THE PETLEY REPORT: VICTORIA DERBY DAY - ALWAYS ONE OF THE BEST DAYS OF RACING IN AUSTRALIA

By Jack Petley | Friday, October 30, 2020

The Tavistock three-year-old, Young Werther, from the Danny O'Brien stable and the mount of Damian Oliver, is favourite for the Victoria Derby at $4.0 ahead of Patrick Payne's winner of the Vase at Moonee Valley last weekend, Cherry Tortoni. Young Werther was a late withdrawal from the Vase due to weather conditions.

Interesting six Derby runners are NZ-breds with Trent Busuttin and Natalie putting forward Wertheimer and Albarado and Mike Moroney the two runners, Wisaka and Tour of Duty. Albarado has firmed slightly into $7. James McDonald has been booked for Tour of Duty while Michael Walker rides outsider, Born to Succeed.

Trent Busuttin purchased Albarado out of the Rich Hill Stud draft at Karaka for $140,000 and he is a son of the dual Group 3 winner, O'Fille. Rich Hill will have much interest in the upcoming racing in Australia. Riodini, from the first crop of Proisir, runs for Allan Galbraith, a shareholder in Rich Hill, in the $7.5m Golden Eagle for the Bott-Waterhouse yard and, on Tuesday, the Rich Hill bred Surprise Baby, by Shocking, will run in the Melbourne Cup.

"We are so looking forward to the next few days," said Rich Hill chief John Thompson. "It would be a great result to win the Cup (with Surprise Baby) and a boost to his sire, Shocking," … with Shocking standing at a fee this year of $8000 plus GST. Rich Hill bred Prince of Penzance, the famous, upset winner of the 2015 Cup.

Mick Price and Michael Kent will produce the NZ bred Redwood Shadow (Jye McNeil) for the Derby with Mick Price telling the NZ Racing Desk he is "ready for the race." Redwood Shadow will be having his fourth start and he finished fourth last time to NZ bred Albarado in the Caulfield Classic. "I think he is capable of running in the first 3 or 4,” said the top Victorian trainer. And the two he feels tough to beat are Albarado and Cherry Tortoni.

That smashing Sydney colt Farnan has been working with great zest this past few days and he looks on track to be the one to beat in the Gr1 Coolmore Stud Stakes at Flemington with the in-form Glen Boss up. The colt is a solid second favourite at $4.80 with the fellow Sydney colt September Run, from the Chris Waller yard, on top at $4.20. Sydney colts dominate the betting with Team Snowden's Wild Ruler third in the betting at $6.30 with James McDonald taking the mount.

The Hotham Handicap always attracts much attention with runners making their last bid to push into the Melbourne Cup field. The Andreas Wohler trained and Australian Bloodstock syndicated Ashrun (Kerrin McEvoy) is solid at $4 and will be terribly hard to beat. He ran fourth in his Australian debut but had no luck in the running.

Peter Moody now trains former Lisa Latta trained Platinum Invader. The winner of four of his 20 starts in NZ needs to win the Hotham to make the field for the Melbourne Cup. The stayer, who is at long odds of 34-1, will be ridden by Luke Nolen. Platinum has not raced up to NZ form in Australia so far with his best effort a third in the Herbert Power earlier this month. "We will be riding him for luck and riding him to try and produce it in the straight rather than circle his field this weekend," said Moody."

Chris Waller's outstanding mare Funstar may have drawn off the track for the $7.5m Golden Eagle over 1500 metres at Rosehill this weekend, but that draw may not be all that bad in the end. Sydney has been hit by wild storms and much rain earlier this week and the weather report for the rest of the week is not that promising either so, by the time the Golden Eagle race is run, the Rosehill track may be well rain sodden with drawing wide then not such a disadvantage. Since the draw, Funstar, who chased Probabeel so gamely in the Epsom, has eased slightly in the betting while Alligator Blood, from gate 15, has kept his place as second favourite.

Godolphin have 3 runners in the Golden Eagle … Flit, Colette and the promising Criaderas with Colette best in the market.

Kiwi John Sargent told the NZ Racing Desk he is rubbing his hands as the rain falls in Sydney. He has his smart performer Brandenburg, by Burgundy, involved in the big race and on a rain affected track he feels he is ready for a big run. Since his last run, Sargent said he has been jumping the four-year-old who also will have side winkers on. “I think you will see a different horse," Sargent said.

John O'Shea has the NZ bred All Saints Eve in the Golden Eagle and he is confident that the Waikato Stud bred mare is ready for a big run. O'Shea confirmed he been targeting the race since the commencement of the racing season for the daughter of Sacred Falls. The mare has drawn well, gate 3, and the rain doesn't worry O'Shea.

David Brideoake's handy mare Princess Jenni put paid to horses down the list not making the Cup field after she took out the Bendigo Cup at odds of 22-1.The Joseph O'Brien stayer Pondus raced wide and finished powerfully but failed to catch the mare.

