BAKER'S INFATUATION HAS TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY

By Graham Potter | Wednesday, January 11, 2023

Nine years ago, on January 12, 2014, trainer Bjorn Baker won the Magic Millions Two-Year-Old Classis with Unencumbered.

Just three months later, Nathan Berry, who had ridden Unencumbered to that landmark victory for the Baker stable, tragically passed away after contracting an illness while riding in Singapore ... and a shocked racing world grieved the passing of a young talent taking far too soon.

To this day Nathan Berry is remembered with real fondness and with the utmost respect and the memory of his and Baker’s Magic Millions win, while always tinged with sadness, remains a lasting tribute to Berry’s unquestionable talent and his engaging personality.

Standing straight upright in the irons and waving his whip in a victory salute with smile as wide as it could possibly be, will be a lasting image in the pictorial history of the Two-Year-Old Classic race ... as befitting of the memory of a special moment in time.

You can only imagine that if Baker was to take out this year’s edition of the race, the win would be dedicated to Berry in what would be a bitter-sweet moment for the trainer who has gone on to firmly establish himself as a top-tier trainer since Unencumbered’s Magic Millions’ success.

Baker will saddle Infatuation in the big race on Saturday ... an I Am Invincible filly, who is one of six last start winners in the line-up.

That win came over the Magic Millions race distance of 1200m at Randwick on December 31, in as good a warmup as any for the big race.

That was the filly’s first win in four attempts and, perhaps significantly, arrived when Baker stepped up the distance test from the 1000m and 1100m that she had tackled in her first three starts.

Infatuation finished fifth on debut, 2.65 lengths behind the winner, the James Cummings trained Barber over 1000m.

Racing at the same weight terms (Barber carrying 56.5 and Infatuation carrying 54.5kg), Infatuation drastically cut back that winning deficit to Barber in her next start going down by only 0.14 lengths when producing a ripper of a run in the $1 million Golden Gift over 1100m. (Barber is still unbeaten).

Then it was on to another 1100m feature race where Infatuation finished fifth in the Magic Millions Wyong Two-Year-Old Classic ... finishing behind three rivals who she will come up against again on Saturday ... Sovereign Fun (who beat her home by 3.15 lengths), Summer Loving (who beat her home by 1.75 lengths) and Fire Lane (who beat her home by 1.30 lengths).

Clearly Infatuation was left with a bit of ground to make up from the Wyong run, but she then posted that Randwick win which arguable confirmed that her form-graph is on the desired upward trajectory.

Rachel King, who has ridden Infatuation in every start except her debut run, will be in the saddle again on Saturday.

Infatuation is currently rated a $10 chance.

*Baker will also have a double pronged attack in $500 000 The Debut earlier in the day where his stable will be represented in the new race by Desperately (James McDonald) and Stefi Magnetica (Rachel King).

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