Races

Runner by Runner: The TABtouch Gold Rush

Posted on | Posted by Scott Embry

1. Kementari (59kg)

Trainer: James Cummings
Jockey: Jamie Kah
Barrier: 11

Special K won this exact race back in 2020 as a 6-year-old when ridden by Chris Parnham (AJ Scahill Stakes, Group 3 WFA 1400) beating Celebrity Queen. Since that time he has won a Group 2 1200 at Flemington (Gilgai Stakes – October 2021), an Open SWP over 1350 at Doomben (The Buffering – January 2022) and a Group 3 SWP 1200 at Randwick (Theo Marks Stakes) across 17 outings. He attacks the inaugural running of The Tabtouch Gold Rush off a 6 week let-up and had a pipe opening trial at Belmont a fortnight ago when looking stylish and sharp. Enigmatic has been the most frequently used adjective to characterise the now 8-year-old and considering he only finished 3L off Giga Kick and 2L off Nature Strip in the Everest two starts ago you’d have to consider him a legitimate winning chance.

2. Vilana (59kg)

Trainer: James Cummings
Jockey: Ben Melham
Barrier: 1

Was backed into favourite in the Group One Winterbottom Stakes (1200m WFA) before being withdrawn after sustaining abrasions to his off fore and failing a vet’s examination on race morning. Now comes into the Gold Rush 28 days between runs, the exact same day spacing that saw him take out the Fred Best Classic over 1400m at Group 3 level at Eagle Farm in May 2022. Winner of the Silver Eagle (1300m SWP 4yo) at Randwick, winner of The Hunter (1300m Quality Handicap) at Newcastle and fixed odds favourite heading into Saturday’s Gold Rush. Could it be a blessing in disguise that he was forced to bypass the Winterbottom allowing Godolphin to swoop in with Paulele and attack the Gold Rush with Vilana & Kementari? Many will agree he is far better suited at 1400m than 1200m, especially at Ascot.

3. Elite Street (59kg)

Trainer: Dan Morton
Jockey: Brad Rawiller
Barrier: 12

Most notably has only been to 1400m once in his life: Group 3 Belmont Sprint (WFA) when jumping a $4.80 chance and finishing seventh beaten 4.7L behind The Velvet King, Valour Road and Dance Music back in May of 2021. His run first-up without a trial in the Colonel Reeves (1100m SWP) left a bit to be desired when he finished fourth behind This’ll Testya, Red Can Man and Indian Pacific but his run in the Winterbottom Stakes was closer to the Elite Street we know and love. He was caught in no mans land for the entirety of the race, effectively leading up the four deep train at stages and still showed the heart to loom on straightening. Was entitled to finish out the back but grit his teeth and finished only 2L off them in sixth. Has to tick the 1400m box but you’d be a brave man to rule him out.

4. The Astrologist (59kg)

Trainer: Leon & Troy Corstens
Jockey: William Pike
Barrier: 5

Was a below par performance in the Winterbottom when going around a $12 chance from a favourable alley with William Pike aboard. Didn’t get a lot of room to move from the 600 but at the same time in replay there were others in a similar boat (Beau Rossa, Stageman etc) who also had to work their way through plenty of traffic and attacked the line better than him. His victories back in June and July 2021 in the Listed All Victorian Sprint Series Final and Group 3 Aurie’s Star were both over 1200m and he makes a rare venture out to 1400m. Thinking they may look to sit up outside of Massimo with a lot of the Winterbottom 1200m speed coming out and that could see him get things a bit more his own way in the Gold Rush.

5. Massimo (59kg)

Trainer: Chris & Michael Gangemi
Jockey: Brad Parnham
Barrier: 2

Hard to argue with his record in the race day conditions as the winner of the 2021 Lee Steere Stakes (Group 2 1400m WFA) and the same race 12 months later renamed the Eurythmic Stakes (Group 2 1400m WFA). Was always going to find the Winterbottom Stakes too sharp but considering the work he did to get across and the beaten margins of the on-speed brigade (Indian Pacific, Massimo, Sniparoochy, Red Can Man) the obvious question arises: did that run completely bottom him out and end his preparation? He’s tough as old boots, gives 110% every time he goes to the races and bounces straight to the lead. Just fear that the Winterbottom run did him more harm than good.

6. Stageman (59kg)

Trainer: Adam Durrant
Jockey: Joseph Azzopardi
Barrier: 14

Is no stranger to this race having competed in the 2019 AJ Scahill (4th beaten 2L) and 2021 AJ Scahill (2nd beaten 0.4L). He’s always going to get back, he’s always going to need luck and ultimately because of his race pattern and his ability to find traffic at crucial stages he has only won the one Listed race in his career (Black Heart Bart Stakes at Belmont in 2020). The run to rate him off for Saturday’s Gold Rush is the 2022 Lee Steere Stakes where he finished fourth behind Massimo, Karli’s Karma and Resortman beaten 2.6L. Has to turn the tables on the locals let alone his highly credentialed interstate rivals.

