THE PETLEY REPORT: CHRIS WALLER, TOMMY BERRY, EDWARD CUMMINGS AND ADAM KIRBY STEAL THE SHOW

By Jack Petley | Sunday, June 6, 2021

What a day for Chris Waller, Tommy Berry, Edward Cummings and UK jockey Adam Kirkby.

Firstly, what a day for Waller and Berry. With Waller's go to jockey James McDonald in Brisbane he turned to Berry and combined to win four races in Sydney and Waller also won another one with Brenton Avdulla up. And in one of those events, the Agency Real Estate over 1500m, his runners were,1,2,3.

Waller and Berry teamed up with Cape Breton, Oscar Zulu, Great House and Mubarez with Waller's other winner, being Irish bred Wicklow, who was ever so impressive. That win on Mubarez took Berry to 100 winners for the season and within nine wins of his arch-rival Kiwi James McDonald. But Mubarez win may have cost Berry any chance of wresting the Premiership from McDonald as he was suspended for careless riding with that outing to commence after Stradbroke Day and then to miss two Saturday meetings.

On Stradbroke day McDonald will be in Brisbane for rides on Zaaki and Ayrton but he will be back mid-week to perhaps add to his tally. All along Berry has been after that Premiership, but McDonald keeps a strong lead mainly through the backing of the powerful Waller yard.

Waller’s five wins took his tally in Sydney to 137 and, after a day which also had him gained a win with Nudge in Brisbane and placings in the Oaks with Charms Star and Signora Nera, the stable earnings have now crashed past the $40million mark and now he is less than $5million away from his best for a season, set last season. What a feat!

Waller had six fillies in the Queensland Oaks and as I said before he produced second and third, but all the honours went to the filly trained by Edward Cummings, Duais, in the hands of that top Sydney jockey Hugh Bowman. It was a typical brilliant ride from Bowman. He had the filly by Shamus Award at the rear of the field but always travelling within herself. Off the home bend Bowman used all his skill to gain the filly spots through the big field. Once into the clear she drove away so, so impressively from her rivals and, in the process, Bowman landed his 99th Group 1 winner.

It was a big day for Cummings, who first started training with his dad Anthony at Randwick. This was his first Gr1 winner, but certainly not his last as he managed the filly ever so well in her lead-up into the Oaks after she had been second in the AJC Oaks to Hungry Heart.

Also at Eagle Farm Baller gained a strong win for Glen Boss and Tony Gollan in the Moreton Cup but I note that Gollan says the sprinter won't tackle the Stradbroke Handicap this weekend. Baller, a former Chris Waller galloper, has now won two for the leading Brisbane trainer and is likely to instead run in the Healy Stakes a week after the Stradbroke.

The Gollan stable also landed a winner with Sentanta in the Qld Day Stakes and also produced runner-up Mass Destruction.

Nudge scored a grand win for Waller in the MM Classic with Kerrin McEvoy up and there was much to like about that win by the juvenile Volcanic Rock for the Bott-Waterhouse yard. He now goes to the JJ Atkins as I see will Waller's two-year-old winner in Sydney Cape Breton, now two from two.

Third behind the Bott-Waterhouse colt was the Tony Pike two-year-old Tutukaka, the half-brother to Melody Belle. He got back early on a solid up-front pace, but was noticed running home hard down the outside late for third … a run which suggests he will end up a good winner for Pike, who already has big plans for the colt in spring. But a JJ Atkins start may not be out of the question.

That was a big win by the Frankel two-year-old Argentia at Flemington with Black Caviar's daughter Invincible Caviar finishing third. Argentia is from that outstanding Kiwi bred mare, Princess Coup, an Oaks winner in her homeland and placegetter in a Caulfield Cup. She was ridden by Mark Zahra who rated the win ever so impressively.

Zahra gained a double at the meeting, giving him 42 wins for the season and fourth place on the Premiership ladder. Jamie Kah rode a double too and went further ahead at the top of the ladder.

Other impressive winners at Flemington, Mr Tipla , by Per Incanto, for the Busuttin-Young stable, and Grand Promenade in the hands of Kah, and this was a stylish victory indeed.

And now to the UK and that win by Adam Kirby on outsider Adayar in the Epsom Derby for Charlie Appleby and Godolphin. Kirby had been booked for John Leeper in the Classic but when Dettori became available he lost the mount … but then Appleby rewarded him with the ride on Adayar, even though at one stage he had considered not running the colt and keeping him for the Queens Vase and St Leger, but Sheikh Mohammed opted for the colt to run, and he scored at 14-1 after being as long as 40-1 the day before.

And guess what! Kirkby gained the ride on the colt after Oisin Murphy had allowed Appleby to make the change. Aidan O'Brien's colt Bolshoi Ballet ever so disappointing in the Derby, finishing seventh.