TAB Champions Stakes Day: Racing and highlights

Birdman hits back in Champions Stakes

Cosmic Crusader has the Cox Plate, but Birdman secured championship status when he got one back on his regular spring combatant at Flemington on Saturday.

The Cox Plate finishing positions were reversed in the $3 million Champions Stakes when the Chris Waller-trained Birdman condemned Cosmic Crusader to second placing in the 2000-metre Group 1.

It was their third Group 1 quinella of spring – having also gone one-two in the Underwood Stakes, which Birdman won – and Waller said he had visions of a Cox Plate repeat for a time but was thrilled to see his charge stand tall.

“He hit the 200-metre mark with purpose and he was running down some good horses,” Waller said.

“I could see Cosmic Crusader on Aeliana’s back and I thought, ‘oh no, here we go again’, but he just really launched and he said ‘I’m here’. It was good to see.”

The son of Free Eagle notched his third Group 1 of the year, having won May’s Doomben Cup (2000m) in Brisbane, when he posted the eighth win of his 27-start career.

The $1.8 million winner’s cheque won by the six-year-old, who is part-owned by a group of Carlton footballers including current and former captains Patrick Cripps and Marc Murphy, lifted his career earnings beyond $5 million.

“You like the buzz, that’s why you get into these games for, whether it’s footy or racing,” Cripps said of his emotions straight after the race.

Autumn Glow doesn’t disappoint

It might have been a tad harder earned than her long odds-on price would have predicted but Autumn Glow stamped every bit of her queen-like class in winning the Champions Mile at Flemington.

In her first race at the course and her first run outside of Sydney, even the most minor inkling of the change in scene interrupting anything at all was put to bed.

Scoring by 1¼-lengths, Autumn Glow ($1.18) had to shake off a gallant effort from stablemate Lindermann ($16) as she loomed up on the gelding at the top of the straight to settle Chris Waller’s usually calmer nerves on the line.

“I was (nervous) because you don’t want a horse like Autumn Glow to disappoint,” Waller said. 

“There’s a massive crowd here today and it was good to see her go through her paces. She had to put up a fight. Lindermann, he dug deep and to come away that last 100 metres, it was special.”

Autumn Glow became the 23rd horse to win the Group 1 King Charles III Stakes (1609m) and the Champions Mile in the same year while Waller notched his fifth win in the race stretching back to Albert The Fat in 2013.

Autumn Glow’s record moves to 15 wins in 16 starts and earned more than $14.5 million in prizemoney. James McDonald has ridden her in 11 of those victories.

“She was a little bit lost, at sea a bit, and even when we straightened and I gave her a click, she took about 50 metres to get going,” McDonald said. 

“But once she opened the shoulders up, she was never going to get rolled. She’s just a brilliant specimen, a pleasure to ride, she’s just so, so special.”

Tempted toppled as Barrow proves she belongs               

A four-year-old mare with an explosive turn-of-foot prevailed in Saturday’s Champions Sprint at Flemington, but it wasn’t the one most expected.

Point Barrow sprung a Group 1 surprise when she took out the $3 million 1200-metre event that included Tempted, who only three weeks earlier dethroned Ka Ying Rising in the $20 million The Everest.

The Anthony and Sam Freedman-trained Point Barrow defeated Plaintiff and Skybird in an all-mares finish to the first of the day’s three Group 1 races in what was a proud result for the stable.

“She’s a good mare and I had good confidence coming into the race, albeit with Tempted in the field,” he said.

“She’s been a bloody good mare for a while and it’s been a long time coming. I’m glad she’s got the win at the top level.”

The daughter of Blue Point made it three wins on end, following two brilliant Group 3 wins at Caulfield, when she exploded late under Mark Zahra to record the eighth win of her 13-start career.

Point Barrow ($18) scored by a neck from Plaintiff, the $101 chance who looked the winner briefly inside the final 100m, with Skybird ($31) just a short-half-head away third.

Soldi secures Banner payday

Lindsay Park filly Soldi got a valuable maiden Black Type success at her first trip to the races and on Saturday she secured a big payday when she went two-from-two at Flemington.

The daughter of Tassort was a dominant winner of the $400,000 Inglis Banner (1000m), which is restricted to horses who were sold by Inglis.

The $310,000 Premier Yearling Sale purchase collected $240,000 for the win, which followed debut victory in last month’s Listed Debutant Stakes (1000m), and co-trainer JD Hayes was thrilled to get an early result for connections.

“It’s just a terrific result in these colours, the Punt Road syndications with Johnny O'Neill, Jay Steet, and all the owners involved,” Hayes said.

“She was a nice purchase from Premier, and they've got a good return on their money.”