7. Red Can Man (59kg)

Trainer: Steve Wolfe
Jockey: Shaun McGruddy
Barrier: 3

Returned from a three start Victorian preparation with an 8.7L trial win at Albany in neutral before running second to This’ll Testya in the Colonel Reeves (1100m SWP) beating home Elite Street by 3L. Unfortunately, from ~4:40pm on Tuesday evening after completion of the barrier draw he was impossible in the Winterbottom Stakes having been dealt barrier 16 of 16 in a race with far too much natural speed. Thought he actually did a great job to be beaten under 5L all things considered, but you do need to ask yourself a similar question to the one posed of Massimo, was that a preparation ending type of run? Doesn’t know how to run a bad race and WFA 1400m racing has been kind to him over the years: second to Kay Cee (beating home Kementari) in the 2020 Lee Steere Stakes, third to Sierra Sue in the 2021 PB Lawrence Stakes (beating home Superstorm) and second to God Has Chosen in the 2022 Belmont Sprint.

8. Comfort Me (59kg)

Trainer: Rhys Radford
Jockey: Peter Knuckey
Barrier: 9

m103 rater who has only won to 72+ grade. Copped 13 points for running a distant second to Western Empire in the 2021 Railway Stakes and produced another ripper in the 2022 Railway Stakes when finishing 1.7L behind Trix Of The Trade in second. Possibly one of the keys to those performances were the 53kg in 2021 and 54kg in 2022, because if you rewatch his run in the 2022 Lee Steere Stakes when fifth beaten 2.6L behind Massimo, Karli’s Karma, Resortman and Stageman you would have to make the assertion that WFA is simply not his go? He did win a 72+ with 60.5kg on his back, but at the same time, he was beaten in three consecutive Class One races back in 2020 with 60kg & 60.5kg on his back. Deserves to win a Feature and now that Handicaps are out of the question he either needs to rise to the occasion at WFA or they’ll need to pick out the SWP races on the calendar.

9. Resortman (59kg)

Trainer: Michael Lane
Jockey: Damien Oliver
Barrier: 10

Could his preparation get any better? Resumed as a m83 rater in the Beaufine Stakes (1000m) at Belmont Park on 9 July. Fast forward five months and he is having his 9th run of the preparation and is now a m107 rater who has added an H.G Bolton Stakes (1200 Handicap), Idyllic Prince Stakes (1300 WFA), Farnley Stakes (1400 Handicap) and Eurythmic Stakes (1400 SWP) to a previously blank feature race CV. Michael Lane has done an incredible job to keep him peaking for so long and he now enjoys massive weight swings on Railway rivals to the tune of 3kg on Comfort Me and 2kg on Karli’s Karma. The fact that connections have called on Damien Oliver gives you confidence in the fact he’s still flying. Fourth in the Railway with top weight; what a remarkable effort.

10. Beau Rossa (59kg)

Trainer: Will Clarken
Jockey: Todd Pannell
Barrier: 8

One of the hard luck stories in the Winterbottom Stakes and a replay watch which gets better and better each and every time. In August 2021 he finished second to Behemoth at WFA over 1400m in the Group 1 Memsie at Caulfield when sitting close handy from an inside gate (barrier 1). He is the kind of horse who can ride the speed and produce at the right time on straightening. He never got a crack at them in the Winterbottom until the race was all over and he looked to have plenty left in the tank. Todd Pannell knows his strengths and stepping out to the 1400m in a race with far less speed than the Winterbottom it’s reasonable to expect that he’ll settle many pairs closer in the run. Big improver at odds who goes into the Gold Rush third-up, the same point in his preparation from which he produced his big runner-up Memsie performance.

11. Hot Zed (59kg)

Trainer: Lou Luciani
Jockey: Jason Whiting
Barrier: 13

Ultimate under the radar giant killer type. This time last year he had just picked up his first Listed Success winning the Carbine Club (1400m SWP) with just 55kg beating Son Of A God in a two horse war down the home straight. Since then he has added a Scenic Blast Stakes (1200 Handicap) and a 78+ with 61.5kg. He went into the Winterbottom Stakes as a drifting 70-1 chance and with an ounce more luck at a crucial stage in the home straight you can make a legitimate case for him finishing in the money in a WFA Group One. He’s quite simply fool proof and while he’ll go round a similar quote in the Gold Rush it wouldn’t surprise to see him bob up again and remind us (for the 29th time) that he’s a bloody good horse.

