TAB and Maher reunite for $20m Everest tilt with Jimmysstar
By Craig Kerry
Ciaron Maher will reunite with slot-holder the TAB and attempt to go back-to-back in the $20 million The Everest after striking a deal to give two-time group 1 winner Jimmysstar a first crack at the richest race on turf.
Maher, Australia’s leading trainer, believes the soon-to-be six-year-old is on the same path of improvement the now-retired Bella Nipotina followed last year when she gave the trainer a first Everest victory.
Jockey Ethan Brown salutes aboard Jimmysstar, centre, in the group 1 All Aged Stakes at Randwick in April.Credit: Getty Images
The TAB announced on Tuesday that Jimmysstar would be its representative in the 1200m showpiece at Randwick on October 18. He became the fourth horse locked into the 12-runner field after unbeaten Nathan Doyle-trained colt Private Harry, the Hawkes training team’s TJ Smith Stakes winner Briasa and the David Hayes-prepared Hong Kong superstar Ka Ying Rising.
Jimmysstar, winner of the group 1 Oakleigh Plate (1100m) at Caulfield and All Aged Stakes (1400m) at Randwick last preparation, was $10 with Sportsbet before the announcement, behind Ka Ying Rising ($1.80), Private Harry ($7) and Briasa ($8).
Maher, whose team last week went past $60 million in prizemoney this season on the way to a third consecutive Australian trainers’ premiership, is eyeing the $1 million group 2 The Shorts (1100m) at Randwick on September 20 as the only Everest lead-in for Jimmysstar.
“To get Jimmy locked away nice and early, it makes the job a whole lot easier,” Maher said in a statement. “We can concentrate on the race and having him right on the day.
maher and jockey Craig Williams celebrate after Bella Nipotina’s victory in the 2024 Everest.Credit: Getty Images
“The plan will be to go to The Shorts over 1100m, given his success in the Oakleigh Plate, and then a month to the TAB Everest with a trial in between.”
He believed there were similarities between Jimmysstar and Bella Nipotina, which won the Everest as a seven-year-old at her first attempt.
“Each preparation he comes back in he probably looks a little more like Bella,” Maher said. “Every time you see him, he gets a bit bigger, a bit stronger – he has certainly improved again I feel.
“Bella did it from the front, Jimmy probably does it from midfield or worse – hopefully we can get the same result.”
New Zealand-bred Jimmysstar, a son of Per Incanto, has had just 18 starts for nine wins, five placings and $2,139,272 in stakes.
TAB general manager of trading and data Dave Beirne said of their pick: “His win over 1400m in the All Aged Stakes gives us confidence the high pressure 1200m in the TAB Everest will be perfect for him,” he said.
“He graduated from a handicapper to a genuine weight for age star in the autumn, and we think he can go to another level in the spring.”