#Mark Evans

Trainer Peter Snowden maintains the right decision was made to postpone the rich Magic Millions race meeting due to concerns over the Gold Coast track surface last Saturday. The Gold Coast track was downgraded to a heavy 10 after two races and a section of the track near the home turn was particularly dangerous prompting the decision to move the…

He's been a giant killer in the past and Jason Coyle will try and cause another upset in a feature race at Newcastle on Friday afternoon. Maui Girl runs in the Group 3 Newcastle Newmarket Handicap (1400m) after a stack of consistent runs over the summer. "I've run horses like this in races like this and they've run above their odds and done quite…

Racing is never short of a storyline and 2022 was certainly no different. Be it the good, the bad or the sometimes ugly, racing can at times resemble a soap opera as much as it does a billion dollar industry. With 2022 now in the rear view mirror we look back at the 30 biggest stories to shape the year with Part 2 today covering 15-1. 15) Melbourne…

Australian racing is in rude health. It is almost in spite of itself. People are betting like never before, be that either lockdown driven or without a care for the use of the whip. Owners from one percenters to moguls are getting more in return for their fun or investment because of it, and breeders are riding a bloodstock boom that defies…

Hastings trainer Guy Lowry's deliberate plan to keep a low profile with his team of horses during the unseasonal wet spring and early summer is now starting to pay dividends. Lowry, who has more than 25 horses in work, went several weeks without having a runner in the early spring as he did not want to put pressure on his team in testing track…

Incarnate Word quarterback Lindsey Scott, who started his college football career at LSU in 2016, leads The Associated Press FCS All-America team presented by Regions Bank and released Tuesday. Scott has thrown for 4404 yards and a Championship Subdivision record 59 touchdowns. The Division I record is 60 set by LSU's Joe Burrow in the 2019…

Persan can win again on Sunday. Picture: Brett Holburt - Racing Photos More often than not the cream rises to the top and I'm expecting that to be the case in Sunday's Bagot Handicap at Flemington. FLEMINGTON BEST BET PERSAN Race 7 No 1 Showed his class last time out in the JRA Cup when proving far too good despite lugging 60.5kg. Suited out to…

Hall of Famer Darren Beadman was succinct in his appraisal of star apprentice Zac Lloyd's winning ride on Yoshino at Royal Randwick on Saturday. "It was a 10 out of 10 ride by Zac, and a 10 out of 10 performance by the horse,'' Beadman said. "Zac gave Yoshino a lovely run and he didn't panic when others started to make their move from the…

Incarnate Word quarterback Lindsey Scott, who started his college football career at LSU in 2016, leads The Associated Press FCS All-America team presented by Regions Bank and released Tuesday. Scott has thrown for 4404 yards and a Championship Subdivision record 59 touchdowns. The Division I record is 60 set by LSU's Joe Burrow in the 2019…

Verry Elleegant and Nature Strip, the nation's best racehorses, are defying time - but for how much longer? Since the retirement of all-time great Winx three years ago, the Chris Waller-trained duo have reigned supreme. Nature Strip inherited the Horse of the Year title from his former stablemate in 2019-20 before Verry Elleegant claimed the honour…

Well hopefully you enjoyed the Christmas cheer with family and friends, and imbibed responsibly of course. Now it is on to a new year and all those fatuous resolutions will be thought about. Punters - as you are - might even suggest it worth keeping a record of your investments (well at least for the first week or so of January) so as to know your…

She says he is an adrenaline junkie. He says she can be a stress-head at times. But there is little doubting the admiration that Ciaron Maher and his former trusted lieutenant Annabel Neasham have for each other. It's a case of master (Maher) versus apprentice (Neasham) at Doomben on Saturday as the two square off in the race for a Group 1 with…

