Billy Egan out to atone for shock 2021 Australian Guineas defeat with Feroce on Saturday

Jockey Billy Egan was on the losing side of one of Australian racing’s biggest upsets in the 2021 Australian Guineas but he’s back with another chance to go one better four years later.

Feroce will attempt to go one better than his Caulfield Guineas result in Saturday's Group 1 Australian Guineas at Flemington. Picture: Racing Photos via Getty Images

Jockey Billy Egan knows anything can happen in racing, especially in an Australian Guineas.

Egan was on the wrong end of one of the biggest shocks in Australian racing history when his mount Cherry Tortoni was denied by $301 outsider Lunar Fox in the 2021 edition of the race.

“We drew 15 of 15 and I haven’t forgotten it,” Egan said.

Egan went on to notch his maiden Group 1 win in the South Australian Derby two years later but has a chance to add to that tally aboard Feroce at Flemington on Saturday.

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Egan has ridden Feroce in each of his eight starts in an association that began with doing a favour for the three-year-old’s trainer Dominic Sutton.

“When he started out at Pakenham, it was hard to get riders to come and do his gallops, especially when he hadn’t had many runners when starting out,” Egan said.

“I was riding down at Pakenham at the time so I was more than happy to help him out and he was just grateful for that because of that and we’ve stuck together since then.”

Feroce and Egan have combined for two wins and three minor placings in his short career to date, including a narrow defeat in the Caulfield Guineas in the spring.

Billy Egan (red jacket) was narrowly denied an Australian Guineas win aboard Cherry Tortoni by $301 outsider Lunar Fox. Picture: Racing Photos via Getty Images

The gelding also resumed with a solid third behind Sepals in the Group 3 CS Hayes Stakes, from which six of the last 10 Australian Guineas winners have emerged.

Egan said the Australian Guineas would present a different scenario for Feroce than what transpired in the CS Hayes Stakes.

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“He takes really good improvement from his runs and getting out to the mile is the most important thing for him,” Egan said.

“A fast-run 1400m was a big test for him first-up, especially on the softer ground, which I don’t think he really appreciated.

“Getting out to a mile and back on to the firmer deck will really change things for him, as will having the really good run to tighten him up.”

Feroce is a $15 chance in Australian Guineas betting behind the $3.50 favourite Angel Capital, an impressive first-up winner of the Group 2 Autumn Stakes at Caulfield.

Egan said the 2025 Australian Guineas was a more open race than the betting indicated.

“I think all these horses are very even.

“There’s nothing superior for them to stand out and they’re very even so it’s just a matter of who draws the right barrier and who gets the luck in running.”

Originally published as Billy Egan out to atone for shock 2021 Australian Guineas defeat with Feroce on Saturday