Trainer Les Bridge in search of second Hobartville Stakes win 40 years after his first with champion Sir Dapper

Hall of Fame trainer Les Bridge won his first Hobartville Stakes with Sir Dapper in 1984 and believes Celestial Legend has the talent to give him a second at Rosehill on Saturday.

The maestro Les Bridge has Celestial Legend primed to give the trainer a second Hobartville Stakes success, some 40 years after he won the race for the first time with former champion Sir Dapper.

There would be few trainers in the history of the sport to have won the same feature race so many years apart.

Bart Cummings won his first Melbourne Cup with Light Fingers in 1965 and his 12th winner of the famous race came 43 years later with Viewed in 2008.

Cummings won 10 Mackinnon Stakes with an extraordinary 51 year span between his first and last win in the Flemington weight-for-age race from Trellos in 1959 to So You Think in 2010.

Tommy Smith won the first of his 12 Queensland Derbies with Forest Beau in 1951 and the final Group 1 win of his training career came in the same race 40 years later with Dorset Downs (1991).

Bridge, 85, has called Randwick home since 1965. He trained alongside Cummings and Smith and has joined those legends in the Australian Racing Hall of Fame.

On the eve of Celestial Legend’s attempt to win the Group 2 $400,000 Hobartville Stakes (1400m) at Royal Randwick on Saturday, Bridge took time to reminisce about his enduring career in racing.

Trainer Les Bridge with his 2020 The Everest winner Classique Legend.

Bridge has had some outstanding horses through his stables including Sir Dapper, Drawn, Row Of Waves, Hot Danish, Utzon, Avoid Lightning, Kensei and Classique Legend.

He’s prepared the winners of the Melbourne Cup, Golden Slipper, Doncaster Mile and The Everest and it’s fair to say he’s seen plenty of changes in racing during his career.

But Bridge didn’t fall back on the cliche that the sport was better in the old days when asked how racing compares today to previous eras.

“I think everything gets better with time,” Bridge said.

“The money is better, the prizemoney is so good now. When I started out, you needed to win on the punt to make a living.”

Bridge is still spritely and enjoys good health so any talk of retirement is immediately shut down.

“I’m still enjoying training, mate,” Bridge said.

“I’ll keep going, it’s too late for me to retire now.”

On the 40th anniversary of Sir Dapper’s Hobartville Stakes win, Bridge believes he has another potential topliner in Celestial Legend.

The promising Celestial Legend can give trainer Les Bridge a second win in the Group 2 Hobartville Stakes at Rosehill on Saturday. Picture: Grant Guy

Bridge wasn’t about to compare Celestial Legend with Sir Dapper, the later proving himself deserving of champion status during two outstanding seasons of racing.

Sir Dapper won the 1983 Golden Slipper then returned that spring to reel off successive wins in the San Domenico Stakes, Up And Coming Stakes, Peter Pan Stakes, Gloaming Stakes and Spring Champion Stakes.

In his final race campaign during the 1984 autumn carnival, Sir Dapper won the Expressway Stakes defeating the great mare Emancipation before wins in the Canterbury Stakes and Hobartville Stakes.

But Emancipation defeated Sir Dapper in two epic clashes for the George Ryder Stakes and All Aged Stakes before the latter was retired to stud.

The $5 million @Longines#GoldenSlipper is a race steeped in history.

On the 40-year anniversary of Sir Dapper’s famous victory, we spoke with legendary trainer Les Bridge as well as former champion jockey and now trainer Ron Quinton.

📝 Story: https://t.co/XMSGzq3WpKpic.twitter.com/sMVqaPHr7Y

— Australian Turf Club (@aus_turf_club) March 16, 2023

“Sir Dapper was a champion,” Bridge said.

“I’ve always thought if he raced on as a four-year-old they would not have beaten him again.”

Bridge nearly prepared another Hobartville winner in 1986 with the diminutive Drawn, who finished an unlucky third behind Chanteclair.

“Drawn was a real good horse,” Bridge enthused.

“He won the Caulfield Guineas, Rosehill Guineas and All Aged Stakes, and ran third to Rising Prince in the Cox Plate as a three-year-old.”

Bridge has trained enough elite gallopers to know what is required for a racehorse to make the grade and he feels Celestial Legend is loaded with natural ability.

Celestial Legend has only won one race in five starts but Bridge believes the grey-bay colt has needed the time to mature and develop.

In early TAB betting for the Hobartville, Celestial Legend is at $8.50 behind Godolphin’s Tom Kitten at $3.20.

Bridge saw enough in Celestial Legend’s first-up fifth to Caballus in the Eskimo Prince Stakes to indicate his colt is now ready to turn potential into performance this preparation.

“Celestial Legend ran well first-up, I was very happy,” Bridge said.

“Hopefully as he gets up in distance he will continue to improve. I like him as a horse.

“I think a mile at Randwick will suit him – we are aiming him at the Guineas next month.”

Caballus wins the Group 3 Eskimo Prince in dominant fashion!@JoshuaParr8@BBakerRacing@Darby_Racingpic.twitter.com/1RkjndBaHn

— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) February 10, 2024

Celestial Legend is owned by Hong Kong businessman Bon Ho, who also raced the 2020 The Everest winner Classique Legend.

Ho has become the backbone of Bridge’s stables these day and has 20 horses with the trainer including Smart Legend, an entry for the Midway Handicap on Saturday.

Bridge has also entered Smart Legend and another Ho-owned galloper Invincible Legend for the Canterbury Friday night meeting.

“Bon doesn’t come down very often but he might be coming out for Celestial Legend’s race on Saturday,” Bridge said. “He’s a good bloke, loves his racing.”

Ho’s familiar racing colours of white, red epaulettes, red armbands and striped cap, first came to prominence when Classique Legend won six of his 15 starts including his outstanding win in the 2020 The Everest.

Bridge still wonders what might have been with Classique Legend with the sprinter’s career ending prematurely due to persistent leg problems.

“It’s a shame that we never saw the best of Classique Legend,” Bridge said.

“But when he won The Everest I don’t think anything could have beaten him that day.”

Originally published as Trainer Les Bridge in search of second Hobartville Stakes win 40 years after his first with champion Sir Dapper