Ausbred Flirt will carry the same silks worn to success at Randwick last week by her stablemate Global Ausbred (pictured). Picture: Steve Hart Exciting prospect Ausbred Flirt takes another step up the ladder on Saturday when she tackles metropolitan grade at Randwick. The Brad Widdup-trained four-year-old mare has been a star on the provincial…

Giga Kick was a surprise winner of The Everest. Picture: DAVID GRAY AFP Mornington trainer Clayton Douglas can claim the credit if The Everest winner Giga Kick remains unbeaten in Saturday's Group 1 Champions Sprint at Flemington. Giga Kick shocked many punters when he soared to the top of Australian racing with his win in the $15m Everest at…

Anamoe is favourite for multiple Group 1s during the autumn. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images The spring dominance of Godolphin superstar Anamoe is expected to continue during the Sydney Autumn Carnival with TAB installing the Cox Plate hero as favourite in multiple Group 1 markets. With Group 1 racing done for the year, TAB opened all-in betting…

Platinum Jubilee was a sensational winner of the Gimcrack Stakes. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Sydney punters will get an early Christmas gift when unbeaten juveniles Empire Of Japan, Godfather and Platinum Jubilee face off in a mouth-watering Magic Millions dress rehearsal at Randwick this Saturday. In what shapes as an absorbing showdown on…

Sydney trainer John Sargent will test two-year-old Perfect Thought as a Victoria Derby hopeful at Flemington on Anzac Day. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images. The Victoria Derby is months away but Randwick trainer John Sargent will audition a candidate at Flemington on Monday. Sargent will give Perfect Thought his debut in the Listed ANZAC DAY Stakes…

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Harvard University football senior defensive lineman has earned FCS Associated Press Third Team All-America honors as well as an invitation to play in the East-West Shrine Bowl on February 2, 2023 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. The 2022 Bushnell Cup winner as the Ivy League Co-Defensive Player of the Year, Jones…

Huetor will make his comeback in the Group 2 $2m The Ingham while connections of Nugget and Dajraan are sweating on a start in the rich Royal Randwick mile next Saturday. The Ingham, formerly known as the Villiers Stakes, is likely to attract a very strong field requiring a rating close to 100 at least to be guaranteed a start. This leaves boom…

Lost And Running finished second in a trial at Randwick on Friday. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Hall Of Famer Hugh Bowman gave his tick of approval as gun sprinter Lost And Running took early strides towards another $15m The Everest tilt with a comfortable trial at Randwick on Friday. Bowman, who hadn't sat on John O'Shea's talented galloper…

Kirwan's Lane is chasing back-to-back black-type wins in the Festival Stakes at Rosehill on Saturday. Picture: Jenny Evans-Getty Images Rosehill hosts a quality packed off season card headlined by three black-type contests and a rich country race. The main events on the program are the Group 3 Festival Stakes (1500m), which acts as a lead-up to the…

Fox Fighter has been well backed in the Starlight Stakes. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Fox Fighter has been the subject of a strong support in Saturday's Listed Starlight Stakes (1100m) with trainer David Payne hoping his underrated sprinter gets the right conditions to show his "hell of a turn of foot" at Rosehill. Fox Fighter opened as a $26…

Honeycreeper is primed for Saturday's Australian Oaks at Randwick. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Trainer James Cummings is confident the Adrian Knox Stakes can prove the right form line again for his stable when emerging talent Honeycreeper chases Saturday's Australian Oaks (2400m) at Randwick. The daughter of Teofilo is looking to follow in the…

The finish of the Premiere Stakes proved champion Nature Strip will have some real competition for the $15m The TAB Everest in a fortnight. Lost And Running narrowly defeated Mazu and Masked Crusader with the trio showing they will be worthy rivals to Nature Strip in the world's richest turf race at Royal Randwick on October 15. Throw spectacular…

Gypsy Goddess has barrier 22 for Saturday's Queensland Oaks. Picture: Grant Peters - Trackside Photography Handy filly Gypsy Goddess has drawn extremely wide for her latest Group 1 mission in Saturday's Queensland Oaks (2200m) at Eagle Farm. A full field of 18 plus five emergencies accepted for the race on Tuesday morning. The daughter of Tarzino…