While Cup hopefuls failed to make the winner's circle there, the much travelled and tough stayer Prince of Arran galloped between races at the meeting and he delighted his connections with the manner in which he finished off the gallop. He ran a sound fourth in the Caulfield Cup and has evidently thrived meantime. He has wonderful form in Melbourne and gives every indication that he will be right in the finish of the Cup next Tuesday.

The Victorian Race chiefs were hopeful of having owners back on track for the carnival with the easing of the lockdown in the State, but this hope has been dashed by Racing Minister Martin Pakula. Commented a VRC chief, "Owners are essential to our sport. This is ever so disappointing."

Good news for Victorian punters, TAB agencies will operate again in pubs and clubs with the easing of the lockdowns.

Jordon Childs has gained the Cup mount on the Willie Mullins trained stayer Stratum Albion after he had earlier lost the ride on one of the favourites for the Cup, the NZ bred Surprise Baby, to top rider Craig Williams. Stratum Albion, who has both flat and hurdle form for the astute Mullins, sits at just over $30 in the betting.

And Mullins has booked Declan Bates for his other Cup candidate, True Self … and I see that Damian lane has gained the King of Leogrance ride from Danny O'Brien … and Michael Rodd will ride Mustajeer for Kris Lees.

Roger James has told the NZ Racing Desk that his stable’s smart galloper London Banker is primed for a big effort in the Feilding Gold Cup at the Awapuni meeting. The winner of four of his 12 runs for the James-Wellwood yard, London baker is the mount of Danielle Johnson who has been in super form this season in NZ. After this the young stayer by Tavistock is likely to head towards the Counties Cup at Pukekohe.

The James-Wellwood stable will also produce the first starter Encantador at Pukekohe and he will be ridden by Vinnie Colgan, just back from neck surgery. "It is great to have Vinnie back. He has been riding work lately and will be a force to be reckoned with this season. I don’t think many realised how much pain he was in from the neck problem."

One of London Banker's rivals will be that wonderful veteran 11-year-old Sampson for Howie Matthews. The son of Dubai Destination gained his 12th win of his career in the recent Egmont Cup and Matthews said the old-timer is "really well."

While racing is making huge strides back after the virus hit hard in Australia, feel for racetracks in Yorkshire. It has been reported that nine racetracks have lost more than 100 million pounds since March. It has been estimated in a report that the economic value generated by Yorkshire tracks have fallen 72 per cent during the crisis. And the virus continues to rage in the UK and many cities and towns are in lockdown again after rising virus figures.

Yet another blow for the Aidan O'Brien yard, that good mare Magic Wand has been retired to Coolmore Stud after the setback with a foot abscess this past week. The problem forced her to be withdrawn from the Cox Plate last weekend and, with little progress with the problem since, she will now head to stud as the winner of 3.7million pounds. She surely was a globetrotting, successful race mare taking part in events in Britain, France, America, Hong Kong, Dubai, Australia and Saudi Arabia.

Kiwi bloodstock agent Paul Moroney has hit major headlines in the UK press. That outstanding three-year-old English King, winner of the Lingfield Derby Trial in new record time, was sold at auction at the Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training sale. He was knocked down for 925,000 guineas to the bid of Armando Duarte, who was bidding on behalf of Ballymore stables and Paul Moroney Bloodstock. The son of Camelot, sire of the Cox Plate winner Sir Dragonet last weekend and one of the best chances in the Melbourne Cup, was brought for a syndicate of Ballymore Stable owners and he will head to Australia later this year to join with Mike Moroney. If the horse travels well and recovers from his trip and quarantine he may be on hand for autumn racing but is already he is being talked about as a major contender for the 2021 Melbourne Cup.

In France, racing looks set to continue behind closed doors after the Government reintroduced a national lockdown with Covid 19 figures on the rise yet again. Racing had been held in front of crowds for the past three months, but no more.

Japan also holds racing behind closed doors and this weekend Tokyo will stage the Tenno Sho Autumn on Sunday and there will be intermingling with racing in Hong Kong. More importantly, though is that that outstanding mare Almond Eye runs and if she is successful it would give her eight Group 1 wins, which would put her in the history books of Japan racing. A small field of 12 will go to the post and Almond Eye is tipped to win the race for the second time of her career. Her main rival, it seems is the filly Chrono Genesis, winner of the Takarazuka Kinen back in June by a dazzling six lengths.

in the UK, champion jockey Oisin Murhy reached 1000 domestic winners at Southwell this week on Perfect Sign. As well as those winners Murphy has been ever so successful on the international scene.

In HK ace Moreira gained four winners at Happy Valley on Wednesday and he now has 30 winners to his credit … 10 ahead of Zac Purton with 16 of the 88 meetings for the season completed.

Meantime in the US, leading trainer Bob Baffert is facing yet another hearing over a failed blood test of one of his runners, Merneith at Del Mar late in July. This follows on other positive test results. This week he faces a hearing relating to Justify after his win in the 2018 Santa Anita Derby.