12. Titan Blinders (59kg)

Trainer: Chris & Michael Gangemi
Jockey: Laqdar Ramoly
Barrier: 6

Gained a start as E1 in the Winterbottom Stakes with the scratching of Vilana. Went around the roughie of the field as a $126 chance and actually somewhat held his own to only be beaten 4L. Three starts ago in the Eurythmic Stakes (1400 SWP) he split Resortman and Massimo with Comfort Me in fourth in what was arguably his best WA run (dead heat with his Hannans Handicap effort). He’s not suited at WFA and regular rider Shaun O’Donnell wouldn’t have had two thoughts about siding up with Karli’s Karma over him. Another great example of Chris & Michael Gangemi’s ability to rejuvenate older tried horses and give new connections a huge thrill but in the Gold Rush he’ll go round triple figures.

13. Minsk Moment (59kg)

Trainer: Adam Durrant
Jockey: Clint Johnston-Porter
Barrier: 17

Was purchased by new connections in the 2022 Inglis May Online Sale for $400,000. After that sale date he had four starts on the East Coast, winning a BM84 at Geelong on Geelong Cup Day on his way to Western Australia. At his first WA start, and his fifth run of the preparation, they recuperated another $68,500 when he won the Carbine Club Stakes (1400 SWP). 4-year-old entire who has already proven a handy acquisition. They have a throw at the stumps here in the Gold Rush and race him at WFA for the first time in his life. You’d think that at this stage of his career he’s probably more of a Bunbury Stakes/Pinjarra Classic type in February/March 2023 but you can also understand having a crack at the riches on offer.

14. Kissonallforcheeks (57kg)

Trainer: Dan Morton
Jockey: Chris Parnham
Barrier: 7

Ran third in the 2021 Railway Stakes (1600 Handicap) and Kingston Town Classic (1800 WFA) and has seemingly gone to another level in the following 12 months. The two time Eastern States Group winner (Group 3 1400 Shaftesbury Avenue and Group 2 1400 Mares Let’s Elope Stakes) has put her on the map nationally and her run in the Group One Winterbottom Stakes (1200 WFA) when second to Paulele was career best. She looked home at the 150m when exploding to the lead before being gunned down in the final stride by the Godolphin entire. She’s a highly versatile mare but when you look across her illustrious career record 1400m seem to be her absolute sweet spot. She looks an excellent eachway bet off her run in the Winterbottom.

15. This’ll Testya (57kg)

Trainer: Mitchell Pateman
Jockey: Lucy Warwick
Barrier: 16

Is in career best form as a 7-year-old mare – rare. After winning her first Black Type race in February 2022 (Cyril Flower 1200m Handicap) when beating Kissonallforcheeks (with a 6.5kg pull in the weights) trainer Mitchell Pateman dared to dream about running her in a Winterbottom Stakes. There were no shortage of doubters in the following days, weeks and months but from the moment she set foot at Lark Hill trials in September you could sense she was in for a huge preparation. Scored a hugely deserving win in the Colonel Reeves (1100 SWP) and then everything that could go wrong did go wrong on Grand Final Day when she dipped her head as the gates opened and was spat out the back to a completely foreign and unfamiliar position in running. Showed versatility that nobody knew was even there by running home into third and now steps into unchartered territory at 1400m. Older mare in the form of her life, why not?

16. Karli’s Karma (57kg)

Trainer: Summer Dickson
Jockey: Shaun O’Donnell
Barrier: 4

Had her first public appearance for her new trainer Summer Dickson in September when winning a barrier trial in the most impressive and emphatic fashion possible: sitting three deep and powering away in style. Didn’t let punters down first-up in a lowly restricted handicap (No Metro Wins Last Year) and then 3 weeks later demolished ratings opposition in a 66+ by over 3L to burst onto the scene as a genuine Railway Stakes hope. Didn’t get a start in the Asian Beau as E1 and was forced into the Lee Steere Stakes when producing a career best WFA 1400m second to Massimo 28 days between runs. Went around on the second line of betting in the Railway but ended up cluttered away in between horses unable to move freely which is her characteristic trait. Will divide opinions. Be forgiving.

SELECTION: KISSONALLFORCHEEKS

Her run in the Winterbottom Stakes was too good not to follow into the inaugural running of The TABtouch-Gold Rush. She was only gunned down late by a horse who had her back throughout and the step to 1400m looks like the perfect assignment for her. Now that she’s also drawn a barrier to work with she looks like an attractive eachway bet in a quality race. Don’t be shocked if it’s the stablemate who looms as the biggest local danger with huge respect for the Godolphin pair Vilana and Kementari.

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