Veterans combine in Dane Ripper upset with Love You Lucy
Love You Lucy (Love Conquers All) caused a boilover in the Dane Ripper Stakes (Gr 2, 1400m) to provide veteran trainer Barry Squair and jockey Glen Colless with a feature race victory as the makeshift Brisbane Winter Carnival is nearing a close.
The victory, at odds of $41, did not come as a surprise to long-time Toowoomba jockey-turned-trainer Squair who called on veteran of the saddle Colless to ride his mare after Mark Du Plessis elected to ride the more fancied rival Outback Barbie (Spirit Of Boom) in yesterday’s Eagle Farm race.
Love You Lucy, who won the Silk Stocking Handicap (Listed, 1200m) at the Gold Coast in May, defeated River Racer (Hidden Dragon) by a neck, with the stud-bound Winter Bride (Not A Single Doubt) close up in third.
“She was an unlucky ninth in the Listed Helen Coughlan Stakes two weeks ago. I thought she would handle the 1400 metres,” Squair said.
“I wanted an experienced jockey so I got Glen when a couple of others wouldn’t ride her.”
Up until a few weeks ago, Squair, 79, had been riding trackwork including on his stable star who was responsible for his shoulder injury.
“Lucy dumped me and I hurt my shoulder and wrist. That was it for me as a trackwork rider, as my wife has put her foot down,” Squair said.
Colless made a rare appearance in Brisbane for a Group ride on Love You Lucy.
“I think Barry makes me look young these days but he always has a good horse,” a laconic Colless said.
As for where to next with Love You Lucy, Squair was unsure given the rapid progression of the mare.
“I really don’t know where to go with her next, the owners were over the moon when we won the Silk Stocking, now she’s won a Group 2.” he said.
“She’s been up for a long time now, so maybe I’ll give her a break but If I see something I like I might go one more.
“She’s a lovely filly. I always thought she would do well but she’s won her eight races so quickly that it’s certainly surprised me.”
A homebred mare, Love You Lucy (4 m Love Conquers All – Whitechapel by Giant’s Causeway), has now won eight of her 19 starts with a further six placings for prize-money earnings of $356,325.
The four-year-old is one of two winners for Whitechapel, who herself is a daughter of the MVRC Sunline Stakes (Gr 2, 1600m) winner Spurn (Flying Spur).
An unraced two-year-old half-sister to Love You Lucy named Bonnie Boru (Holy Roman Emperor) is raced by the same syndicate and she is currently in work with Gold Coast trainer Paula Barron, while Whitechapel slipped to the former Aquis Farm shuttler last year.
Love You Lucy’s sire Love Conquers All (Mossman) will return to Queensland this year to stand at Clear Mountain Fairview on the Darling Downs after a stint in Victoria on the Sun Stud roster.
Also the sire of fellow Group 2 winner Savanna Amour, he will stand for a fee of $5,500 (inc GST).
Vanna Girl continues to bloom with The Roses her latest success
The spring is firmly on the agenda with nothing ruled out for Vanna Girl (Husson) after she stretched her remarkable winning streak to four with an emphatic display in The Roses (Gr 2, 1800m) at Eagle Farm yesterday.
The Toby and Trent Edmonds-trained Vanna Girl, the second leg of a winning double for the leading Gold Coast stable, rounded out her first racing preparation consisting of ten starts for seven victories.
The $2.10 favourite, Vanna Girl came from well back in the field after drawing barrier 13 to beat Cellarmaid (Husson) ($31) by one and a quarter lengths with Sydney filly Celestial Falls (Hinchinbrook) ($5) a neck away in third place.
Trent Edmonds praised jockey Brad Stewart for his masterful ride on the in-form filly.
“What a ride from Brad. Vanna Girl is so versatile she can lead or get back but you still have to make the right decisions,” Edmonds said.
As for the Husson (Hussonet) filly’s future, first it would be the paddock before connections looked to the Melbourne carnival later this year.
“We will probably concentrate on the fillies and mares races but she will be entered for everything,” Edmonds said.
