Josh Parr picks up ride of Everest hopeful Trekking fresh off Spring Champion success on Shadow Hero
It could be a big few weeks for jockey Josh Parr. Not only is he on the firming Victoria Derby favourite but he’s also now picked up the plum ride on James Cummings’ top Everest hopeful Trekking.
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Josh Parr, who produced a brilliant winning ride on Shadow Hero in the Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes, will partner Trekking in the $14 million The TAB Everest at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
Godolphin trainer James Cummings said Trekking will back up in The Everest after claiming the last slot with a fast-finishing win in the Schillaci Stakes at Caulfield last Saturday.
Parr revealed he had discussions with the Goldolphin stable late last week about riding Trekking in The Everest if the sprinter qualified and made sure he was in front of the television screen in the Randwick jockeys room to watch the Caulfield race.
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“I was giving Trekking a big cheer when he hit the front,’’ Parr said.
“But it was good to get that call (today) to confirm I was on Trekking in The Everest. It will be exciting to ride in the race again.’’
Parr did partner Deploy in the inaugural Everest two years ago only to finish down the track behind Redzel.
The classy Trekking is one of the outsiders at $21 for The Everest which only underlines the outstanding quality of sprinters contesting Saturday’s big race.
“It’s a great field but I believe we are in with a good chance,’’ Parr said.
“Trekking has won at Group 1 level in the Stradbroke Handicap and obviously he goes into The Everest as a last-start winner.
“It looks like there will be a strong tempo in The Everest which also suits Trekking.’’
Cummings has a lot of confidence in Parr as his “go-to” jockey, with the trainer and jockey combining most recently with Bivouac to win the Run To The Rose when the colt’s regular rider Hugh Bowman was injured.
Parr will be in a confident frame of mind for The Everest after producing a faultless ride on Shadow Hero to win the Spring Champion Stakes (2000m) last Saturday.
Shadow Hero has firmed into $2.30 favouritism for the Victoria Derby (2500m) at Flemington on November 2 with Parr convinced the gelding won’t have any problems staying the classic distance.
“On what Shadow Hero has done this spring, he is a deserved Derby favourite,’’ Parr said.
“He really surged late to win the Spring Champion, it was a very strong staying effort and I’m sure he won’t have any trouble running out the 2500m in the Derby.’’
Hard to split stablemates
Godolphin’s two Everest runners, Trekking and Alizee, are both five-year-olds and remarkably have identical race records.
By a remarkable coincidence, the stablemates go into The Everest after having 22 starts each for nine wins, two seconds and three thirds.
Favourite to outsider
In another indication of the outstanding line-up of sprinters in The Everest, Nature Strip will be at double figure odds for the first time in his career.
Nature Strip has started favourite in 17 of his 18 starts and in 11 of those races he has been an odds-on favourite.
In fact, the longest odds ever offered about Nature Strip was $4.40 when he finished second at just his second career start at Moonee Valley two years ago.
Nature Strip goes into The Everest as a last-start Group 1 winner of the Moir Stakes yet TAB Fixed Odds rate him only a $17 chance for Randwick’s big race.
Splitting up the big races
The alliance between the Australian Turf Club and Melbourne Racing Club this spring has ensured The Everest and Caulfield Cup will be run an hour apart next Saturday.
The raceday clash of the two big races is not ideal but the race clubs have worked together to come up with a schedule that has The Everest run at 4.15pm and the Caulfield Cup held an hour later.
This commonsense approach ensures both races get the build-up and exposure each deserves and should help to drive wagering turnover, too.
Meanwhile, tickets are selling fast for The Everest with only several thousand general admission tickets left for Saturday. They can be purchased on line at www.theraces.com.au
Waller’s surprise drought
A week is a long time in racing.
Chris Waller’s effort to train four Group 1 winners and seven stakes races in total at the Epsom Handicap-Turnbull Stakes meetings on October 5 created headlines around the racing world.
But the Hall of Fame trainer didn’t have a winner anywhere at the four venues he had starters last Saturday – Randwick, Caulfield, Eagle Farm and Kembla Grange.
Waller can bounce back next Saturday with Arcadia Queen, Nature Strip and Yes Yes Yes in The Everest and early favourites Finche and Kings Will Dream in the Caulfield Cup.
Michael Walker will be the new rider for Finche in the Caulfield Cup as regular jockey Kerrin McEvoy is on Redzel in The Everest. McEvoy is expected to regain the mount on the former English stayer in the Melbourne Cup.
Trainer James Cummings had a double at Caulfield with Flit in the Group 1 Thousand Guineas and Trekking (Schillaci Stakes) to bring up his 500 wins since joining Godolphin just over two years ago.
Big wins sure to boost value
What are Fierce Impact and Cape Of Good Hope worth as a stallion prospect after both won Group 1 races at Caulfield last Saturday?
Fierce Impact, who was purchased by astute bloodstock agent Avo Damirdjian of Tried And True Bloodstock, for around $200,000 as a tried horse in England, has developed into a top-class galloper since joining trainer Matthew Smith’s Warwick Farm stables, winning the Group 3 Summer Cup last December and now the Toorak Handicap.
With Fierce Impact’s international pedigree – he is a son of Japanese superhorse Deep Impact and a brother to a Group 1 winner in Japan – some breeding experts suggest the six-year-old’s worth is north of $10 million.
Smith said Fierce Impact will go to the Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley later this month if he can squeeze into the field or more likely to be aimed at the Cantala Stakes (1600m) at Flemington during the Cup Carnival.
But Cape Of Good Hope’s value is inestimable after he finished strongly to win the Caulfield Stakes.
Cape Of Good Hope is by the world’s best sire Galileo out of Hveger, an Australian-bred mare out of the celebrated broodmare Circles Of Gold, herself the dam of Elvstroem and Haradasun.
Hveger is herself the dam of six-time Group 1 winner Highland Reel and his younger brother Cape Of Good Hope.
Trainer David Hayes said Cape Of Good Hope will go to the Cox Plate next and possibly the Mackinnon Stakes (2000m) at Flemington with a long-term goal of the Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) at Royal Randwick next autumn.
Pinatubo earns rare praise
Pinatubo made is six wins from as many starts and has some English commentators rating him the greatest two-year-old ever after he won Group 1 Dewshurt Stakes at Newmarket yesterday.,
The Charlie Appleby-trained Pinatubo, who has a higher Timeform rating as a two-year-old than all-time great Frankel, scored easily by two lengths to complete a perfect juvenile season.