Opie Bosson to dance down Yellow Brick road in BRC Sprint at Doomben on Saturday

Opie Bosson is a 98-time Group 1 winner and he’s enthused about the Queensland winter carnival prospects of Yellow Brick who will aim to storm into the Stradbroke Handicap by winning at Doomben on Saturday.

A chance encounter led 98-time Group 1 winning Kiwi jockey Opie Bosson to ride Yellow Brick and he thinks the star Queensland galloper can surge into Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap contention by winning at Doomben on Saturday.

Yellow Brick’s trainer Tony Sears was in Auckland for the rich Karaka Millions day in January where Sears, who co-trains with daughter Maddy, had two-year-old colt Beau Dazzler racing on the day.

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Bosson had long been a fan of Yellow Brick and approached Tony Sears to see if he could ride the exciting galloper during the Queensland winter carnival.

“On Karaka Millions night, I was just chatting away to Tony Sears after the races,” Bosson told Racenet.

“We were talking about Yellow Brick and I mentioned I would be keen to come over to Queensland and ride him. I didn’t think anything much would come of it. But then Tony rang me up to see if I wanted to ride him.”

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At Witz End wins the Listed Australian Turf Club Trophy at @SCTurfClub for @dannyb3685! pic.twitter.com/tHrD6UjoTh

— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) May 11, 2024

Yellow Brick was one of the most progressive young gallopers in Queensland last year and the Toowoomba training team had hoped to get him into the Stradbroke in his three-year-old season.

It didn’t eventuate and the gelding raced without luck in several runs.

With Bosson on board, Yellow Brick started his 2024 winter carnival campaign with an eye-catching effort to finish runner-up in the Listed ATC Cup on the Sunshine Coast earlier this month.

Yellow Brick didn’t get any favours in the run and the heavy (10) track that day wasn’t in his sweet spot, but he kept coming.

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Now, Yellow Brick lines up as a $5 chance in the Group 3 BRC Sprint (1350m) at Doomben on Saturday.

The race offers the winner a golden ticket into next month’s Stradbroke Handicap.

With a current rating of 102, Yellow Brick isn’t that far off a Stradbroke spot already, but a win on Saturday would seal it.

“He gave me such a nice feel on the Sunshine Coast that day, he's a nice big strong horse,” Bosson said.

“He wasn’t 100 per cent on the heavy ground and he had to carry 59.5kg where the winner only carried 53kg.

“It is fair to say he had a lot of improvement in him as well from that run. He wanted to race a little bit keen for a couple of strides but once we got away from another horse he dropped the bit and travelled beautifully.

“If he got a nice run and a bit of cover on Saturday, it would be ideal.”

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Opie Bosson celebrates winning the Champions Sprint on board Imperatriz last year. Picture: Asanka Ratnayake via Getty Images

If Yellow Brick makes the Stradbroke field next month, Bosson would not be able to make the weight for the ride.

In a wide-open betting markets, Godolphin gelding Vilana is the $4.40 favourite to score the BRC Sprint.

Yellow Brick is a $26 chance in Stradbroke markets.

Originally published as Opie Bosson to dance down Yellow Brick road in BRC Sprint at Doomben on Saturday