Knights Order winning the Group 1 Sydney Cup earlier in the year. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Knights Order will "take a stack of beating" in Saturday's $5m Group 1 Caulfield Cup (2400m), Hall of Fame trainer Gai Waterhouse says. Not unlike her first and only Caulfield Cup triumph, in 2010 with Descarado, heavy rain lashed Melbourne in the…

Trainers Peter and Paul Snowden have decided to spell two of their spring stable stars, Sheeza Belter and Mazu, but they are bringing in some handy replacements in Old Flame and Huetor to target some of the big money races going into the Sydney summer carnival. Sheeza Belter scored a deserved win in the Group 2 Hot Danish Stakes at Rosehill last…

Tommy Berry had a big few days with a two-state feature double taking out the VRC Oaks and the Five Diamonds. Picture: Daniel Pockett-Getty Images Star jockey Tommy Berry's VRC Oaks-Five Diamonds feature race two-state double last week is a sign of the changing times in Australian racing. Sydney's extended spring carnival has encroached on…

Hugh Bowman returns to scale on Barber following his victory in the Golden Gift. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Barber blew the start then produced a Belle Du Jour-like effort to come from nowhere and win at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday. Godolphin's unbeaten juvenile Barber was a clear last out of the barriers but he was in front when it mattered…

Gary Portelli's sliding doors moment came as Clarry Conners was singing "New York, New York" on the dance floor. Conners had just won his fourth Golden Slipper with Belle Du Jour and invited Portelli to join the celebrations that night. The year was 2000 and as Conners was doing his best Frank Sinatra impersonation, Portelli realised what he needed…

Training partners Sterling Alexiou and Gerald Ryan will chase their first Group 1 in partnership this Saturday. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Sterling Alexiou has helped put the polish on his share of Group 1 winners but the chance to claim a maiden major in partnership with Gerald Ryan this week would be no less special. Alexiou has worked with…

Trainer Brad Widdup has Fire Lane in the Max Lees Classic at Newcastle on Saturday. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images As his maiden Group 1 winner Icebath enjoys some well-earned time in the paddock, trainer Brad Widdup is weighing up kicking off his latest big-money raid with Magic Millions eligible Fire Lane this Saturday. Widdup has the unraced…

Chris Waller's import Soulcombe has attracted plenty of bets for his local debut at Flemington on Saturday. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Every carnival has a plunge horse and Queen's Cup favourite Soulcombe could be the one. Whispers franked by a sustained wagering push suggest the prized import, having his first Australian start for Chris…

Golden Mile was too slick for his rivals in the Caulfield Guineas. Very excited heading into Saturday, it's a meeting I've had a bit of luck at over the years and hopefully this year it will be all about the blue team. I've got a good book at Caulfield riding a couple of my favourite horses and really looking forward to chasing my third Caulfield…

With the new racing season underway we've put it to our stable of experts to lay their reputations on the line and hand out some predictions for the next 12 months, including their early selections for The Everest and Melbourne Cup plus what's the next'big thing' we've got to look forward to. THE NEXT BIG THING RAY THOMAS - Dylan Gibbons: The son…

There's a touch of spring in the air with some of the big guns set to resume in the Group 2 Missile Stakes (1200m) at Randwick while Flemington hosts Aurie's Star Handicap day. The first Group 1 of the season - the Winx Stakes at Royal Randwick - is only two weeks away while the Memsie Stakes is Victoria's first Group 1 of the season on August…

Racing NSW chief executive Peter V'landys has hinted at further stakes increases in coming months after releasing details of a massive $30m prizemoney package. "These increases are absolutely sustainable and fully funded, and there is a possibility we will be announcing further prizemoney increases in the next six months," V'landys revealed at a…