“Don’t forget this is virtually her first campaign. She has effectively had three weeks off this year.”
Stewart believes Vanna Girl was capable of progressing from her brilliant campaign.
“She is so versatile and there is more to come,” he said.
Vanna Girl (3 f Husson – Logan’s Choice by Redoute’s Choice), who was a $40,000 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale purchase by Edmonds Racing, has won seven races and has earnings of $371,300.
She is a half-sister to former stakes-placed stablemate Plucky Girl (Pluck) and three other winners from six foals to race out of three-time winner Logan’s Choice, who has a yearling filly and a weanling colt by Vinery Stud’s Star Turn (Star Witness).
The Star Turn filly will be offered in the Round 2 session of next month’s Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
“She always had that quality about her, very correct, a lovely head, a real presence but she just took some time to really strengthen up which we expected,’’ Vinery Stud bloodstock manager Adam White said.
“She’s seeing the benefit now of the patience her trainers and connections have shown her. She’s the real deal.
“The half-sister coming to Easter in July, she’s probably a bit more forward, got more strength at this age, and being by Star Turn you’d expect her to get up and go a bit earlier given Star Turn won a race in November of his two-year-old season.
“This filly will no doubt be generating a lot of interest at Riverside in a couple of weeks.’’
Husson, who sired the quinella of The Roses, stands for $5,500 (inc GST) at Aquis Farm’s Queensland base at Canungra.
Smart filly breaks through for important stakes win in Dalrello
A valuable stakes victory for juvenile Smart ‘N’ Sexy (Smart Missile) in yesterday’s Dalrello Stakes (Listed, 1200m) at Eagle Farm could see the in-form Toby and Trent Edmonds stable send the filly for a break.
Smart ‘N’ Sexy showed ability from the beginning of her career, finishing runner-up to subsequent Group-winning filly Away Game (Snitzel) in the Calaway Gal Stakes (Listed, 1110m) before being deemed worthy of a place in the Magic Millions 2YO Classic (RL, 1200m) two starts later.
She came from last first-up in the Bill Carter Stakes (Listed, 1110m) to finish fifth, three-quarters of a length behind September Run (Exceed And Excel), at Doomben on May 30 before scoring yesterday.
In a tight finish under jockey Robbie Fradd, who guided stablemate Tyzone (Written Tycoon) to win the Stradbroke Handicap (Gr 1, 1400m) the previous week, Smart ‘N’ Sexy defeated One Shy Ruby (Rubick) and Be Water My Friend (Headwater).
“Today’s win was a relief. She has been getting terrible barriers and having no luck,” Trent Edmonds said.
“Smart ‘N’ Sexy was overdue for a win. You like to see smart horses rewarded with wins.
“She is a black-type winner now so we might turn her out and bring her back for the Magic Millions Guineas in the summer.”
Fradd was also optimistic about the filly’s future next preparation.
“She might go on to win a really good race,” he said.
Smart ‘N’ Sexy (2 f Smart Missile – Sexy Thing by Mossman), who was purchased by former trainer Liam Birchley for $105,000 on behalf of the Archer Racing syndicate from Book 2 of the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, has raced five times for the Dalrello Stakes success and two seconds. She has returned $106,200 in prize-money so far.
Bred by Gerry Harvey, Smart ‘N’ Sexy is one of two winners for Sexy Thing who is a half-sister to Cranbourne Cup (Listed, 2025m) winner Sermon (Octagonal) and Merson Cooper Stakes (Listed, 1000m) winner Golconda (Snitzel). Her second dam is the four-time stakes winner Eureka Jewel (Semipalatinsk).
Sexy Thing was sent to Harvey’s New Zealand farm Westbury Stud in 2017 and she has a weanling filly by Reliable Man (Dalakhani) and was covered by champion sire Savabeel (Zabeel) last year.
It continues the success of the Twin Hills Stud-based Smart Missile (Fastnet Rock) who is also the sire of Spring Champion Stakes (Gr 1, 2000m) winner Maid Of Heaven, with Group 2 winners Smart Melody and I’ll Have A Bit among his 18 stakes winners.