Pride as Jenni pockets second Group 1 of the carnival
Royal Ascot could be on the horizon for Pride Of Jenni (Pride Of Dubai) after she and Declan Bates produced their second breathtaking all-the-way Group 1 victory in eight days amid emotional scenes on the last day of Flemington’s Melbourne Cup carnival.
After taking a ten-length lead and hanging on by a length in last week’s Empire Rose Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m) against her own sex, Pride Of Jenni took on some of Australia’s finest performers of both genders over that trip yesterday and claimed the $3 million Champions Mile (Gr 1, 1600m).
Emerging as a revelation this year for the Ciaron Maher and David Eustace team after being switched from Symon Wilde before last spring, Pride Of Jenni didn’t quite mirror last week’s win: She went some eight lengths quicker for the final 1000 metres, and won by a length-and-a-quarter.
It was yet another pleasing result for bookies in Cup week. After starting at $16 last week, Pride Of Jenni jumped at $13 yesterday and beat $3 hope Mr Brightside (Bullbars) into second, with Alligator Blood (All Too Hard, $4.20) third and favourite Fangirl (Sebring, $2.40) fourth in the seven-horse field.
Pride Of Jenni, a $100,000 buy from the Segenhoe Stud draft at Inglis Classic 2019 for owners Tony and Lynn Ottobre, hadn’t won a Group race until her 15th attempt last week, though she was a narrow second – at $31 – in the Coolmore Classic (Gr 1, 1500m) at Rosehill last March.
And after watching her broodmare value soar with her second top level triumph, Maher said there may be bigger targets ahead, and abroad, for the six-year-old.
“The All-Star Mile and maybe Royal Ascot,” he said, nominating the Queen Anne Stakes (Gr 1, 1m) over her pet 1600-metre distance as the likely target in England.
The delighted Maher said he had pondered reasons not to back-up Pride Of Jenni yesterday, but could find none.
“When mares are in form, they can do that,” he said. “I thought [last] Saturday would have had some effect on her. But we dotted the Is and crossed the Ts during the week and she hasn’t done anything really.
“It was a small field and I thought it was worth a throw at the stumps, as she never missed an oat and pulled up really well.
“That was unbelievable,” Maher said of the win. “I think it is the combination of a lot of things. She’s an older mare now and they need to be very seasoned to race in that style that she does.”
Just as her victory did last week, yesterday’s triumph sparked more emotional scenes for the Ottobre family, who have a vast band of horses named in honour of their daughter Jennifer, who died of brain cancer in 2015.
“As a family it just bonds us. I’m so grateful to the animals for helping us get through what we’ve had to get through,’’ an emotional Lynn Ottobre said.
“It’s very hard to describe at the moment how we feel. We just can’t believe it. We’re blessed, it’s unbelievable, a dream come true. It really is a dream come true for anyone in racing to have a horse like this.’’
Segenhoe’s Peter O’Brien was overjoyed for the Ottobre family after the win of Pride Of Jenni, who was bred by Brent and Cherry Taylor of New Zealand’s Trelawney Stud and the Taylor Family Trust.
“They put a lot into the game so it’s wonderful to see Tony and the family get results like this,’’ O’Brien said.
“I remember at Classic Tony picked the horse out on pedigree and John McArdle looked at her for him and they bought her and she’s just improved so much with age like a lot of horses do.
“All credit goes to Trelawney Stud, they did a great job, Brent and Cherry are great friends and terrific clients, we literally just walked her through the ring.”
Pride Of Jenni (6 m Pride Of Dubai – Sancerre by O’Reilly) is the first foal of four-time winner Sancerre (O’Reilly), herself a daughter of Group 1 Queensland Oaks (Gr 1, 2400m) winner Vouvray (Zabeel).
The mare’s three-year-old half-brother Awatere (Per Incanto) has been placed at both starts, in New Zealand and Trelawney also has his yearling sister, while Sancerre was covered by Little Avondale’s Per Incanto (Street Cry) again last spring.
Expat Irishman Bates said yesterday’s win had proved last week’s was no grand heist.
“She’s proven now that it wasn’t a fluke last week and she’s a champion, I believe,” said Bates, confessing a love for the mare who’d supplied his second and third top-tier triumphs, especially in the manner she did.
“You need a horse with a serious engine and a will to win. I just love this mare so much. She proved it’s no fluke. She’s a champion now, especially in my eyes.”
Pride Of Jenni is the 85th Group 1-winning Inglis graduate since 2018 and the 40th that has been purchased for $100,000 or less in that time, Inglis said in a press release.
Pride Of Jenni is one of three elite-level winners for Coolmore Stud-based sire Pride Of Dubai (Street Cry), whose total stakes haul stands at 20. The stallion is commanding a fee of $27,500 (inc GST) in his eighth season at stud.