Latest Inglis Digital Sale open for bidding
Stakes winners from Australia, New Zealand and the United States and mares in foal to some of Australasia’s most commercially appealing stallions are entered on the Inglis Digital August (Early) Online Sale, which is now open for bidding.
The catalogue is also bolstered by a breeding right in the newly crowned Champion Sire I Am Invincible and a 50 per cent share in Group 1-placed mare Nudge (Fastnet Rock).
The 317 entries in the Inglis Digital August (Early) catalogue consist of 101 broodmares, 89 race fillies, 76 racehorses, 23 racehorse shares, 16 yearlings and 12 unnamed stock.
The final countdown of bidding for the August (Early) Sale begins from midday on Wednesday.
Belluci Babe to launch spring in Missile
Belluci Babe (NZ) (Per Incanto {USA}) will be on a mission to reaffirm her emergence as a serious sprinter, and stake her claims for The Everest, when she kick-starts her spring in the G2 Missile S. at Randwick on Saturday.
The mare enjoyed a breakthrough autumn, winning the G3 Wenona Girl Quality and finishing fourth in the G1 The Galaxy and G1 TJ Smith S.
Belluci Babe (NZ) | Image courtesy of NZ Racing Desk
"I think she can put her hand up for The Everest, why not?" Baker said.
"She ran a very good fourth in the TJ Smith S. and at the end of the day, that's the best form race year-in, year-out for The Everest.
"It's the same track, same distance and she has won a Group race over the track and distance as well."
Sirius Suspect to kick off in Aurie’s Star
A liking for the Flemington straight track is what trainer Saab Hasan is hoping will carry Sirius Suspect (Wanted) to another stakes race victory when he tackles the G3 Aurie’s Star H.
"I was a little concerned I might have had him a little bit too fresh, a little fat, but as we get older, we carry a little bit more pudding, don't we," Hasan told RSN.
"Flemington, you need a good 1400-metre horse to run well up the straight. What happens at Flemington is he's allowed to stride into his rhythm at the 600-metre mark, rather than being held-up or dictated to.
“At other tracks, the top-class sprinters can jump, run, sprint and get him out of his comfort zone and put him under pressure, whereas at Flemington he can put them under pressure.
"That's what he loves to do, go out and run sectionals, and at Flemington he's able to do that. He's not a horse that needs cover. He's a horse that can punch the breeze and do it hard."
Night Passage starts at Flemington
Co-trainers Tony and Calvin McEvoy believe Night Passage (Not A Single Doubt) is on course for a big campaign and she will kick off that campaign when she tackles the BM84 at Flemington on Saturday.
The 6-year-old mare took three years to win her first three races, but only three runs to win her next three and McEvoy said this week that was a sure sign of a mare on the rise.
Night Passage
“She did really well at the end of last preparation, putting together three wins in a row in South Australia and obviously she’s up to being an 82-rater so it's a different ballgame for her now,” Tony McEvoy told Racing.com.
“But gee, she’s trialled up so well. I think she’ll be very competitive and set herself up for a really good campaign.”
Moody stable has faith in Chain of Lightning
Unbeaten in all three of her career starts, Chain of Lightning (Fighting Sun) will attempt to keep her perfect record intact when she lines up in the Jockeys Celebration Day H. at Flemington on Saturday.
“Thankfully she’s bounced through it, it’s like she didn’t even have a day at the races and has shown no ill-effects,” trainer Peter Moody’s assistant trainer Katherine Coleman told Racing.com.
“We think A, she’s up to it and B, it’ll also give us a guide as to where she sits in the food chain,” she said.
“It is shaping up to be a nice race with some nice horses in it, but another reason to run here was to give her a run down the straight and see how she handles it.”
Walker brought out of coma
Michael Walker is awake and communicating with doctors as he continues to make positive progress after a fall on Monday.
The 38-year-old was brought out of sedation and will be taken out of ICU and moved into a ward on Friday, the Victorian Jockeys' Association confirmed.
Walker was riding in a jump-out at Pakenham on Monday morning when the horse he was riding collapsed.
He was treated by paramedics before being transported to the Alfred Hospital by helicopter.
Walker was placed in an induced coma, suffering serious head trauma following the fall. Initial scans on Monday afternoon cleared Walker of any internal injuries or spinal damage.
Neasham moves Queensland base to Eagle Farm
Annabel Neasham will move her Queensland operation from the Gold Coast to Eagle Farm, with the Group 1-winning trainer snaring 31 boxes at the track.
“BRC is delighted to welcome multiple Group 1-winning trainer Annabel Neasham to Eagle Farm,” BRC chief executive Tony Partridge told Newscorp.
Annabel Neasham | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
“It is a vote of confidence in the facilities and our racing to have a trainer of Annabel’s calibre with stables at Eagle Farm.
“Annabel is a huge supporter of Brisbane racing including the Stradbroke Season having won the Doomben Cup in 2021 and both editions of The Q22.”
Lowry and Cullen end partnership
Trainers Guy Lowry and Grant Cullen have decided to go their separate ways after a successful 13-year partnership that yielded 235 wins, including three Group 1 victories.
The split is an amicable one, with Lowry carrying on operating his Game Lodge Stables in Hastings while Cullen will concentrate on the training and thoroughbred rehabilitation property he and his partner Nikki Lourie operate just north of Dannevirke.
Lowry and Cullen’s best season together was in 2018/19 when they saddled up 25 winners, while the season before that they chalked up three black-type successes among their 16 wins.
Australia an option for Golden Pal
Golden Pal (USA) (Uncle Mo {USA}) will have his first run since his lacklustre display behind Nature Strip (Nicconi) in the G1 King’s Stand S. at Royal Ascot in the G3 Troy S. on Friday and his trainer Wesley Ward said the son of Uncle Mo (USA) could travel to Australia later this year.
Golden Pal (USA) | Image courtesy of Coolmore
“It may or may not culminate in Australia,” Ward said.
“It all depends on how we finish out the year, but Coolmore has expressed an interest in showcasing him for the breeders in Australia in the Southern Hemisphere.”
