Joliestar shines brightly in Newmarket romp
Plenty of Kiwi eyes would have been on the action at Ellerslie’s Champions Day on Saturday, but all eyes at Cambridge Stud were fixed firmly on their mare Joliestar (Zoustar) in Newmarket Handicap (Gr 1, 1200m) and they were not disappointed as the crack sprinter delivered a dominant performance in Flemington’s time-honoured handicap.
The Chris Waller-trained four-year-old, who had won Caulfield’s Thousand Guineas (Gr 1, 1600m) over 1600 metres as a three-year-old in 2023, had been switched to her champion trainer’s Melbourne base from Sydney just ten days prior to Saturday’s victory. And what a move it turned out to be.
Sent off the $3.50 favourite following her first-up third behind Magic Time (Hellbent) in the Expressway Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m), the daughter of Zoustar (Northern Meteor) carried 56 kilograms to success under Damian Lane in Saturday’s main event at HQ.
Jumping from barrier eight, Joliestar and Lane travelled strongly up to the 350 metres but looked to have a wall of horses in front of them.
However, as most of her 14 rivals began to wilt under pressure, Joliestar found racing room under a confident Lane and, showcasing her trademark turn of foot, shot to the front with 150 metres left to race, eventually running out a ready 1.3-length winner over Headwall (Dream Ahead), who had also been short of room late on.
There was a further 1.5 lengths back to Stretan Angel (Harry Angel) in third place.
“We had faith about the horse being the best horse in the race. That is what we thought going out there,” said Waller’s stable racing manager and assistant trainer Charlie Duckworth.
“It made the watch a little less stressful knowing that she does have that electric turn-of-foot because when she is at her best, she is amazing.
“She is amazing every time when she wins like that you think she is the next [star] sprinter in the land.
“Massive credit to Chris and the team at home. Also the owners, Cambridge Stud, they pump a lot of cash into the game.
“They are really passionate owners. Henry Plumptre who aids them in the whole process and it was [him who] suggested to buy this filly at Inglis.
“She’s gone full circle. She’s won a Guineas, she’s won a Newmarket. She’s an amazing athlete and we’re just happy to be involved, to be fair.”
Lane, who had ridden Treasurethe Moment (Alabama Express) to a stylish win in the Kewney Stakes (Gr 2, 1600m) in the previous race on the card, revealed he was confident he had the race won if they had gotten an out and was also delighted to lift the winning trophy named after the late jockey Dean Holland, who landed the time-honoured Group 1 onboard In Secret (I Am Invincible) in March 2023, before tragically dying after a fall at Donald the following month.
“It felt like I needed an inch of room and she was going to put them away. She just travelled so easily the whole race,” the winning rider said.
“[I’ve] never been so confident that I could put a Group 1 away if I got the right run.
“When it came [the gap], she made light work of it. If you wait long enough usually you get a run in these straight races because horses are tiring and they roll around a little bit. I just had to bide my time and we got out at the perfect time in the end. It all worked out well.
“I don’t think there was a member of our industry who wasn’t touched in some way by Dean [Holland]. He was such a character. Much loved in the jockeys’ room. It is sad [to lift the trophy] but rewarding at the same time.”
Duckworth revealed post-race that Joliestar could be headed to Royal Ascot, a meeting Waller has triumphed before, having landed the King’s Stand Stakes (Gr 1, 5f) in tremendous style with champion sprinter Nature Strip (Nicconi) in 2022.
“The TJ Smith is next and Chris mentioned Royal Ascot during the week. If she could go to Royal Ascot, it would be amazing. We managed to achieve it with Nature Strip who is enjoying his life now with us [Duckworth and wife Kathy O’Hara],” Duckworth said.
“It would be really special to take a filly there and do that like we saw last year [Henry Dwyer’s Asfoora].”
Bred by Chris and Jane Barham, Joliestar (4 m Zoustar – Jolie Bay by Fastnet Rock) was purchased by Cambridge Stud’s Brendan and Jo Lindsay from the Segenhoe Thoroughbreds draft at the 2022 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale for $950,000.
Saturday’s wins took the mare’s record to five wins, three seconds and two thirds from just 12 starts, with prize-money of just over $3.6 million. She is a half-sister to the Group-placed winners God Of Thunder (More Than Ready) and Emperor (I Am Invincible) being the best of six winners out of the Fastnet Rock (Danehill) mare Jolie Bay, winner of the Roman Consul Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) and runner-up in the Coolmore Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) in 2012.
Jolie Bay is out of Group 3 scorer Legally Bay (Snippets), making her a sister to dual Group 1 winner turned stallion Merchant Navy as well as Listed scorer Setanta.
The mare has a yearling filly by Zoustar, a filly foal by Anamoe (Street Boss) and is now back in foal to Zoustar.