1400 metre G1 Golden Rose at set weights in late September is an option. The Roman Consul at Randwick, a race won by Buffering, is at set weights. It also suits.

Then there is the amazing $15 million The Everest sprint race on the 17th September … that is if Rothfire comes back in the Spring and stamps himself! He would need to come back and win emphatically to be picked up by a slot holder, but I have a very open mind to it all.

Or, what about The Coolmore Stakes, 1200 up the famous Flemington Straight on Derby Day. That could be a super option for Rothfire.

So, all things being well, we certainly have it all in front of us.

Yes, in the meantime, there have been a couple of offers from Hong Kong to purchase Rothfire … attractive offers too I might add … but the desire is to keep and race him here in Australia and maybe one day we can take him to Hong Kong to race on International Day!
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Apart from his ability, another reason why Rothfire could go on to better things is that he probably has the best mental character of any youngster I have ever trained … and that includes the great Buffering who was also a chilled-out dude!

Nothing seems to faze Rothfire either in and around the stable or at the races.

I’m not sure what kind of traveller he will be. Buffering was fantastic so hopefully Rothfire will be the same. We will find out but, for now, training Rothfire is not challenging at this stage of his career.

We Just keep him happy, don’t overwork him and do our best to keep him sound and content.
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As for me at this time, I have enjoyed a marvellous career to date and I feel I still have more to come.

My stable has enjoyed plenty of success with the likes of Buffering, Solzhenitsyn, Woorim, Hopfgarten, Fire Up Fifi and many others over the years.

Who knows how far we can go with Rothfire.

Nobody does … and that is the beauty of the game … but the adrenaline, the emotion, that added dose of new enthusiasm that Rothfire has brought to the stable has already given us reason to believe that he will make the next twelve months very interesting indeed!