Superfabulistic does it easily

Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott notched their second winner for the Cup Carnival with five-year-old mare Superrfabulistic ($3.60) scoring an easy victory in the Ronald McDonald House VIC/TAS Mile (1600m).

The sparingly raced five-year-old mare earned her fifth win in 10 starts with three other placings but none were as impressive as this 3½-length romp.

“A lovely, easy watch,” Adrian Bott said.

“She’s such an honest mare for us. She tries hard and she was incredible again today. Rachel (King) put her into the race and she was able to do the rest from there.”

This was Rachel King’s second Flemington winner this week earning praise from Waterhouse.

“Rachel was indentured to me, she was my apprentice, and then she was smart enough over the last two years to go to Japan, where there's no greater place than training stayers,” Gai said.

“The way she came back, she just came back a different jockey. She's strong, she rides very light, she's got natural talent, she can ride on the speed, which I love, I think she's fabulous.”

Pinhole taps in Cup qualification in Queen Elizabeth

After missing a run in the Melbourne Cup by just one spot, Pinhole took the opportunity at hand in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes to stamp himself as a stayer of the future on the Australian scene.

At 25th in the order of entry for last Tuesday’s 3200m feature won by Point Of Law, it was not enough to make the 24-runner field.

That was all put aside as the $2,60 favourite Pinhole descended on race leader Defiantly at the 300-metre mark to draw away for a 2¾-length win over outsiders Manzor Blue ($41) in second and Torranzino ($26) in third.

“He’s a bright, bright stayer of the future,” winning trainer Chris Waller said.

“He was a good winner at Caulfield two starts ago, and then last start he had no luck at all. “So he's a really promising horse, and it's all about getting him to the I guess the Cup for next year. It's a good step forward. He'll be qualified and we just have to find the best path for him now.”

Waller and James McDonald agreed that the UK-import settled better than in his seventh placing in the Group 2 Moonee Valley Cup (2500m) a fortnight ago.

“He was really good (and) he relaxed a lot better too,” McDonald said. 

“He’s still a young progressive stayer. He probably should have been in the race on Tuesday, but there will be plenty of time.”

Watchme Win again, says Shinn

Not content with the win on Soldi, Shinn followed up a few races later in the race named after the world-famous DJ engaged to entertain the crowd after the last, Fisher.

The top jockey is not renowned as a go-to man for Adelaide trainer Andrew Gluyas, but was happy to team with to take out the $200,000 Listed Fisher Stakes (1200m) aboard Watchme Win.

The six-year-old son of Harry Angel, who started $18, scored his first win at Flemington when he burst through a late gap to power to a 1-1/4-length win over Inkaruna ($5), with Photograph ($8) a neck away third.

The opportunity to take over from Ben Allen, who rode Watchme Win when seventh in last Saturday’s Rising Fast Stakes, came about after Gluyas’s wife Sue overheard Shinn’s post-meeting phone call last weekend to his manager and told him they were looking for a rider.

“She listened to my phone call with my manager and insisted that I better take the ride, so it worked out well,” Shinn said

“Andrew had him spot on and, look, everything panned out lovely in the run. The horse was there for me, (it was a) great win.”

Sun Gift bowls punters in Matriarch

A liking for Flemington and the distance is a handy trait and despite saluting at $51, many punters may have wished they had taken notice of the gelding’s trips record of 12 starts for four wins and five placings earlier than after the finish line.

Sun Gift outstayed race favourite Too Darn Discreet ($#) in the Group 2 Matriarch Stakes (2000m) and gave Danny O’Brien his second win in the race, 22 years after his first.

What made the performance even more significant, it was Sun Gift’s second start in four days after finishing sixth in the Kyneton Cup (2006m) on Wednesday.

“I always intended to back her up,” O’Brien said.

“I thought she could win on Wednesday, and then it just rained for the two hours before the race, it became a real tough surface. She didn't get through it at all, and effectively just had a 1400 metre gallop down the straight without getting knocked around.”

Lawborough locks in the last

Big crowds have headlined the Melbourne Cup Carnival and so have some big dividends with the final event, the HKJC World Pool Grand Handicap (1100m) serving up Flemington-trained Lawborough lobbing at $17.

For trainer Simon Zahra, last the night before he was not expecting the four-year-old to gain a start.

“I was driving home from Cranbourne night meeting about 11 o'clock, and for some unknown reason someone scratched so we knew last night we had a run,” Zahra said.

“We've been sweating on it all week. He's a horse we've got a big opinion of, and you saw glimpses of it today. He'll only get better as the penny drops.”

Flemington takes a racing break before returning on New Year’s Eve highlighted by the Bagot Handicap.