Melham charged
Racing Victoria stewards have issued seven charges against jockey Ben Melham following an investigation into betting activity between March 2019 and September 2019.
Melham has also been charged with providing false and/or misleading evidence during an interview in September 2019.
Ben Melham
Registered owner Karlie Dales, Melham’s partner, has also been charged with providing false and/or misleading evidence regarding her betting account.
The charges against the pair will be heard by the Victorian Racing Tribunal on a date to be fixed.
Pay off time
Damien Thornton is hoping his period of self-isolation will be all worth the effort this weekend.
The Victorian jockey went into lockdown in South Australia, lured by the Group 1 rides of Lyre (Lonhro) in the Robert Sangster S. and Toffee Tongue (NZ) (Tavistock {NZ}) in the Australasian Oaks.
"They were good rides and they were a bit hard to knock back," he said.
Damien Thornton | Image by George Salpigtidis courtesy of AAP Photos
Thornton admitted the self-isolation was starting to wear thin.
"I'm starting to get over it a bit, but it's not too bad at the moment. I've got a little outdoor area and brought some equipment over with me from my personal trainer,” he said.
“I've been doing some stuff with that, but I'm not really able to do much else, so there's a lot of Netflix being watched and PlayStation."
Everest an option
The Everest is a race already on the radar of Joseph Pride’s talented sprinter Fasika (So You Think {NZ}).
She is currently spelling following a campaign that netted her the G3 Wenona Girl Quality and she finished third in the G1 The Galaxy at her most recent outing.
Fasika
"It is certainly something (The Everest) I would consider with her. There is a changing of the guard with the sprinters. The ones that were good a few years ago are moving off to different areas, to stud or retirement,” Pride said.
"I've got time to give her a nice six-week break and we will come back and think about it then, but I wouldn't rule out an Everest slot."
Brutal fee set
G1 Doncaster Mile winner Brutal (NZ) will stand at Newgate Farm in 2020 for $27,500 inc GST.
The son of O'Reilly (NZ) had a 10 start career in which he amassed $2,632,150 in stakes earnings.
Brutal (NZ) (yellow cap)
Prepared by Team Hawkes, Brutal beat a quality field of 2-year-olds by 5l on debut over 1200 metres at Caulfield and trained on at three to run second to Winx (Street Cry {Ire}) at weight-for-age in the G1 George Ryder S., before winning the $3 million Doncaster Handicap at his seventh race start.
Newgate’s Henry Field commented that, “With his wonderful genetic makeup and phenomenal dark good looks, he is going to be a bullseye stallion prospect. It is very rare to see Team Hawkes have such confidence in a horse.”
Online yearlings eligible
All yearlings sold via the Inglis Digital Platform will now be eligible for the 2020 Inglis Race Series.
The ruling will be backdated to the January 2020 Online Sale, with entries closing on Friday, July 31.
The fee for yearlings sold through the Inglis Digital Online Sales will be $1500 plus GST and will include eligibility for the $2,000,000 Inglis Millennium in February 2021 and the $200,000 Scone Inglis Challenge in May 2021.
There have been 108 yearlings offered on Inglis Digital between January and March this year, with 102 in the current April Online catalogue.
Excited by mare
Trainer David Pfieffer is thrilled with I Am Excited (Snitzel), who will try to double her Group 1 tally in Saturday’s Robert Sangster S. at Morphettville.
I Am Excited | Image by Dan Himbrechts courtesy of AAP Photos
“She is absolutely flying. She is going great,” David Pfieffer told Racenet. “Her first-up run was good behind Fasika and then she came out and won The Galaxy.
“I thought it was a good game effort last start. She is not at her best on a wet track, with a wide gate. She had a hard run and came through the race good.
“Her work has been great since so she is ready for Saturday.”
Tried and true approach
Betcha Flying (Uncle Mo {USA}) will try and follow the winning lead of former stablemate Egg Tart (Sebring) when she runs in Saturday’s G1 Schweppes (Australian) Oaks at Morphettville.
She was successful over 1700 metres at Flemington at the weekend, a race Egg Tart also claimed before landing the Oaks.
Betcha Flying | Image by Dan Himbrechts courtesy of AAP Photos
"Chris has allowed her to mature at her own rate. She tells us when she's ready to keep stepping up,” Waller’s Melbourne representative Jo Taylor said.
"She'll freshen up this week and head to Adelaide either on Wednesday or Thursday evening and try and back up and do the same in the Oaks."
Winter stakes assault
Stuart Kendrick has committed to a winter stakes program for Tambo’s Mate (Mossman).
Plans were confirmed after the promising sprinter finished runner-up at the Sunshine Coast at the weekend.
Tambo’s Mate | Image by Albert Perez courtesy of AAP Photos
"I was more than happy with him getting beaten by a long neck by a very good 1000 metre horse (Just Orm)," Kendrick said.
"Tambo's Mate will now run in the G3 BRC Sprint and then the G2 Victory S. After that he will hopefully make his Group 1 debut in the Stradbroke."
Hardy filly thriving
Away Game (Snitzel) is making all the right moves ahead of Saturday’s G1 Robert Sangster S. at Morphettville.
Co-trainer David Eustace said the filly had returned from Sydney to their Ballarat base in good order ahead of the trip to South Australia and will be accompanied by G3 Victoria H. contender Bam’s On Fire (Universal Ruler).
Bam's On Fire | Image by Vince Caligiuri courtesy of AAP Photos
“They'll both go," Eustace said. “Away Game has travelled down from Sydney well, she's a tough, hearty filly but she's top class as well. You wouldn't be doing it without the weight relief, but she's obviously also very smart."
Away Game will carry 47kg against the older horses at the weekend.
Back in business
The Matamata stable of Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott is preparing to welcome 25 to 30 horses back into the stable over the coming week, with boom 3-year-old Dragon Leap (Pierro) not far away from a return to training.
“Dragon Leap will be back in fairly soon,” O’Sullivan said. “It was always planned for him to go up to Hong Kong as a 4-year-old, but I understand that is still to be decided.
“We will prepare him for the spring and hopefully if he comes up well enough, we could look at taking him to Australia and campaigning him there.
Dragon Leap
“We will probably kick off and have a race here and just see how we are going, but it is still undecided as to whether he ends up here, Australia or in Hong Kong.”
A champion jockey, turned trainer, O’Sullivan believes Dragon Leap is the best horse he has had anything to do with since he took out his trainers’ license.
