Pride Of Jenni headlines Ciaron Maher assault on King Charles III Stakes, The Everest and Caulfield Cup
Pride Of Jenni will return to the scene of her biggest career win for the Group 1 King Charles III Stakes in what could shape as a bumper day for trainer Ciaron Maher.
Horse Racing
Don't miss out on the headlines from Horse Racing. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Trainer Ciaron Maher maintains Horse of the Year Pride Of Jenni is in super order as she leads his stable’s charge for the lion’s share of $25m prizemoney at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
Pride Of Jenni is the $2.30 favourite when she takes on 11 opponents including defending champ Fangirl in the Group 1 $5m King Charles III Stakes (1600m).
Maher also has three starters in the Group 1 $20m The TAB Everest (1200m) with outstanding mares Bella Nipotina and I Am Me, and crack three-year-old colt Growing Empire.
• What J-Mac must do to beat Jenni in King Charles III Stakes
If Maher can prepare an unprecedented big-race Randwick double, his stable runners will earn $9,950,000 prizemoney – a staggering $7m goes to the winner of The Everest and $2,950,000 for the King Charles.
It’s a powerful big-race entry for the champion trainer and for good measure, Maher has three starters and an emergency in the Group 1 $5m Caulfield Cup (2400m) with Circle Of Fire, Duke De Sessa, Sayedaty Sadaty and Berkshire Breeze.
But Pride Of Jenni’s return to Royal Randwick where she created headlines around the racing world during autumn when leading all the way to win the Queen Elizabeth Stakes by more than six lengths certain to be a highlight of Everest day.
“Pride Of Jenni’s just a phenomenal mare,’’ Maher said.
“She is so thrilling to watch every time. We have a lot of runners but there is something about her that gets you going.
“She brings such intrigue with how fast she goes, how fast they chase her and when they actually make their runs.’’
Pride Of Jenni returned to winning form in the Group 2 Feehan Stakes (1600m) at The Valley last start, leading throughout and comfortably holding off her three top-class rivals.
The form out of that race has been franked with runner-up Mr Brightside finishing second in the Group 1 Might And Power Stakes, third placegetter Antino winning the Group 1 Toorak Handicap and Attrition taking out the Group 2 Hill Stakes.
Maher revealed Pride Of Jenni has improved with each run this campaign and will be even better again for the King Charles III Stakes.
• The Everest tips, runner-by-runner form analysis
“She has improved a little bit from her last run, she is right back to top form and is in super order,’’ Maher said.
Growing Empire is the favoured runner of the Maher trio in The Everest at $7 with TAB fixed odds price assessors ahead of Bella Nipotina at $8 and I Am Me rated a $17 chance.
Maher said Growing Empire will again race in blinkers after he wore them when a close second to stablemate Southport Tycoon in the Manikato Stakes last start.
“The two mares are going as good as what they have and I think what they can but the colt is relatively untapped,’’ Maher said.
“Last start, he really knuckled down. He needed to take that next step and I thought he did,’’ Maher said.
“He will need to take another step now (for The Everest).’’
Bella Nipotina drew the outside of the 12-horse Everest field but Maher wasn’t overly concerned, citing the mare’s history of racing well from wide barriers.
Maher pointed out that Bella Nipotina had wide barriers when she won the Tatt’s Tiara and was narrowly beaten in the Stradbroke Handicap and Moir Stakes.
“I would probably rather a better gate but funnily enough she does have a really good record from wider gates,’’ Maher said.
“She drew out in Queensland and performed really well and one day she drew the outside in the Moir over 1000m around The Valley and I thought she was no hope and she got beaten a half head.
“She is very, very versatile. I think she is in career-best form and a bit of rain around, she doesn’t mind that either.’’
I Am Me drew the rails barrier – the sixth consecutive start she will come out of either gate one or two.
“She has an uncanny knack of drawing in,’’ Maher said.
“She thrives on it, she loves it and is arguably in career-best form.’’
Originally published as Pride Of Jenni headlines Ciaron Maher assault on King Charles III Stakes, The Everest and Caulfield Cup
‘It went to script’: Classy import surges to Coongy win
Gavin Bedggood has a couple of Group 3 options in mind for import Kingswood after his easy win in the Coongy Cup at Caulfield.
Cup horse can lift Moor off ‘bottom of the pile’
A Caulfield Cup win would be the perfect way for jockey Daniel Moor to re-establish himself in the Melbourne riding ranks after another successful Singapore stint.