Dethroned The Quokka champion Overpass set for 2025 Doomben 10,000
Two-time The Quokka champion Overpass lost his slot race throne in Perth on Saturday, but Bjorn Baker has confirmed he will now attack the Group 1 Doomben 10,000 in a boost for the Queensland winter carnival.
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Group 1 star and seasoned traveller Overpass may have lost his $5m The Quokka crown, but will now add extra star power to the early stages of the Queensland winter carnival.
Trainer Bjorn Baker and syndicator Scott Darby confirmed the $10.5m earner would attack the $1.5m Group 1 Doomben 10,000 on May 17.
Overpass was striving to score his third consecutive The Quokka last Saturday but finished fifth, beaten a length-and-a-half by fairytale winner Jokers Grin, who is trained by 70-year-old Bernie Miller.
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Overpass, rated a $6 chance in the Doomben 10,000, will now add some extra snap and crackle to the early stages of the winter carnival.
“For sure, he will go to the Doomben 10,000, we are definitely going that way as long as all goes well,” Baker told Racenet.
“He has got a bit of a travel in front of him, but that’s what we will do.
“It will just be the one run in Queensland.
“In The Quokka, I thought he was OK and still ran well and didn’t get beaten that far.
“Maybe, it was a little bit of a risk going in second-up and maybe that took its toll.
“We thought we could get away with it, three weeks between runs, given he is a little bit older.
“Next year, we would look at going to The Quokka first-up.”
"I think he might have got the winning hand."
— Racing.com (@Racing) April 26, 2025
JOKERS GRIN storms home from the clouds & wins the $5 million Quokka! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/KyHhr5fl5I
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Overpass has raced in the Doomben 10,000 before, finishing second behind Giga Kick in 2023.
As the Queensland winter carnival stars start to align, Warwick Farm trainer Matthew Smith indicated there was a chance The Quokka and Group 1 TJ Smith Stakes placegetter Headwall could also head north for the winter.
“I won’t make a decision until I get him home, I will probably know what we are doing with him early next week,” Smith said.
Meanwhile, Glen Thompson indicated last Saturday’s Group 1 Australasian Oaks winner Benagil could be set for the Group 1 Queensland Oaks (2200m) at Eagle Farm on June 7.
Benagil was an emphatic Oaks winner in South Australia and there were emotional scenes given the passing of co-trainer Michael Moroney earlier this year.
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Benagil is the $4.50 favourite for the Queensland Oaks and Thompson told Racenet: “She is a chance of coming to Queensland, depending on the next week and how she is after her (South Australian) trip.”
Maiden filly Sweltering finished runner-up behind Benagil in Adelaide on Saturday and will almost certainly embark on a Queensland campaign, according to co-trainer Trent Busuttin.
Originally published as Dethroned The Quokka champion Overpass set for 2025 Doomben 10,000
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