Sam Clipperton is looking to break through for his first Group 1 since 2016 in the Doomben 10000 on Saturday. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Sam Clipperton is looking to end an extraordinary streak in Saturday's Group 1 Doomben 10000 that dates back to 2016 when he was one of the rising stars of Australian racing. The popular hoop, who has ridden…

Rugby World's 2022 Autumn Tests Special The November Internationals are upon us and the latest issue of Rugby World magazine is packed with exclusive interviews and in-depth analysis with the stars involved. Plus, we speak to a couple of Red Roses chasing World Cup glory in New Zealand and assess Portugal's chances of reaching the men's global…

Jake Toeroek enjoys Kemalpasa's win on Derby Day in 2019. Picture: Daniel Pockett-Getty Images Three years ago, Jake Toeroek enjoyed the biggest win of his career when Kemalpasa captured the Group 2 Linlithgow Stakes and he's returning to Flemington to chase more Melbourne Cup Carnival joy with talented fillies See You In Heaven and Aitch Two…

Godolphin trainer James Cummings can't fault Anamoe ahead of the Group 1 $1m George Main Stakes (1600m) at Royal Randwick on Saturday. Anamoe won the Winx Stakes impressively a month ago and Cummings said his stable superstar has trained on "beautifully" for the race. The Godolphin stable's confidence would have soared even further late on Friday…

Private Eye is favourite for the Champions Mile. Picture: Jenny Evans-Getty Images Versatile galloper Private Eye can round out a remarkable preparation with a second career Group 1 with the Joseph Pride-trained talent opening favourite for Saturday's Champions Mile (1600m) at Flemington. Private Eye has announced himself as one of the most…

Trainer Chris Waller has nearly half the field for Saturday's The Metropolitan (2400m) at Randwick, supplying seven of the 15 runners that accepted on Tuesday morning. The champion horseman has taken the race out three times, including in back-to-back years with Patrick Erin (2018) and Come Play With Me (2019). Classy grey Benaud wasn't included in…

What do Overpass, Converge and In The Congo have in common? They have all beaten Godolphin superstar Anamoe. Given the trio boast the strongest form in Australian racing, it is telling that neither of them are favourite for the $10m Golden Eagle (1500m) at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday. This is a reflection of the depth and quality of the field that…

Godolphin trainer James Cummings won't be trying to avoid a Golden Rose clash between his boom three-year-olds In Secret and Golden Mile after their outstanding wins at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday. In Secret created her own piece of racing history by becoming the first filly to win the Group 2 $250000 Run To The Rose (1200m). Her brilliant win…

AS one The Everest champion prepares to take on the world, another is about to resume trackwork after injury. Nature Strip, winner of The Everest last year and the number one ranked sprinter in the world, has arrived in England to prepare for the Group 1 King's Stand Stakes (1000m) at Royal Ascot on June 14. But back in Sydney, the "grey flash"…

The Chris Waller numbers continue to astound as the master trainer fell just short of $50m in prizemoney with 352 winners while the Wizard of the West headed east to put his wares on show landing 189 winners to be the most prolific jockey in the land. James McDonald kisses the Melbourne Cup. Picture: Quinn Rooney-Getty Images THE NATIONAL HONOUR…

Kerrin McEvoy, winning The Everest on Redzel in its first year, insists the race should officially be a Group 1. Picture: AAP Champion jockey Kerrin McEvoy declared the $15m The TAB Everest should be given Group 1 status as he chases a record fourth win in the world's richest turf race on Shades Of Rose at Royal Randwick on Saturday. McEvoy, who…

Mazu will be out to give Team Snowden another Everest success. Picture: Mark Evans-Getty Images Mazu's trainer Peter Snowden maintains Nature Strip's world champion status doesn't mean he has a mortgage on the $15m The TAB Everest (1200m) at Royal Randwick on Saturday. "There is no doubt Nature Strip is the one to beat,'' Snowden said. "He's there,…